RIL Launches Jio Bharat Phone At ₹999, Beta Trials To Begin On July 7

Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), a conglomerate known for its transformative initiatives, has launched an affordable internet-enabled feature phone priced at Rs 999.

Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), led by Mukesh Ambani, has announced the commencement of beta testing for the first one million Jio Bharat phones starting from July 7. These budget-friendly devices are expected to provide internet-enabled phones to 250 million existing feature phone users, thereby expanding digital access across India.

Similar to its predecessor, the JioPhone, the new device offers a range of features, including OTT service bundling with Jio Cinema and Jio Saavn. Additionally, it boasts high-definition calling, camera capabilities, and JioPay service, enabling users to make payments through the unified payments interface (UPI).

Compared to feature phone offerings from other operators, the Jio Bharat phone offers a monthly plan that is 30% cheaper and provides seven times more data and unlimited voice calls and 14 GB of data cost ₹ 123 per month, whereas voice calls and 2 GB of data cost ₹ 179 with another operator.

Mr. Akash Ambani, Chairman, Reliance Jio, said, "There are still 250 million mobile phone users in India who remain 'trapped' in the 2G era, unable to tap into basic features of the internet at a time when the world stands at the cusp of a 5G revolution

"The new Jio Bharat phone is at the centre of innovation, and it continues to demonstrate our focus on bringing disproportionate and true value for different segments of users with meaningful, real-life use cases," he added.