Exclusive-India’s Reliance Jio launches 4G-enabled low-cost laptop for $184 – source

New Delhi: Reliance Jio launches affordable $184 (INR 15,000) laptop with embedded 4G SIM card, replicating success of low-cost JioPhone in India’s highly price-sensitive market It aims to do so, two sources told Reuters.

The conglomerate led by Mukesh Ambani has partnered with global giants Qualcomm and Microsoft for JioBook.

Jio, India’s largest telecom operator with more than 420 million customers, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The laptop will be available to enterprise customers such as schools and government agencies starting this month, with a consumer launch expected within the next three months, sources said. Like the JioPhone, a 5G-ready version will follow.

“This will be as big as the JioPhone,” one source with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

Since its launch late last year, the handset has been India’s best-selling sub-$100 smartphone, accounting for one-fifth of the market in the last three quarters, according to Counterpoint.

The JioBook will be produced locally by contract manufacturer Flex, which aims to sell “hundreds of thousands” by March, one of the sources said.

According to research firm IDC, India’s PC shipments reached 14.8 million units last year, led by HP, Dell and Lenovo.

Counterpoint analyst Tarun Pathak says the JioBook launch will expand the addressable laptop market segment by at least 15%.

The laptop runs Jio’s proprietary JioOS operating system, and apps can be downloaded from the JioStore. Jio also touts laptops as an alternative to tablets for out-of-office corporate workers.

With nearly $22 billion raised from global investors including KKR & Co Inc and Silver Lake in 2020, Jio has become the world’s No. 1 in the world, launching cheap 4G data plans and free voice services in 2016, and has since grown to just 81 billion. When it launched its $4G smartphone, it entered two mobile markets.