HIGHLIGHTS

• Jio has introduced a Rs 75 plan for JioPhone users.
• The plan offers 100MB data per day and has a validity of 28 days.
• Jio had recently discontinued JioPhone’s Rs 39 and Rs 69 plans.

Jio has introduced a new JioPhone plan worth Rs 75. The development comes shortly after the telco discontinued its entry-level Rs 39 and Rs 69 plans, and also the Buy-1, Get-1 offer on plans for JioPhone users. The new JioPhone Rs 75 plan offers 100MB data per day, unlimited voice calls to any network, 50SMS per day, and access to Jio apps such as JioTV, JioCinema, JioNews, JioSecurity, and JioCloud. The plan also offers extra 200MB of data at no additional cost. JioPhone plans are only applicable to users who own JioPhones.

Other JioPhone prepaid plans available on the telco’s website are now priced at Rs 125, Rs 155, Rs 185, and Rs 749. The plans offer 0.1GB, 0.5GB, 1GB, 2GB daily data with 28 days validity except for the Rs 749 prepaid plan which has 336 days validity.

Jio was going to launch its Google-backed 4G smartphone JioPhone Next on September 10. However, the launch of the smartphone has been delayed until Diwali. Reliance, in a statement, confirmed the delay and added that the JioPhone Next rollout would commence around Diwali festive season. This means that the JioPhone Next can be expected to go on sale around early November. Built-in joint venture with Google, the JioPhone Next runs an optimised Android operating system with access to Google Play.

JioPhone Next is not a successor to the JioPhone and JioPhone 2. Apart from running a custom version of Android, the JioPhone Next comes with features like Google Assistant, automatic read-aloud and language translation for on-screen text, and a camera with India-centric filters.

Jio noted that the company is testing JioPhone Next with a limited set of users. The company also mentioned that the additional time taken until JioPhone Next may help mitigate an industry-wide global semiconductor shortage. The 4G smartphone was unveiled earlier in June during the 44th Reliance AGM. While the design was showcased, the specs were kept under wraps. Leaks suggest that the device may feature a 5.5-inch display. It could be powered by a Snapdragon 215 SoC and paired with up to 3GB of RAM and 32GB of onboard storage. The smartphone may get a 13-megapixel rear and an 8-megapixel selfie shooter.