JioPhone and New Rs.153 Jio 4G Unlimited Plan UnLocKeD!

At the last year’s AGM meeting, Reliance officially launched the Jio 4G VoLTE services for the Indian market. After capturing the smartphone users with its 4G VoLTE services, today, at its 40th AGM meeting, the company announced the 4G VoLTE supported feature phone called JioPhone to take on the feature phone users. Within the first six months of its official launch, Jio 4G has more than 100 million subscribers. We can expect these numbers to shootup once the JioPhone enters into the market.

Below, you can find the answers for most of the questions about the JioPhone and its new Rs.153 plan. We will be updating the list when we get to know other details.

• What is the Price of JioPhone?

The JioPhone is mentioned to effectively cost Rs.0, but the users have to make an upfront deposit of Rs.1,500. While the deposit is 100% refundable, the device has to be recharged every three months to get the Rs. 1,500 back after the mentioned 3 years time period. Even if it costs Rs.1,500, you are getting a decent feature phone which will mostly become the secondary phone.

• When & Where to Pre-order JioPhone?

The device will be first available from August 15th only for beta testing, and you shouldn’t expect to get the JioPhone that early. However, you can pre-book the device from August 24th via MyJio App and Jio retailers. It will be available from early September and is mentioned to be sold in first-come first-serve basis. So, expect huge lines outside the Reliance Digital and Jio retail outlets which we saw during the initial launch of Jio 4G SIM. The company has promised to make atleast 5 million units ready for every week.

• Does JioPhone Support Dual SIM?

While there is no official confirmation about the dual SIM support on the JioPhone, the one variant we tested comes with two SIM card slots. The primary SIM card slot will be locked for the Jio 4G network, and the secondary slot can be for other networks like Airtel, Idea, or Vodafone.

• Is there Wi-Fi Hotspot on JioPhone?

As per our exclusive source, there will be 4-6 different models of JioPhone, and none of the models have Wi-Fi connectivity. However, the Snapdragon SoC powered JioPhones come with Wi-Fi hotspot option. The initial units that will go on sale in September will miss the hotspot option but will be later enabled via software update.

• How is the Selfie Camera Quality on the JioPhone?

Since the JioPhone will be available in 4-6 different models, not all the models come with selfie camera. Even the variant featuring selfie camera will come mostly with a VGA camera.

• Which Apps can be used on JioPhone?

The JioPhone comes preloaded with Jio suite of apps like Jio Cinema, Jio Music, and Jio TV. The device also includes Prime Minister’s Namo App along with Youtube and Facebook. By the end of this year, we also expect to see WhatsApp app for JioPhone.

• What is Jio Phone TV-Cable?

The JioPhone supports screen mirroring which means you can watch the content from your phone directly on your TV. While the smartphones come with wireless screen mirroring, the JioPhone users have to buy a separate cable to watch the content from their phone on the big screen. The users also have to opt for Rs.309 plan instead of the more affordable Rs.153 plans to stream the content from their JioPhone.

• What is Rs.153 Unlimited Plan and is it Exclusive to JioPhone?

The new Rs.153 plan announced alongside the JioPhone is only available for JioPhone users. It comes with a validity of 28 days and includes unlimited calling and 4G data. However, the unlimited 4G data is only limited to just 500MB at full speed, and later the speed is limited to 128Kbps. The users also get full access to the Jio apps like Jio Music, Jio TV, and Jio Cinema.

• Differences between Rs.153 & Rs.309 JioPhone Plans?

Both the Rs.153 and Rs.309 plans are exclusive to the JioPhone, and they come with 28 days of validity. While the Rs.153 has a FUP limit of 500MB per day, the Rs 309 plan comes with 1GB per day limit. The voice calls and SMS are free with both the plans. The Rs.309 plan additionally comes with screen mirroring support which isn’t available for Rs.153 plan.

• How to Activate SOS Mode on JioPhone?

Jio has mentioned the button 5 on the keypad will work as a panic button on JioPhone. The user has to long-press it for a few seconds to activate the SOS mode and the device automatically calls 112 emergency number and sends the emergency alert to pre-selected contacts with GPS location.

• How to Make NFC Payments with JioPhone?

The JioPhone has advanced NFC support for making mobile payments, but it will be enabled later this year with a software update. The user can link their UPI, Jan Dhan, and bank accounts along with debit and credit cards. Samsung has already launched the similar service called Samsung Pay in India, and it works only with high-end Galaxy smartphones.