Motorola is already something of a favorite in the budget-level smartphone market around the world, thanks to respected handsets like the Moto G series. However, despite being a budget champion, Motorola has failed to make a splash in China and India, two of the most important smartphone markets.
To try and change the situation and compete with companies such as Xiaomi, Samsung, Vivo and Oppo, the company is having another go at its Android One smartphone. Motorola hopes it can leverage Google’s budget version of Android to gain more market presence in countries like India.
Likely to arrive later in the year as the Motorola P40 (Motorola One Vision in Europe and the U.S.), this Android Go device seems to be designed for a Chinese and Indian launch.
On the surface, Moto smartphones seem perfectly suited to the Indian market, where millions of consumers are migrating from feature phones to smartphones. Motorola makes solid well-spec’d devices with good software and gesture features.
The company’s problem has been rivals like Xiaomi being able to deliver equal or better specs in smartphones that frankly look better than Motorola’s. Despite being viewed by many as a leader in the budget market, Motorola does not make a dent in the smartphone markets in India or China.
For example, in India, Xiaomi leads the market, followed by Samsung and Vivo. Indeed, according to Canalys sales data for 2018, Motorola is not even in the top five Indian smartphone manufacturers and is not even close to getting there.
In China it is a similar story, where Canalys reports Motorola once again fails to make the top five, yielding market position to Huawei, Oppo, Vivo, Xiaomi, and Apple.
One way Motorola sees potential growth in these markets is by competing at the entry-level with an ultra-budget Motorola P40 running Android One.
According to reports, to help differentiate its handset in a competitive market, Motorola will use the best camera ever placed in an entry-level smartphone.
48MP Camera
Specifically, the Motorola P40 will reportedly boast a massive 48-megapixel primary lens as part of a dual-camera system. Yes, that means a handset that costs less than $100 (670 yuan, ₹7,000) will have a lens that is higher than most flagships. However, it seems the camera reverts to 12MP by default for image taking.
This is because of the Samsung-built Exynos 9610 chipset. Motorola’s 48MP lens will break down as 18fps, which means it takes longer to take an image at 48MP than at 12MP. For performance purposes, the handset will default to 12MP imaging, but users can select the higher megapixel count if they want to compromise shutter speed.
In terms of other specs, the Motorola P40 will receive a 6.2-inch screen with a 2520 x 1080 Full HD+ resolution which will be a full-screen with a teardrop notch for the selfie camera. Consumers will be able to choose between a 3GB or 4GB RAM models, each with either 32GB, 64GB, or 128GB of storage on board.
Let us know below, do you think Motorola’s entry-level Android One P40 with an excellent rear camera will help the company grow in India and China?
