KaiOS Partners with Unigroup Spreadtrum & RDA to Integrate with Newest Chipsets and Offer Advanced Functionality on Lite Phones
As a core subsidiary of Tsinghua Unigroup, Unigroup Spreadtrum & RDA, a world’s leading fabless semiconductor company with advanced technology in mobile communications and IoT, and KaiOS Technologies, maker of the emerging operating system KaiOS, today announced that KaiOS is now supported on high-performance LTE chipset platform Spreadtrum’s SC9820A which is now running on JioPhone. Further, the latest mobile operating system, KaiOS 2.5, will also be supported on Spreadtrum’s highly-competitive SC9820E and 3G device solution SC7731E chipsets later this quarter. With this partnership, users will have access to a broader selection of lite phones that support advanced mobile functionality.
Spreadtrum’s highly-integrated and power-efficient chipset platforms power a diverse range of mobile devices from fully equipped smartphones to feature phones and tablets. Emerging markets see a particular benefit from Spreadtrum’s technology as these new advanced chipsets give a competitive advantage in terms of price and efficiency which enables affordable lite phones to support mainstream apps, communication, and content.
“Spreadtrum is committed to being on the forefront of mobile innovation, from the most sophisticated smartphone to the widely accessible feature phone,” said Mr. Adam Zeng, Global Executive Vice President of Unigroup and CEO of Unigroup Spreadtrum & RDA, “By partnering with KaiOS Technologies, we’re able to unite hardware and software in a way that connects users around the world without compromising quality. This collaboration will further strengthen Spreadtrum’s business deployment in global feature phone market.”
KaiOS powers a new category of affordable, lite phones and other connected devices that use limited memory while still offering a rich user experience. KaiOS is one of only a handful of mobile operating systems capable of supporting popular third-party apps, and more significantly, the only OS to do so on feature phones. This includes social media, instant messaging, games, streaming entertainment, navigation, and voice assistants. It uses only a fraction of the memory but offers a wide variety of features. KaiOS 2.5 will be running on Spreadtrum’s newest chipsets requiring only 256MB/512MB RAM.
“We’re dedicated to providing users with affordable mobile devices that offer rich functionality, and we couldn’t do that without partners like Spreadtrum,” said Mr. Sebastien Codeville, CEO of KaiOS Technologies. “Thanks to the backbone of our partner’s high-performance chipsets, KaiOS is bringing a whole new generation of affordable devices to life. Going forward we’ll intensify our efforts with Spreadtrum and strengthen our product portfolio in the 3G and 4G market.”
Analysis by Counterpoint Research in 2017 indicates that more than 1.3 billion feature phones are currently in use, mostly in markets like Asia and Africa, with Central Eastern Europe usage also on the rise. Research also indicates these markets are facing marked technological and economic polarization. Mobile operating systems like KaiOS, coupled with affordable, powerful hardware manufactured by companies like Spreadtrum, are taking meaningful steps toward decreasing the technological gap.
About KaiOS Technologies
KaiOS Technologies powers an emerging global ecosystem of affordable digital products and services. Our flagship product, KaiOS, is a web-based operating system that enables a new category of lite phones and other IoT devices that require limited memory, while still offering a rich user experience through leading apps. Our goal, together with our partners, is to help bridge the digital divide—connecting the billions of people in emerging markets who don’t have access to basic connectivity, as well as those in established markets who are looking for affordable feature phones with advanced functionality.
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