A series of Android phones from TV maker Sharp will be making their way to the US.
That is the big news from the company today as it announced it will be bringing its line of Aquos-branded smartphones to markets outside of Japan, where it launched the phones earlier this year.
A total of three Sharp-branded phones were released in Japan, and all of them will be heading globally. At the time, it seemed like a long shot that Sharp would pull such a move, especially since the smartphone market is so fiercely competitive in places like the US and Europe.
Among the three Aquos phones is one that includes a 16-megapixel camera, and uses a clamshell design, making it quite a unique Android device. It is the only clamshell Android phone on the market, and with a 16-megapixel camera it is ahead of the competition.
The other two consist of one with an equally unusual small 3.7-inch display and one with a 4.2-inch display.
All have HDMI connectors, hence the ‘Aquos’ name, which Sharp uses in its high-end HDTVs.
Sharp has a much stronger brand recognition in Japan, so the move to bring products in a brand new product market for the company, to several global markets, seems quite gutsy. If it can pull it off, though, it would be a great addition to the oligopoly of smartphone makers that has developed in the US over the last few years.
