Image used with permission by copyright holderXiaomi may be adapting a version of the Mi 5X for use with Android One, according to an anonymous source speaking to Indonesian publication krispitech.com. Android One is Google’s software for low-cost smartphones sold in fast growing markets around the world. Smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi, if it does make such a device, could provide the interesting platform with the cool hardware and broad appeal it has always lacked.
It’s not clear where the supposed Xiaomi Android One phone would be sold, but Indonesia is one of the countries where Android One phones have already been sold, and one of Xiaomi’s international markets. The Xiaomi Mi 5X is a recent announcement, and is a considerably more technically impressive device than most Android One phones, with a 5.5-inch screen, a Snapdragon 625 chip with 4GB of RAM, and a dual-lens rear camera.
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Until now, Google has partnered with local smartphone brands for Android One, including Micromax in India, Sharp in Japan, and General Mobile in Turkey. Android One phones are not sold in China, where Xiaomi is most successful. Xiaomi doesn’t sell its smartphones in the United States either, but there have been rumors Android One would come to the U.S. this year, with a device priced at between two or three times more than the usual $100 Android One phones. The Mi 5X’s price is around this point.
Could Android One be Xiaomi’s way into the United States? There’s no evidence to support this yet, and Xiaomi is dedicated to its own MIUI user interface it places over Google Android, from which it makes a considerable amount of money as a portal to its many online services. Dropping it in favor of bloatware-free Android One, just to get its hardware on sale in the United States, may not be a realistic strategy for the company.
The reason why a Xiaomi Android One phone may not come to the U.S., is the same one repeated for whether Xiaomi will make an Android One phone at all. It has likely had the chance to do so from the very beginning of Android One’s life in 2014, as it successfully sells devices in smartphone-hungry India, where Android One was also pushed hard early on. If Xiaomi was interested in dropping MIUI for Android One, the chance may have already come and gone. Changing its mind now, especially with the more interesting Android Go on the horizon, would be a surprise.
We’ll keep you updated on how this rumor develops here.
AT&T just made it a lot easier to upgrade your phone
Do you want to upgrade your phone more than once a year? What about three times a year? Are you on AT&T? If you answered yes to those questions, then AT&T’s new “Next Up Anytime” early upgrade program is made for you. With this add-on, you’ll be able to upgrade your phone three times a year for just $10 extra every month. It will be available starting July 16.
Currently, AT&T has its “Next Up” add-on, which has been available for the past several years. This program costs $6 extra per month and lets you upgrade by trading in your existing phone after at least half of it is paid off. But the new Next Up Anytime option gives you some more flexibility.
Motorola is selling unlocked smartphones for just $150 today
Have you been looking for phone deals but don’t want to spend a ton of money on flagship devices from Apple and Samsung? Have you ever considered investing in an unlocked Motorola? For a limited time, the company is offering a $100 markdown on the Motorola Moto G 5G. It can be yours for just $150, and your days and nights of phone-shopping will finally be over!
Why you should buy the Motorola Moto G 5G
Powered by the Snapdragon 480+ 5G CPU and 4GB of RAM, the Moto G delivers exceptional performance across the board. From UI navigation to apps, games, and camera functions, you can expect fast load times, next to no buffering, and smooth animations. You’ll also get up to 128GB of internal storage that you’ll be able to use for photos, videos, music, and any other mobile content you can store locally.
The Nokia 3210 is the worst phone I’ve used in 2024
Where do I even start with the Nokia 3210? Not the original, which was one of the coolest phones to own back in a time when Star Wars: Episode 1 -- The Phantom Menace wasn’t even a thing, but the latest 2024 reissue that has come along to save us all from digital overload, the horror of social media, and the endless distraction that is the modern smartphone.
Except behind this facade of marketing-friendly do-goodery hides a weapon of torture, a device so foul that I’d rather sit through multiple showings of Jar Jar Binks and the gang hopelessly trying to bring back the magic of A New Hope than use it.
The Nokia 3210 really is that bad
