JioPhone Next to be up for sale this Diwali at Rs 6,499 a piece; EMIs available

On Friday, Jio and Google announced that its latest JioPhone Next 4G smartphone will be available this Diwali for Rs 6,499 per unit for customers willing to purchase it without a financing option.

Jio is also giving a finance option for the JioPhone Next, where users can make a down payment of Rs 1,999 and pay the rest in EMIs spread over 18-24 months, the company said in a joint statement.

"This is the first time that a phone in the entry-level category is getting a financing option. This makes the entry price extremely affordable and almost equal in price to a feature phone," the joint statement said.

JioPhone Next, built on the Qualcomm chipset, will be available across India on JioMart Digital retail stores. Billed as the world's most affordable smartphone, the JioPhone Next features capabilities that target the common man’s taste in smartphones.

'“I am delighted that Google and Jio teams have succeeded in bringing this breakthrough device to Indian consumers in time for the festival season, in spite of the current global supply chain challenges caused by the COVID pandemic," Reliance Industries Ltd Chairman and Managing Director Mukesh D Ambani, said in a statement.

The phone which hosts features like automatic read-aloud of screen text, language translation, smart camera with augmented reality filters, and voice assistant among others, is being looked at as the ‘next big thing’ in the Indian market.

The company is offering data and talk-time bundled with EMI payments for the JioPhone Next.

"I have always been a firm believer in the power of the Digital Revolution to enrich, enable and empower the lives of 1.35 billion Indians. We have done it in the past with connectivity. Now, we are enabling it again with a smartphone device," Ambani said.

Earlier, Mukesh Ambani had asserted that an ultra-affordable 4G smartphone is essential to make India '2G-mukt' (free of 2G). 

JioPhone Next release date

JioPhone Next is all set to roll out this Diwali, which falls on November 4. The phone was initially announced to launch by September 10. However, the company later decided on a wider rollout during the festive season.

Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai on October 26, said that the upcoming launch of JioPhone Next will be a major impact on the country. Co-developed by Google India with Reliance, Pichai said that the phone will have a massive effect over a three-five year time frame. 

(Image: Reliance Jio)