Mozilla, makers of the Firefox web browser, recently announced their plans for a $25 smartphone, aimed at those who cannot afford its much more expensive counterparts in an attempt to bring everyone into the information age.
Unfortunately, those who have used the device such as The Verge report that it's extremely slow. Its specs are roughly the same as the original iPhone, which is impressive for the price, but the user experience is frustratingly sluggish.
The phone has a 3.5-inch, 320 x 480 display, 2-megapixel camera, and no 3G connectivity, but the screen is apparently awful quality--more or less what you'd expect from something so cheap.
I would imagine if you can't otherwise work a smartphone into your budget, even having a phone that works extremely slowly would be better than nothing. Still, it's far from ideal, though Mozilla's goal is admirable.
It's basically a cheap remake of the best smartphones available about seven years ago, with a decent build and the most basic features of the internet, but runs incredibly slowly. It operates the most recent version of Firefox, which is nice, but I wonder if it would be better served by an older, easier to process version of the browser made for this device.
The Verge's Vlad Savov wonders if you can even call it a smartphone. I would, but only by the barest definition-you can browse the web and watch videos, it's just maddeningly slow. It's not the phone anyone would ideally choose, but if someone can't afford other options (and maybe Mozilla continues to improve it), I'm glad that it exists.