2G Feature phones are here to stay for a while: Qualcomm

Chipmaker Qualcomm said 2G feature phones aren’t going to vanish from the Indian market any time soon even though Reliance Retail’s 4G feature phone continues to eat into their share. The US company is in talks with Indian handset makers including Lava and Micromax to help them make a comeback in the highly competitive market.Experts said users of these plain vanilla mobile devices are warming up to mobile internet and upgrading to 4G feature phones, which offer richer data and video experience.

However, it may be difficult for mobile handset makers to immediately venture into 4G feature phones, said Prabhu Ram, Head-IIG, CyberMedia Research. They would require “economies of scale with adequate support from telcos to match the pricing of JioPhones,” which isn’t the case today, he said.