New Delhi,  September 16 2014:   Google has followed its unveiling of the Android One platform for phones, with the global launch from India, of the first handsets made to its desigbn specification.  The launch event  here yesterday saw  three leading Indian mobile phone manufacturers, unveil their handsets  and tie up, each with a leading online vendor:
The Karbonn Sparkle V  is available online exclusively at Snapdeal; the Micromax Canvas A1 at Amazon; and the Spice Dream UNO  at Flipkart. Prices start at Rs 6399.
The Android One phones run the latest version of Android ( currently, it is 4.4 KitKat). They will be some of the first phones to get the new Android L release — an update that will offer Google’s new material design, improved battery life, enhanced security features, and smarter notifications. In terms of hardware, the phones feature front- and rear-facing cameras, 1G of memory, fast quad-core MediaTek processor, long battery life as well as features important to Indians, including dual SIM slots, a FM radio tuner, and a microSD card slot for additional storage. Google apps such as Gmail, Google Maps, YouTube, Google Search, and Google Translate will come pre-loaded on the phones.
Indian service provider, Airtel is offering a promotion: With an Airtel SIM card, Android One users will get free over-the-air (OTA) updates, and 200MB per month worth of app downloads from Google Play for the first six months — all without counting toward their mobile data plan. Additionally, a data compression feature on Android One’s Chrome browser will help compress the amount of data flowing between the phone and the Internet. 
Google also announced that in coming weeks much of YouTube will be available offline in India, meaning that people can store videos in the YouTube app when they are on WiFi and watch them later — a great benefit for times with a slow connection or re-watching videos without using up the data plan.
The first set of Android One devices features MediaTek’s MT6582  Mobile System-on-Chip (Mobile SoC) based on quad ARM Cortex  A7 processors. The processors are managed by MediaTek’s CorePilotTM technology, an advanced scheduler algorithm with adaptive thermal and interactive power management that delivers superior multi-tasking performance and excellent sustained performance-per-watt for a premium mobile experience. 
Spice Retail's  smartphone Spice Dream Uno is a dual sim 3G smart device is powered with a 1.3GHz Quad core Processor, and runs on 4.4.4 Kitkat, IPS Display with 11.43 cm screen, 5 MP AF + 2 MP camera, with LEd Flash, 4GB ROM + 1GB RAM, 1700 mAh Li-Polymer battery, Wi-Fi, HSPA+, Bluetooth, FM Radio, Voice based search,Sensors: Gyro, magnetic, light & proximity. (Rs 6399).
Features of Karbonn Sparkle V: 11.43cm (4.5”) FWVGA IPS Display,Android OS 4.4 Kit Kat , 1.3 GHz Quad Core Processor,  1 GB RAM; 4GB ROM, Expandable upto 32GB, 5MP Rear & 2MP Front Camera, G-Sensor, Proximity, Light, Gyro & Magnetic Sensor for accurate user-device interaction,  1700 mAh Li-Po Battery,  GPS Navigation; Wi-Fi b/g/n, Dual SIM (3G+2G), FM Radio ( Rs 6399)
Micromax Canvas A1: Android kitkat 4.4.4; 11.43 cm(4.5) screen;  Cameras: 5MP AF Rear(2560X1920) ; 2MP FF(1600X1200)(front); 1.3GHz Quad core; 1700 mAh battery; Bluetooth 4.0/USB/Wi-Fi; 1GB EAM, 4GB ROM, Expandable Memory     32 GB  ( Rs 6499)
Said Sundar Pichai, Google Senior Vice President of Android, Chrome & Apps: “If we look at how people are getting online and accessing information today, increasingly it’s through a smartphone. While 1.75 billion people around the world already have a smartphone, the vast majority of the world’s population—over five billion more—do not. By working closely with phone and silicon chip makers to share reference designs and select components, we’re making it easier for our partners to build phones that are not just great to use, but also affordable. With Android One, we not only want to help people get online, we want to make sure that when they get there, they can tap into the wealth of information and knowledge the web holds for everyone.”
 Pichai also announced an expanded set of hardware partners for the Android One initiative, including Acer, Alcatel Onetouch, ASUS, HTC, Intex, Lava, Lenovo, Panasonic, and Xolo, as well as chipmaker Qualcomm. Google also  announced that Android One phones will launch in Indonesia, the Philippines, and other countries in South Asia by the end of the year.
 Praveen Bhadada, Senior Director, Partner & Practice Head, Zinnov comments:  "AndroidOne is a great new beginning and a sign of strategic importance that Google is giving to the Indian market for its mobile play. We believe that Google has got the strategy right by offering a low cost device with quality hardware specs, free data (for apps & YouTube etc.) and free content subscriptions for users. We expect AndroidOne to standardise the smartphone experience across users and drive millions of feature phone users to adopt smartphones in the near future. This opens up tremendous opportunities for device manufacturers, data service providers, app developers and technology retailers in India and other similar emerging markets."
For launch picture, inside view of phone,  Android One FAQ:  see our Image of the Day