Vodafone UK has today unveiled a new entry level Android phone for the pay-as-you-go market, in the shape of the Vodafone Smart. The Smart is indeed the same Huawei-made Vodafone 858 we discovered a few weeks back, only with a more memorable name.
You get Android 2.2 behind a capacitive 2.8″ touchscreen, in a curved little body. The Vodafone Smart is launching “early summer” across Europe and the UK for a price of around €90.
It’ll come in lots of colours, with Vodafone promising some sort of online cover customisation service for making your own. Or you can just buy one in…
…white. There’s an online feature demo here, and a video of a lovely lady from Vodafone giving us a quick walkthrough of the phone’s features below…
And here’s the press release:
Vodafone Announces the Vodafone Smart – A Smartphone for Everyone
16 May 2011
Vodafone today announces the launch of the Vodafone Smart, the latest handset in its own-brand range and the first in its category: a fully-featured smartphone with popular appeal for the next wave of data users.
The Vodafone Smart delivers a compelling smartphone experience, empowering customers to enter the world of the mobile internet, bringing together apps, navigation, social-networking and multimedia, all at a great price, in a great package.
Patrick Chomet, Vodafone Group Terminals Director said, “More and more Vodafone customers are enjoying the benefits of smartphones which currently account for over 40% of the phones we sell in Europe. Continuing to push the boundaries through our own-brand range, the Vodafone Smart is a new smartphone concept. It takes the higher end mobile internet experience and packages it for the mass market, its range of covers and accessories making it a fun fashion statement. Available on pay as you go plans, and on the fast, reliable Vodafone networks, the Vodafone Smart is a great step-up into the world of mobile data.”
The Vodafone Smart will be rolled out in a range of colours – from cool monochromes, through bold brights, to bespoke graphic designs. What’s more, customers will be able to personalise their phone, creating their own one-off covers on the web. With spring/summer and autumn/winter cover ranges planned, customers can build up a cover collection to suit their style and spirit.
The Android 2.2 software will give customers access to the full Android experience, including the Android Market™, Gmail™, Google Maps™ and Google Talk™ instant messaging. In addition, the phone has a zoom camera and a capacitive touchscreen as well as 3G, WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity.
The Vodafone design team have created the user experience with first-time smartphone users in mind and, as such, the homescreen comes pre-loaded with direct links to key content and features including Facebook™, Twitter™, email, Vodafone’s ‘Prepay Manager’ for quick top-ups, Vodafone Music and finally the ‘Updates’ widget, which gives customers easy access to a shortlist of leading Android Market apps and other services selected by local Vodafone editors.
The Vodafone Smart will be available across the Vodafone footprint by early summer. Germany, Italy and the UK will be among the first to sell the phone which will retail for around €90.
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