O2 Secure Wireless is taking the wraps off a line of prepaid Android phones and tablets that will run on “all global cellular networks.”
The company made the announcement ahead of the commercial launch of its wireless service in the Dominican Republic and the United States.
The devices will be used for a no-contract service that works across multiple networks, O2 Secure Wireless said in a Friday announcement.
“I believe that this branded offering, which will be patented and manufactured out of China, will set us apart from other offerings in that many consumers are tired of wireless contracts and just want a high quality phone that they can purchase and use anywhere,” CEO Val Kazia said. “This universal phone will not need a contract, and will be able to be used on any carrier worldwide.”
Details about the devices were scarce. The launch, scheduled for late summer, is expected to include three Android smartphones and a 10-inch tablet made by an unnamed Chinese manufacturer.
Each will be branded as an O2 Secure Wireless device and will come with a 5 megapixel camera, touchscreen and “internal features that exceed those of the top manufacturers.” Price points will range from $325 to $500.
Further details will be released when the devices are opened for pre-order.
The universal devices were originally designed for the company’s pending wireless network in the Dominican Republic, but “we are now at a point where the devices can be used internationally,” O2 Secure Wireless said in a Friday announcement.
The company has been working on launching a wireless service in the Dominican Republic through its Earthcom subsidiary since 2010, but has not said when the network will go live.
Late last year, O2 Secure Wireless said it planned to use a $33 million loan from the U.S. government to deploy LTE in 65 rural markets in Florida, Kentucky, Mississippi, Alabama, North Carolina and South Carolina.
However, the loan from the USDA Rural Utilities Service had not been approved at the time of the November announcement and O2 Secure Wireless has not provided an update on the funding or its LTE plans since then.
