Just when we were beginning to wonder where Obi mobiles vanished after it went official in India (sometime in April), OBI mobiles has launched its first smartphone, Octopus S520, in India priced at 11, 990 INR.
The company is headed by Ex-Apple CEO John Scully and earlier announced its plans to invest 20 million dollars in India in the first year itself. The company originally intended to start with budget Android phones in 5k to 8K INR price range, but perhaps has deferred on account of intensive competition in budget price range.
The Octopus S520 sports a 5 inch 720p HD display and is powered by MT6592 octa core chipset clocked at 1.7 GHz. The powerful chipset is further aided by 1 GB RAM and 8 GB internal storage. You can also expand the storage by another 32 GB using MicroSD card.
The Dual SIM Octopus S520 incorporates an 8MP rear camera, with LED flash, capable of 1080p video recording and 2 MP front facing camera for video calls and selfies. Inside the 8.4 mm thick body OBI has provided with an 1800 mAh battery, which doesn’t sound too great.
Commenting on the new launch, Ajay Sharma, CEO, Obi Mobiles said, “S520 is a beautifully designed product. It is engineered to highest quality specifications to reliably deliver a superior performance. This flagship device is an affirmation of our stated commitment to extend the best in class smartphone experience. From hardware specifications to the quality of accessories there are no compromises whatsoever, because we know our young customers conduct their lives around their smartphones.”
Obi Octopus S520 seems to check all boxes except a high capacity battery and seems like a good launch vehicle for Obi. It will face tough competition from Xiaomi, which recently presented its Redmi Note in India with similar hardware for lower price. Obi phones are being manufactured by Inflexion point, another company acquired by Obi, and perhaps this will materialize into efficient after sales support from its 95 service centres.
Key Specs
| Model | Obi Octopus S520 |
| Display | 5 inch, HD |
| Processor | 1.7 GHz Octa Core |
| RAM | 1 GB |
| Internal Storage | 8 GB, Expandable up to 32 GB |
| OS | Android 4.4 KitKat |
| Camera | 8 MP/ 2 MP |
| Battery | 1800 mAh |
| Price | Rs 11,990 |
