Sharp Aquos Crystal
Sharp May Have Found Buyer for LCD Business
Sharp CEO Kozo Takahashi said the company is in talks with several others concerning a sale of its LCD business unit. "I cannot provide any names, but we are currently in negotiations with multiple companies," said Takahashi. Sharp has struggled in recent years, despite receiving several financial rescue packages. The company said in April of this year that it planned to sell or divest its LCD business. This is the first sign from Sharp that is has been able to drum up interest in the unit. Sharp has developed several unique display technologies and devices over the years, including a 4K IGZO panel and the Sharp Aquos Touch, an Android smartphone with an edge-to-edge screen that was sold by Sprint.
Sharp Looking to Divest LCD Business
Sharp is hoping it will be able to spin off a portion of its LCD panel business. The company wants to unload the piece of its display unit that makes small- and mid-sized displays for devices such as smartphones and tablets. The company hasn't been able to compete with rivals LG Display and Japan Display in the market for small screens. The company hopes to sell off this business to a government-supported investment fund, though it hasn't made any final decisions. Sharp has been struggling for years and is undergoing a larger restructuring that it hopes to present to investors in May. The company sells one smartphone in the U.S., the Aquos Crystal, which has a unique borderless display.
Seniors Wireless Adds Doctor Access to Wireless Plans
Seniors Wireless, a Sprint MVNO, announced a new service that gives subscribers direct phone access to a doctor at all times. TeleMED Assist provides customers with unlimited calls to doctors for emergency, urgent, or non-urgent purposes 24/7. Over-the-phone medical consultations are included in the service, which costs $30 per month for singles or $40 per month for couples. TeleMED Assist is a separate service and does not require a Seniors Wireless telephone account. Seniors Wireless offers a handful of standard service plans ranging from $10 to $30 per month. The company has several handsets, such as the Samsung Galaxy S3, S4, S5 and Note 3, the Sharp Aquos Crystal, the LG Vigor, and the Apple iPhone 4. Seniors Wireless competes with GreatCall, which also offers access to health professionals over the phone. Both target the over 55 set.
Boost and Sprint Announce Sharp Aquos Crystal Availability
Boost, Sprint, and Sprint Prepaid today revealed launch details for the Sharp Aquos Crystal. Boost is selling the Aquos Crystal beginning today for $150. Boost does not require contracts. Sprint will sell the Aquos Crystal beginning October 17 for $0 down and 24 payments of $10 with Sprint Easy Pay, or $240 outright. Last, Sprint Prepaid is selling the Aquos Crystal at Best Buy locations today for $150, and will sell it at RadioShack stores beginning October 21. The Sharp Aquos Crystal features a nearly borderless design, 5-inch display, 8-megapixel camera, and Harmon Kardon music enhancements.
Hands-On: Sharp Aquos Crystal for Sprint
Sharp debuted its first phone for the U.S. market in years this week. The Aquos Crystal boasts a nearly bezel-less design in a compact form factor. Here are our initial impressions.
Sprint Formally Debuts Sharp Aquos Crystal
Sprint today announced the Sharp Aquos Crystal, a mid-range handset that it will sell later this year. The Sharp Aquos features a nearly bezel-less design, with narrow edges running along the top and sides of the phone. The screen measures 5 inches and offers 720p HD resolution. The device offers a handful of software features developed by Sharp, including Clip Now, which takes screen shots with a swipe and makes them easily sharable via link. Speaktoit Assistant is a natural language assistant that can perform a number of tasks, such as answer questions, open apps, place calls, and send texts. The device comes with Harman Kardon Clari-Fi and LiveStage audio technologies for improved music reproduction, and Direct Wave Receiver technology, which uses the display panel to create sound for phone calls. The device runs Android 4.4.2 KitKat and includes the usual suite of Google services, in addition to OfficeSuite for editing Microsoft documents. Other hardware features include a 1.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon 400 processor with 1.5GB of RAM and 8GB of internal storage. The Aquos supports microSD cards up to 128GB. The camera captures 8-megapixel still images and 1080p HD video. It also has a 1.2-megapixel camera for selfies. The Aquos will cost $240 at full retail, or $0 down and 24 monthly payments of $10 with Sprint. Sprint subsidiaries Boost Mobile and Virgin Mobile USA will also sell the device at the price of $150. Virgin and Boost do not require contracts.
SoftBank and Sprint Working with Sharp on Edgeless Phone
SoftBank, which owns Sprint, today said it has chosen Sharp to supply it with low-cost smartphones. The handset deal with Sharp includes Sprint, which will also sell phones made by Sharp. The first such device is a handset called the Sharp Aquos Crystal, which the company revealed today. The Crystal features an edgeless design. SoftBank believes its combined scale with Sprint will allow it to sell the Sharp Aquos Crystal at a low cost. SoftBank's announcement coincides with a Sprint event scheduled for August 19. The event invite reads "Time to take the Edge Off," which could be a reference to the edgeless design of the Aquos Crystal. According to Sharp, the Crystal includes a 5-inch 720p HD screen, Snapdragon 400 processor, and runs Android 4.4.2 KitKat. Sharp has not sold handsets in the U.S. for several years.
