Aussie sez he'll produce a $199 Android phone by December 15th

And so, it begins. A young, entrepreneurial Australian apparently thinks he has the chops to assemble an Android-powered handset in just over a month, and better still, he expects to sell it for just $199. Reportedly, this whiz-kid (25-year old Ruslan Kogan) offers up a variety of "Kogan-branded" kit that he has built directly for him in China, and presumably, he's hoping to do the same with a Google-fied cellie. Wondering what it'll look like? "Similar to the iPhone," meaning a touchscreen-based device with WiFi, Bluetooth and GPS. In his words: "It's a matter of loading the Android system on to the phone, configuring it, making sure it works very well and then the manufacturing of the few thousands phones that we need to launch it is just a matter of a day or two." Yeah dude, piece of cake.

[Thanks, Nick]

[(Unverified) Posted Nov 6th 2008 3:12AM]

OOOHH BY MY BIRTHDAY...

Wait... $199....

Ummm, is he stupid... its FREE in UK and $179 in USA, and $149 at Walmart.

If hes talking about $199 NO CONTRACT, then, umm, Im sure its gonna be cheap, and disposable like a Nokia 5100 was in 2000.

[(Unverified) Posted Nov 6th 2008 6:56AM]

Look at it this way, if you can't afford it, then that is definitely a reason to complain/cry.

[(Unverified) Posted Nov 6th 2008 7:52AM]

That's $199 in Aussie Dollars. As of this morning on Google, that translates to roughly $135 in USD. Given that he (in all likelihood) doesn't run a cell network, there shouldn't be a contract involved with that.

Sounds a lot better, doesn't it?

[(Unverified) Posted Nov 6th 2008 2:48PM]

this is just a guy building a phone. from what i can tell from the article, there shouldnt be a carrier attached to it at all. it will more than likely just be an unlocked phone he builds.

[(Unverified) Posted Nov 6th 2008 3:38AM]

This is in Australia: Of course its $199 contract free. We don't pay extra to get a phone on contract. That's just silly.

:)

[(Unverified) Posted Nov 6th 2008 4:18AM]

I'm not sure whether you've got a point there or not.

[(Unverified) Posted Nov 6th 2008 4:58AM]

Okay (Aus)$199 sounds like a deal... but seriously sourcing a device from a chinese odm then just configuring android to the device isn't as easy as it sounds. Theres extensive testing that has to be done to iron out bugs & if he's just outsourcing development will they support updates ? Another thing is Kogan is online retailer only so it will be unlocked so how will it support app stores & music stores with out offical carrier support ? Australia uses the 850mhz/900mhz/1900mhz/2100mhz bands so it has to be quad band 3G & has to be registered with Australia's FCC which could be a month. Then theres production & shipping... If he can do all this before xmas i'll call him a genius. And if he wants his device to really sell let it support telstras hspa+.

[(Unverified) Posted Nov 6th 2008 2:52PM]

it wont have carrier backing sure, but isnt Android an Open Platform? i cant imagine you wouldnt be able to run your own apps if you want, the downside would be that this early into the OS's life, you may have to write them yourself.

[(Unverified) Posted Nov 6th 2008 9:35AM]

Enough of these grandiose schemes already. Where's the Meizu M8?

This guy just wanted a little publicity. GTFO!

[(Unverified) Posted Nov 6th 2008 3:55PM]

Wait, let me get this right. You are dismissing this guy because he is releasing a crap product that will probably be a rip off of a number of other products on the market and is only doing so go gain press, but you are actually excited about the M8?!?

[(Unverified) Posted Nov 6th 2008 7:46PM]

@ZA - Guy. Get your facts right. It does not have to be quad band 3G. AFAIK 850 and 2100 are the only frequencies that count in Australia. The majority of networks are 2100. All he needs to do is produce a 2100 3G phone and he will easily sell thousands. How will he support updates? Hackers have already sussed out how the firmware update on the G1 works - it is a no brainer.
No support for the Amazon music store? Who cares, as long as it plays mp3 files from its storage. Not being able to use the Android market is a bit of a pain but there are already plenty of alternatives to the Android Market like Handango, Mobihand and SlideMe.

[(Unverified) Posted Nov 7th 2008 5:12AM]

Well, if it's cheap he's going for (about £84 at current exchange rates), he's going to have competition from Hop-on, who also reckon they're gonna make a cheap'n. Although, Rogan's does looks cheaper...

http://www.mobileshop.com/blog/mobile-phone-news/after-the-t-mobile-g1-what-other-google-android-phones-are-on-the-horizon/

Question is, though, will it LOOK cheaper, if you get my drift? Basically, if he's going to someone to ODM, is it, in fact, going to be rubbish...?

Still, it'll probably be nicer than the G1...