BSNL and Micromax have recently associated for the launch of a 4G feature phone called as the Micromax Bharat-1 in India. The phone will compete with Reliance JioPhone and the recently launched Karbonn A40 Indian which is a budget Android smartphone powered by Airtel. The Micromax Bharat-1 is priced at 2200 in India.
The Bharat-1 will be made available for purchase from October 20 in India. The company is touting the phone as ‘Desh ka 4G phone’ and there is a reason behind that. The Bharat-1 phone is eligible for unlimited voice calls and unlimited high-speed internet on BSNL network with Rs 97 tariff.
The combination of such tariff and handset is certainly not new in the Indian market; still, there is an opportunity to drive digital India initiative.
Micromax Bharat-1: Specifications
It is a standard feature phone and comes equipped with a Qualcomm Snapdragon chipset which supports 4G VoLTE connectivity. The device features a 2.4-inch QVGA display and has a 512MB RAM clubbed with 4GB internal storage. For photography, there is a 2MP primary rear camera alongside a VGA camera on the front.
The Micromax Bharat-1 is powered by a 2000mAh battery. It is a dual-SIM mobile. Micromax has provided support for 22 local languages and the users can access 100 live TV channels. Moreover, the users can also enjoy tons of songs and videos on the handset.
Micromax Bharat-1 Vs Reliance JioPhone
With the Bharat-1 phone, the users will have to make tariff of Rs 97 to enjoy the usage benefits from BSNL. On the other hand, the Reliance JioPhone requires a minimum recharge of Rs 153 to enjoy the Jio services.
During the launch, Rahul Sharma, co-founder of Micromax, said that the Bharat-1 will cost less than the Reliance JioPhone in long run. The effective cost of the Bharat-1 will be Rs 3,364 for usage in the first year; in contrast, the Reliance JioPhone would require spending of Rs 3,336 for one year. While this said, the JioPhone will cost Rs 5,172 for two years, whereas the Bharat-1 will just cost Rs 4,528 for the same period.
Furthermore, for three years, the Bharat-1 will cost users Rs 5,692, whereas the JioPhone will cost them Rs 6,008 for the same period.
Separately, Airtel has also partnered 4G phone brand in India. The company has joined Karbonn as its partner to launch Karbonn A40 Indian 4G smartphone. The phone is available for an ‘effective price’ of Rs 1,399. Furthermore, the phone is a part of ‘Mera Pehla 4G Smartphone’ initiative. It’s worth mentioning that the buyers will have to make a down payment of Rs 2,899 upfront.