Moto E goes on sale on Flipkart at Rs 6,999; Motorola expects to sell half-a-million units this week

New Delhi: Buoyed by strong response from over 20 million online shoppers in India, Motorola Mobility is confident of hitting the half-a-million sales mark this week.

The firm, which launched the cheapest Android KitKat powered smartphone in the market, had re-entered the fiercely competitive handset market in the country earlier this year after a nearly two-year hiatus.

It launched the Moto G in February, followed by Moto X a month later, exclusively with online retail major FlipKart.

"We have seen tremendous response for Moto G and Moto E and we are confident of crossing the half million units sales mark in the next few days. Moto E, our latest launch, will further fuel the growth that we have seen in Indian market," Motorola Mobility India General Manager Amit Boni said.

Moto E blends perfectly with needs of Indian users, who are looking to switch from feature phones to smartphones and those who have switched to smartphones but have not had a great experience, he added.

"Of the total sales so far, Moto G (which is currently retailing for Rs 13,999 for 16GB) comprises a major chunk of the sales in volume terms. We expect the sales to only grow further with Moto E, which we believe is a terrific phone for the Indian market," FlipKart VP (Retail) Michael Adnani said.

Moto E is powered by the latest Android KitKat operating system, 1.2 Ghz dual-core with 1GB RAM and 4GB internal memory (expandable upto 32 GB). With a 1,980 mAh battery, the dual- SIM device has a 5MP rear camera.

The handset, which has been simultaneously launched in the UK, competes directly with handsets from homegrown players like Micromax and Karbonn in India.

Over the last few days, a slew of smartphones have been announced in the sub-Rs 12,000 category. From Moto G to the latest Lumia 630, handset makers are lining up devices at affordable price points.

Nokia also launched its dual SIM Lumia 630, priced at Rs 11,500 and powered by its latest Windows 8.1 operating system.

Another homegrown firm Lava has said it will launch its 'Iris X1' smartphone, powered by Android 4.4 KitKat operating system and 4.5 inch IPS display, for under Rs 8,000 this week.

Currently, only few phones like Nexus 5, Moto X, Moto G and Karbonn Titanium Hexa offer the KitKat operating system and most Android devices are running on the previous JellyBean generation.

Smartphone sales in the country grew almost three-fold to over 44 million in 2013, buoyed by a strong uptake of affordable devices made by local firms such as Micromax and Karbonn, according to research firm IDC.

While Samsung leads the category with 38 per cent share, Micromax had 16 per cent, Karbonn (10 per cent), Sony (5 per cent) and Lava (4.7 per cent) in the fourth quarter of 2013.

IDC data puts India as one of the fastest-growing markets globally in smartphone adoption last year 2013.

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