Micromax launches full HD Canvas Turbo A250 smartphone for Rs 19,990

After extending the Canvas experience to tablets with Canvas Tab P650 (priced at Rs 16,500) last month, homegrown handset manufacturer Micromax has added yet another Canvas smartphone to the mix. Christened Canvas Turbo A250, this one has a 5 inch display and runs on the Android operating system. The device is available for a price of Rs 19,990.

Here is a look at the specifications of the device.

The tablet has a 5-inch IPS full HD CGS (Continuous Grain Silicon) capacitive touchscreen display (1920x1080 pixels resolution) and is powered by a 1.5 GHz quad core MediaTek MT6589T processor. It runs on the Android 4.2.1 (Jelly Bean) operating system and has 2GB of RAM. The internal memory of the device is 16GB (12.47 for user data), but further expansion is not available (which is sad).

On the camera front, the device has a 13 mega pixel autofocus rear camera with flash that can also record full high definition videos (1080p) and a 5 MP front facing camera for video calling. In terms of connectivity, the tablet has Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi, and 3G and it also comes with a microUSB port and a USB 2.0 port. It has full HD (1080p) video playback capabilities and GPS.

The company has provided a 2,000 mAh battery in the device that it claims will provide up to 7 hours of talk time and 105 hours of standby time. The smartphone supports dual-SIM (SIM + micro SIM) and comes with a FM radio. It will be available in midnight blue and pristine white colours. The company has also provided a number of pre-loaded applications in the smartphone that include M! Live, M! Security, M! Unlock, Kingsoft, Spuul, Hike, Game Hub, Opera Mini, Look Away, FOTA, BBM, and iFloat, as well as a number of games like Fruit Devil, Dark Man, Jelly jumper.

At Rs 19,990, we feel that the smartphone is worth a buy, at least by looking at its specifications on paper. In the Rs 18,000 to Rs 22,000 price range, the device will see competition from a number of players like Samsung Galaxy Grand Duos I9082 (Rs 18,400), Lenovo S820 (Rs 18,999), Nokia Lumia 625 (Rs 19,919), Sony Xperia C (Rs 20,005) and P (Rs 20,500), HTC Desire 500 (Rs 20,499), and Panasonic P51 (Rs 20,700), among others.

"The launch of Canvas Turbo would be accompanied with our association with Hollywood actor Hugh Jackman as the new brand ambassador of Micromax Canvas series of smartphones. The launch would be supported with a 360 degree marketing campaign across print, online and TV. The association will set an ideal platform for Micromax as we look forward to venture into international markets," said Shubhodip Pal, CMO, Micromax.

For those who don't know, Micromax is looking to grab a bite of the rising demand in other emerging markets. The firm, which had previously expanded its footprint in neighbouring markets such as Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, is now rolling out operations in Russia and Romania, an Eastern European market. Read here for more.