Billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Jio announced that the company will be delaying the roll-out of JioPhone Next. The smartphone was expected to launch on September 10. However, the phone will now be available on or after Diwali. 

© BCCL

JioPhone Next was being developed by Reliance Jio in partnership with Google and was being touted as one of the most affordable 4G smartphones. The phone would have been perfect for users who were looking to upgrade from 2G to 4G phones. We still don’t know how much the phones are going to cost but it could be different now that the phone has been delayed due to a helpless situation.

Reliance Jio and Google "have made considerable progress towards launching the much-awaited JioPhone Next, the made-for-India smartphone being jointly designed by the companies," the statement said. "The device and the operating system will offer premium capabilities that have until now been associated with more powerful smartphones, including voice-first features that enable people to consume content and navigate the phone in their own language, deliver a great camera experience, and get the latest Android feature and security updates," the statement added.

While both companies have begun the testing of JioPhone next, the smartphone still needs time for improvements and bug fixes. However, the main reason why the phone has been delayed is because of a worldwide ship shortage. "This additional time will also help mitigate the current industry-wide, global semiconductor shortages," it said.

© Reliance Jio

Chip shortages have affected a wide range of industries such as the automobile sector, gaming consoles, smartphones and smart home devices. It seems like the JioPhone Next has also suffered delays in development and manufacturing due to the shortages. 

Having said that, the delay isn’t as colossal as one would assume. The phone will now launch sometime in November which is about a two-month delay The JioPhone Next is expected to feature Google Assistant, automatic language translation, and smart camera features with India-centric filters. 

We will know more about the JioPhone Next closer to its launch around Diwali including its price and availability details. 

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