Intel releases its own smartphone – Yolo

Computer chip manufacturer Intel has added to the blossoming smartphone market with its new low-cost hand-held called Yolo. The new phone will be priced at USD 125 and will be on sale in Africa, according to an announcement from Safaricom on January 24, 2013.

Although initially announced at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier in January 2013, the Yolo will now be sold in Kenya for the price of Kshs. 10,999. According to Intel’s website, the phone is aimed at cautious first-time buyers who do not want to sacrifice performance for cost.

The Yolo has a 3.5-inch screen and is powered by the Intel Atom Z2420 processor. It supports HSPA+ to allow users to travel with the phone anywhere in the world and has an Intel XMM 6265 modem under the hood as well. Intel’s Atom processor allows the phone to clock speeds of up to 1.2 GHz, which is good enough for a phone in that price range.

Apart from a good processor, the phone also supports 1080p HD video capture with a 5-megapixel camera.  The Yolo also features some nifty camera features like ‘burst mode’ which will allow a user to take 7 pictures in the space of 1 second.

According to sources, the phone will also come with around 500 MB of free data usage at Safaricom shops in Kenya.