Google's latest Android One initiative was launched in India last year. Though it never really posed that big a threat to its immediate rivals in the budget segment, it still was a great proposition for Google to deliver Android handsets at affordable prices. It seems the initiative has now made its mark in Indonesia.
At the moment, the Android One page for Indonesia is showing Android 5.1 Lollipop to Android One smartphones. This is in line with a Google spokesperson's statement on Wednesday, which said the Android 5.0 Lollipop update for Android One smartphones in India will roll out next week.
According to a recent report, courtesy Android Pit, new Android One devices are being shipped to Indonesia with pre-loaded Android 5.1. The report also throws light on some of the new features for Android 5.1, stating that the update has a new silent mode (missing in Android 5.0), improved RAM and battery management, and general improvements in system stability.
The updated Android Lollipop OS is also said to solve issues related to WIFI, Okay Google, along with several other notification issues, with "changes in the Material Design color palette," says the report.
For those who are not quite aware of Google's Android One initiative, Google announced the program back in 2014 at the Google IO to help companies make and sell cheaper Android smartphones. The program was later launched in India with as many as three different phone-makers in the mix.
As of now, smartphones in India that are in the Android One mix of things include Micromax Canvas A1, Karbonn Sparkle V, and Spice Dream Uno. All these handsets look identical and come with equal specs and features.
As we have mentioned earlier, Android One has struggled with sales in India. While the three phones produced by Micromax, Spice and Karbonn were initially available exclusively online, it didn't really make any impact. Although it was later made available to retailers across India, but major retailers refused to stock the phones.
And further, going by an earlier Economic Times report, as many as eight major electronics retailers in India including Tata-owned Croma, Future Group, Planet MRetail and Next Retail, BigC, Lot Mobiles, Reliance Retail and Sangeetha Mobiles (1,800 stores between them) had not stocked any of the three Android One smartphones.
One can only hope that with the upcoming updated Android Lollipop platform reaching the handsets, more business will follow in the next few months for the Android One program in India. Stay tuned for more updates!
