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And we are finally here. The date set was September 15. And September 15 it is that Android One has been made official in India. The new initiative has been made a possibility with the release of as many as three new handsets: Spice Android One Dream Uno, Karbonn Android One Sparkle V Red and Micromax Canvas A1.
Of all the three, we already have the new Spice handset with us. Dubbed Spice Android One Dream Uno, the new handset is one among many to pave a way for future smartphones to follow under the Android One initiative. And honestly it looks quite the treat.
Spice has been one of the several companies to have taken advantage of Google's new partnership policies in introducing KitKat smartphones for all. And as noble a policy as that might seem, it's actually wonderful to see Google aiming the last remaining un-Android users to adopt the platform.
As we mentioned before, we have already got a unit of the handset that Spice sent over for review. And we just started messing around with it to find out about its true potential. So here's a first look for the new Spice Android One Dream Uno.
Spice Android One Dream Uno Hands-On and First Look: Form Factor and Operating System
The handset comes packed in a neat little box that highlights the fact that the handset is a part of the Android One initiative. And as expected, the box contains a charger, a USB cable and earphones, apart from the handset.
We mentioned this before, and we are mentioning it once more. We were slightly taken aback by the kind of similarity the handset strikes with the popular Nexus 5. Without ant disrespect to anyone, we have seen handsets made by Spice in the past which weren't really, well, notable. But this one is an entirely different deal altogether.
The handset's IPS display supports impressive color saturation and reproduction that stands tall with most other smartphones in the same range, if not better. But in that price range, we are sure you will like what you see from the handset's color capabilities.
In terms of the overall form factor, the device seems and feels pretty sturdy for a potential "made in India" tag. The front is pretty simple with the front-facing camera just gracing the front.
At the back, there's the primary camera with the flash for it just placed below. There's also Spice tag in the middle followed by Android One further down.
Recommended: Google Launches Spice Dream Uno Mi-498 Android One Phone At Rs 6,999
The handset feels quite sturdy in hand and its somewhat matte finish in the back offers a kind of grip, making sure you don't drop the handset accidently.
However, taking off the back panel, it still feels like cheap plastic. Definitely an area Spice thought about leaving out of its plans. Even the SIM slots felt a bit clanky.
As far as the operarting system is concerned, the handset runs on the latest Android KitKat. And this was anyway expected as the entire deal with Android One is to offer the KitKat OS in the lowest price tag. So expect all the goodies of KitKat.
