How Smartphones Got Cheap

How Smartphones Got Cheap 2002 - Nokia launches the first Symbian smartphone is India: the 7650 at Rs 36,000 approximately. 2004 - Research In Motion enters India with BlackBerry 7730 BlackBerry 7230 and BlackBerry 6230. Their price range is Rs 18,000-32,000. 2009 - Post-paid plans for BlackBerry Internet Services average Rs 1,200 a month. High recurrent costs prevents penetration of handsets in India. HTC and Bharti Airtel bring the first Android phone to India: HTC Magic, priced at Rs 29,990. BlackBerry launches Curve 8520 at Rs 14,990. market perception about the brand shifts from a "senior management" only phone. 2010 - Acer beTouch E110 ushers in the era of sub Rs 10,000 Android phones. A huge hit among the urban and rural customers. Micromax launches Andro A 60 for Rs 6,900. Indian manufacturers enter the high-end market by buying off-the-shelf designs from Chinese manufacturers. 2011 - Idea launches 3G smartphone, the cheapest Android-powered phone for Rs 5,850. Bundles with 3G services, claims the effective price is Rs 2,609. BlackBerry slashes price of Curve to Rs 9,990. Students buy smartphones to "BBM" friends. 2012 - BlackBerry Go BBM plan now available for Rs 129 a month. Pre-paid users can access the plan for just Rs 5 a day. Spice Mobility slashes price of Android Froyo-based Mi-270 smartphone to Rs 3,399 setting a new benchmark for cheap smartphones in India. The Future Trick Lower the cost of the most expensive components: Processor, Display/LCD Panels, Memory, Camera, Software, Phone Case In-Stat, a global research and analysis firm, says component prices of smartphones dropped dramatically in 2010. This was possible largely due to integration of GPS, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and sometimes FM radio onto a single chip. It predicts that by 2015, Android will ship 339 million smartphones under $150. Gartner claims that by 2015, 67% of all open OS devices will have an average selling price of $300 or below.