Google’s Android One initiative might not have been as big of a success as the company had hoped for, but it has continued to expand the program to other emerging smartphone markets of the world. Now, according to a report from ET Tech, Google will be releasing a new Android One smartphone in India on July 14. The handset will be reportedly manufactured by Lava and feature a chipset from MediaTek. For the first generation Android One smartphones, Indian OEMs could not play a part in designing the handset. Ultimately, their poor build quality and design was among the major reasons for their failure among consumers. This time around though, Lava is having a say in the handset’s design and features along with MediaTek and Google. The second generation Android one smartphone from Lava will feature a 5-inch 720p display and 2GB RAM, which will be a huge step up in terms of specifications from the first generation Android One devices. However, it will also come with a hefty price tag of Rs. 12,000 — making it twice as costly as its predecessors. Being an Android One branded smartphone, the handset will receive direct OS updates from Google. Another reason for the failure of first generation Android One smartphones was their limited availability. This time around, Google will be making the handset available through offline and online channels so that interested consumers can buy it easily. Google will be releasing the new smartphone on July 12 and the launch event is expected to be attended by many high profile Google executives.
