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It was just a few months ago that Google announced their Android One program, an ambitious project that saw the search giant team up with handset makers to bring the power of Android to the next billion users. The Android One program is being launched in India first, with Karbonn, Spice and Micromax providing the initial offerings, and you can read more about the Android One program in general here (Thanks Tom!). Spice and Karbonn announced the fruits of their labour earlier, and here we can see what Micromax has brought to the Android One table.
Micromax have named their Android One handset the Canvas A1, and it features pretty much the same specifications as its brethren, with the 4.5-inch IPS display with a 480 x 854p resolution (FWVGA). A Quad-Core MediaTek processor that is clocked at 1.3GHz is providing the muscle, with graphics provided by the Mali-400MP GPU. 1GB of RAM is available for multi-tasking. As is common with smart phones aimed at the Indian market, Dual-SIM’s are supported, along with WiFi, 3G, A-GPS, FM Radio and Bluetooth 4.0. The battery has a 1,700 mAh capacity, its not huge, but it should get the phone through the day.
The phone has a relatively small 4GB of internal storage but this can be augmented by up to 32GB thanks to the included Micro-SD slot. And in case that isn’t quite enough storage, there is 35GB of Google Drive space thrown in free of charge. A 2MP front-facing camera is on selfie duty, with the rear sporting a 5MP camera with a LED flash that is capable of Full-HD video capture.
One of the great features about the Android One program is that the firmware comes directly from Google. This is particularly important because it means that the Android One handsets will launch running Android version 4.4.4 KitKat, with updates being pushed by Google themselves. This avoids the usual delays in updates being released by the manufacturer and gives the Android One program an advantage over its competitors. One other feature worth noting, is that like the other Android One handsets being launched today, the Micromax Canvas A1 will receive 200MB of data free from the Airtel telecoms operator.
So how much is the A1? Well, it’s set to go on sale exclusively for a while via Amazon India for Rs.6,399 ($104) in black or white, but it should be available in your favourite (mobile) retail shops before Diwali if you prefer to touch and feel the product before purchasing. This is just the first wave of Android One handsets, so keep your eyes peeled for more news on the program’s new partners. Which of the Android One handsets would you choose? Let us know in the comments or at our Google Plus page.