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Taiwanese smartphone maker Asus on Tuesday (27 January) launched a new budget handset Zenfone C.

The new Zenfone C is understood to be the new variant of Zenfone 4 series smartphone which was launched in mid-2014.

It will be initially made available in Malaysia for RM 349 (around $97/€86/₹5,550), reported Soya Cincau, a local media house.

Zenfone C's exterior body design and most of its internal hardware are identical to the Zenfone 4 (A450CG) model sans the battery specifications. The formerhouses 2100 mAh cell, whereas the latter ships with 1750 mAh battery.

Other stipulated features of Zenfone C include 4.5-inch TF LED Backlight FWVGA screen, Android 4.4 KitKat OS, 1.2Gz Intel Atom processor, 1GB RAM and 8GB inbuilt memory.

Asus Zenfone C's probable India launch 

Yes, we believe Asus will launch the budget Zenfone C in India sooner or later. Lately, the Taiwanese firm is trying to imitate the business model of the India's reigning smartphone leader Samsung that offers Galaxy Series handset in varied price-range.

[Read more: New Asus Zenfone 5 Variant with Dual-Core Intel Atom SoC Released in India]

Last week, Asus launched third Zenfone 5 (A501CG). With the new model, the company now offers Zenfone 5 with price ranging between ₹7,999 and ₹9,999. It's just a matter of matter of days or weeks for Asus to release budget Zenfone C in India.

Key specifications of Asus Zenfone C:

Model Asus Zenfone C
Display 4.5-inch TFT LED Backlight FWVGA (854x480p) screen
OS Android 4.4 KitKat with Zen UI
Processor 1.2GHz Intel Atom (Z2520) Multi-core CPU
RAM 1GB LPDDR 2
Storage capacity 8GB eMMC , expandable up to 64GB
Camera Main: 5.0-megapixel camera with LED flash, f/2.0 apertureFront: 0.3-megapixe VGA camera with f/2.8 aperture
Battery 2100 mAh; Other optional model will come with 2160 mAh cell
Network 2G & 3G
Add-ons Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi (802.11 a/b/g/n), A-GPS/GLONASS, microSD card slot, micro-USB v2.0,
Dimensions 136.5 x 67.0 x 10.9 mm
Weight 149 g
colours Black, white and red
Price (Malaysia- Ringgit) RM 349 (around $97/€86/₹5,550)

[via AndroidOS.in]