Sony sold its VAIO division to a Japanese investment fund three long years ago. Now, the new owner of the popular brand has decided to re-enter the semi-crowded smartphone industry. Do note that this isn't the first VAIO phone to be released into the wild. Last year, the new owner of the name has already released the VAIO Phone Biz. However, the said phone did not reach the popularity level that its competitions have reached.
VAIO's Windows Phone From Last Year
The VAIO Phone Biz ran Windows Mobile and it did not get as much attention as what might have been planned. Phone Arena said that the design of the phone looked well but when it comes to the hardware, the Phone Biz wasn't all that impressive. Nevertheless, the low sales of that phone didn't stop VAIO from producing a new smartphone, and this time, the company is changing tactics.
VAIO Revamps Its Phone As It Switches To Android
From last year's Windows Mobile OS, VAIO is now shifting to Android for its new smartphone called Phone A. Nevertheless, apart from the OS, there really isn't any significant changes on the new phone. GSM Arena noted that Phone A's specs is just as uninspiring as its name. Note that VAIO's new phone comes with 5.5-inchch 720p display and it is powered by a Snapdragon 617 processor. The RAM size is 3 GB and it runs Android Marshmallow from the box.
The VAIO Phone A has also added Dual Sim support. Nevertheless, since the revamp is minor, the phone remains midrange in nature. With that said, VAIO may still be leaps behind Sony when it comes to smartphone competition. In fact, the new phone is not expected to leave Japan's market anytime soon.
Nonetheless, the new version is now more equipped to compete with other midrange phones especially that it now runs Android. Additionally, the VAIO Phone A still looks as amazing as it did before. As for the pricing and release date for VAIO's 2017 smartphone, it was said that Phone A will be released on April 7 for a price of around $225.
