Android One is Google's initiative to bring cheap, good quality smartphones to developing countries for about $100 each. The company believes the next 5 billion smartphone users will come from countries outside the West, where consumers need inexpensive devices to get them online, not the high-end, high-price devices sold by Apple.
But the new European version of the handset will cost way more than $100. It will be priced at €169.90 (£123, $192) in Spain, and €10 more in Portugal. (Android One previously launched in Turkey.)
That's about twice the price of the first African Android One handset launched by Hong Kong-based Infinix last month, and has very similar specs. Infinix's Android One handset is available for N17,500 (€77, £55, $87) in Nigeria, Egypt, the Ivory Coast, Ghana and Morocco.
Here are the specs for the BQ Aquaris A4.5:
- a 4.5-inch screen
- 16GB of internal storage (a Micro SD card can support another 64GB)
- 2470mAh battery
- 1GB of RAM
- 8 megapixel rear camera
Unlike other budget Android smartphones, Android One models get Android updates as soon as they are available, and manufacturers don't put any extra software on top. Security is handled by Google too, meaning that users are not left exposed to bugs and flaws introduced by device manufacturers.
Google launched Android One in India last year, and has since made it available in 10 markets across Asia, including the Philippines, Indonesia, India and Pakistan.