Jio Phone Next Rollout to Commence Before Diwali, Reliance Announces

Jio Phone Next rollout will commence before Diwali, Reliance Jio announced late on Thursday night. Although the company had announced in June that the new affordable smartphone would launch on Ganesh Chaturthi, that is September 10, it has announced via a press release that the smartphone is currently in advanced trials, and will roll out ahead of Diwali, which is taking place on November 4.

The delay in the announcement of the Jio Phone Next price and delivery plans appears to be connected to the global semiconductor shortage, as Jio noted in its announcement that "this additional time will also help mitigate the current industry-wide, global semiconductor shortages."

Reliance had in June announced the September 10 launch date for the phone and said that it was being developed with Google, and would bring smartphone features such as Android and the Play Store, but at the price of a featurephone. Although the company had not announced a specific price for the Jio Phone Next,  a leak suggested that it may cost Rs. 3,499, or $50.