China-based mobile handset maker OnePlus is ready to enter the Indian market. Carl Pei, director of OnePlus Global, wrote on the OnePlus forums that a general manager for India has been appointed and business negotiations have materialised. Indian consumers will soon be able to purchase the OnePlus One handset.
OnePlus announced its plans to enter the Indian market in late August. The identity of the company’s new GM for India is under wraps, but the company promises OnePlus One will launch by end of this month.
Another post in the forums noted that India will be added to the list of countries that the OnePlus One will ship to soon. Pre-orders for Indian consumers will commence by the end of October. The company said that it will share more details via official social media channels a week before pre-orders begin.
OnePlus is following the same pre-order strategy offered by several handset makers in India in the past year, like Motorola, ASUS, and Xiaomi. However, the company has not announced any tie-ups with leading ecommerce portals for the sale of the handset.
The OnePlus One handset is expected to cost around INR25,000 (US$408). See our review of the OnePlus One. Check out the specifications below:
- 5.5-inch LTPS LCD display with 1920 x 1080 resolution
- Android 4.4.2 KitKat based Cyanogen 11S mod
- Quad-core 2.5 Ghz Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 mobile chipset
- 3 GB RAM, 16 GB/ 42 GB storage options, no card slot
- 13MP rear camera, 5MP front camera
- Bluetooth 4.1, NFC
- 3100 mAh non-removable battery
- 4G LTE, 3G, 2G network support with micro SIM
- 152.9 mm x 75.9 mm x 8.9 mm
- 162 grams
Another Chinese handset maker, Xiaomi, tasted some recent success with flash sales for its Mi3 smartphone – but also faces a catch-22 situation in India due to a low volume of available units against strong demand during such events. It’s likely that OnePlus has taken note, and may not be entering with the “purchase via invite-only” strategy it’s employed so far. Several other concerns remain unanswered, such as after-sales support and whether the company has tied-up with Indian third party mobile repair centers.
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