Taiwan Mobile, Foxconn launch low cost smartphone

Taiwan Mobile on Monday launched a new low-cost smartphone under its own brand name with Foxconn.

This is the first time the main manufacturer of Apple's iPhones and iPads produced a mobile phone for a local operator which carries the operator's own brand, according to Taiwan Mobile at a press conference to launch the self-branded phones, Focus Taiwan News Channel reported.

The smartphone named A5 features a 4.3-inch display and a 1 GB dual-core processor, will go sale from mid-July NT$3,990 (US$134) for a contract-free model.

Taiwan Mobile also launched another three phones branded under its name with ZTE Corporation, with screen sizes of 3.5, 4 and 5 inches, the company said.

Cliff Lai, Taiwan Mobile co-president said at the press conference he estimated the company's own-brand phones will account for more than 20 percent of its total smartphone purchase amount this year, up from 11 to 12 percent in 2012. 

Taiwan Mobile plans to order 1.8 million smartphones in 2013, an increase from 1.5 million to 1.6 million units from the previous years, he added.

Earlier in June, Foxconn announced a partnership with Mozilla to develop at least 5 new devices including a tablet. Last month, Foxconn was reportedly gauging a bid for 4G spectrum in Taiwan after investing US$8.7 million in a local fiber optic provider, a separate report by Sina Tech noted.