Kogan To Release An Android!?!

Hi, Voula Here:

I sat at my desk at work, took a sip of my latté and opened up the Washington Post a couple of days ago. I think I may have shrieked and got some stares. There was an article about one of my friends, Rusi, aka Ruslan Kogan to the world.

We both went to the University of Miami together, Ruslan as an exchange student from Melbourne, and me as a transfer. We lived in the Holiday Inn together, a make-shift dormitory. We quickly became close friends, hanging out on a daily basis: walking to classes, hanging out by the pool, evening dinners in the “Canteen,” as he called it, and even a weekend trip to the Bahamas! There are so, so many stories about Ruslan that I can say, many of which he would probably kill me if I mentioned. And many that he can share as well, that I don’t want him to mention.

Saying goodbye to Ruslan was very hard for me. We had grown so close and now it was time to say goodbye. He was off to Australia, where he would complete the rest of his degree. That was the last hug I gave Rusi, and haven’t seen him since. I hear stories from friends, check out his facebook page ever so often and when I’m lucky, we send correspondance back and forth. Unfortunately, we have always been bad at keeping in constant contact.

I always recognized his natural entrepreneurial talents, it was easy to spot. At the time, he was working for GE, his position escapes my mind. So, it was by no shock or surprise to read about him in the Washington Post, even though he was thousands of miles away in Melbourne, Australia. Congratulations Rusi!

The T-Mobile G1 is the first phone in the market to use the Android platform, released in October. The second Android phone is to be release the end of January by Kogan. The Agora and Agora Pro are more favorable, in my opinion. A contract with a particular provider is not necessary. Just purchase, plug in your SIM card, and your good to go. It also helps that Kogan’s phones are significantly cheaper than the G1.

WASHINGTON POST ARTICLE:

Daniel Ionescu

Friday, December 5, 2008

The world’s second Google phone, based on the Android mobile operating system, is set to launch at the end of January. Manufactured under the Australian Kogan brand, the phone will come in two flavors, for $225 or $295.

The Agora and Agora Pro models are both available for pre-sale now on Kogan’s website http://www.kogan.com.au and are sold SIM-free – that is without a contract or network locking. If your wireless carrier is AT&T or T-Mobile, then you can snap the Kogan Android up January 29 when the units officially go on sale. Check with your carrier first, but migrating to the Agora should be as easy as swapping out the SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) card in your existing handset with the Agora – no need to renew your contract or pay any extra fees.

The Agora Pro is the more powerful out of the two models available and features a 2.5″ touch screen and an integrated QWERTY keyboard. On the Agora Pro you can browse the Internet and check your email via the phone’s 3G connection or via Wi-Fi. The phone also has GPS navigation and features a 2-megapixel camera on the back.

Kogan Agora is the less powerful brother and lacks Agora Pro’s extras such as GPS, Wi-Fi and the camera, but comes in cheaper at $225 (including US delivery) in comparison to $295 for the Agora Pro. Both models come with only 256MB of on board memory, but this can be extended via the phone’s microSD card slots.

Weighing at 130 grams, both models also bring Bluetooth connectivity and FM radio. Kogan also says that the phone’s talk time is up to 400 minutes while the standby time is of 300 hours. MiniUSB is used for charging and connecting to PCs.

Kogan Technologies is an Australian based, online-only enterprise, and was founded two years ago by Ruslan Kogan. Kogan manufacturers all its products in China and aims at selling online high-quality electronics cheaply. Kogan also sells LCD TVs, Blu-Ray players, video cameras and now – mobile phone.