Bargain Kogan Agora Android phone arrives from Down Under

Following on from the G1 on T-Mobile, Google's Android is about to get its second airing - this time on a handset from Australia. The bargain Kogan Agora takes on a more traditional QWERTY smartphone style appearance but retains the necessary touch screen abilities.

It sports HSDPA and Bluetooth, but not Wi-Fi. A slightly more expensive Pro version adds GPS for the built-in Google Maps. Click through for more pics and details.

In a website posting, Kogan's resident blogger, Ruslan says: "I'm very excited to be able to show you the Kogan Agora and the Kogan Agora Pro.

"I know the price has changed a little -- the impact of the global financial crisis on currencies means that $199 is simply impossible. However, we've been working hard to get you two very affordable, but feature-packed handsets. I hope you're as excited as we are!"

The Agora will cost AU$299 (currently £132), and the Agora Pro will be AU$399 (currently £177). Both are available for pre-order in Australia, with the first phones going out at the end of January. The good news is, Kogan is accepting international orders for a modest premium of AU$44.85 (£19.85) to cover international delivery. Bonus!

[ Kogan Technologies]

Kogan Agora Specifications:

Operating System
 Android ™
 
Google Mobile Functions
 Google Search ™, Gmail ™, YouTube ™, Google Maps ™, Google Talk ™, Google Calendar ™.
 
Display
 2.5-inch TFT-LCD flat touch-sensitive screen with 262K QVGA (320 X 240 pixel) resolution
 
Device Control
 5-Way Central Navigation Key
 
Keyboard
 QWERTY keyboard

Keyboard backlighting

GPS
 GPS navigation capability with Google Maps™ (Pro only)
 
Connectivity
 Bluetooth® 2.0 with Enhanced Data Rate
 
Audio
 Built-in microphone and speaker

Headphone output

Ring tone formats:

MIDI, MP3, WMA, AAC, WAV, PCM
 
Video
 Video formats supported:

MPEG2 H263, H264, MPEG4, AVI
 
Mail attachment support
 Viewable document types:

JPEG,GIF,WBMP,MIDI,AMR,MP3,WAV
 
Dimensions (HxWxD)
 108 mm x 64 mm x 14.8 mm
 
Weight
 130g
 
Battery
 Rechargeable Lithium-ion battery
Capacity: 1300 mAh
 
Talk Time
 Up to 400 minutes
 
Standby Time
 Up to 300 hours
 
Processor MHz
 624 MHz
 
Memory
 256 MB On-board + 128 MB Flash

microSD™ card expansion slot
 
Network
 UMTS/HSDPA (850, 1900, 2100 MHz)

GSM/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz) 

Features Available:
Handsfree
FM radio
JAVA 2.0
SMS
Email
MMS 1.0
WAP 2.0
WAP Push
Web Browser
Bookmarks
Video Recording
Media Player
Instant Messaging
Phone Book
Ring Silencer/Quick Silent
Scheduler/Organiser
Mini-USB Connectivity (charging, headset)
Phone Book
Integrated Antenna
Fast Text Editor
Lunar calendar, Calculator and Alarm Clock