It’s a known fact that Intel has had a hard time getting its chips into phones, so now it’s starting to get creative. FreedomPop CEO Stephen Stokols says that the phone will be made by a well-know manufacturer, but didn’t drop any names. The new startup investments also focus less on the e-commerce and mobile advertising companies that have dominated Silicon Valley’s 2015 early-stage funding, and instead focus on more diverse interests. FreedomPop fans could probably expect dirt cheap prices too, considering the service’s starting tier of just $5 a month. The company offers a suite of devices, services, and innovative social sharing and incentive benefits, providing consumers access to free high-speed Internet and mobile phone services worldwide. Stokols said the company will announce additional global markets “in the New Year”. It also invested in an addressing platform called what3words, which claims to be more accurate than Global Positioning System, and Body Labs, a service that stores data and information related to the user’s shape, poise and motion. Similar to that of Google’s Project Fi, the upcoming FreedomPop phone will be able to seamlessly switch between cellular networks and Wi-Fi hotspots.
Advertisement
The phone aims to come with free cellular service and use Intel’s Sofia Atom x3 processors. Directors Thomas Urban and David Johnson led the investment for Intel Capital. The two companies received a significant funding from Intel Capital to start work on a FreedomPop branded smartphone, of course, powered by Intel, specifically the Sofia platform.
Intel, which is announcing the investment at an event for its Intel Capital unit in San Diego, praised the arrangement.
Advertisement
“Mobile consumers continue to look for more ways to save on mobile bills, and a Wi-Fi-first smartphone allows them to use a more cost-effective network”, said Sam Spangler, general manager of Intel’s phone business, in a statement.
