The Cherry Mobile Apollo is now official

Cherry Mobile Apollo hit the retail market even before it was officially launched. Cherry Mobile has now released a teaser.

For the asking price of Php6,999, the specifications are pretty impressive: 

• Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean)
• 4.5-inch HD (720 x 1280) IPS display
• Dual sim support
• 4 GB internal storage expandable via a MicroSD card slot
• 1 GB RAM
• 1.2 GHz quad core MediaTek MT6589 processor
• PowerVR SGX544 graphics processor
• 12 MP autofocus primary camera with LED flash
• 5 MP front camera
• HSPA+
• WiFi
• Bluetooth
• A-GPS
• 1800 mAh battery*

While specifications posted say the battery is a 1800 mAh unit, early buyers report that the battery supplied was a 2000 mAh unit.

The Cherry Mobile Apollo will probably replace the Cherry Mobile Razor in the company's line-up. While the Apollo does not have the Razor's slim profile, I think it is going to be hard to keep selling the 4.5-inch qHD phone, when you have a 4.5-inch HD phone for a few hundred pesos more. 

It will also make life harder for some of the smaller premium locally branded handsets like the Starmobile Knight which is priced at Php11,290. The Knight is in such short supply with retailers receiving very few units to sell, it might not matter anyway. The Apollo will really put the squeeze on Starmobile's lower priced offerings as well. The same can be said for MyPhone lower priced smartphones.  An Android smartphone with a 720p display at 7K, really will change what buyers start expecting for 7K, in the same way that the Flare changed the standards of what the budget smartphone should be like.

Overall it fits nicely on the Cherry Mobile lineup. Add Php2,000 more and you get the 5-inch Omega HD 2.0. A few hundred more gets you the 5.7-inch Blaze 2.0. All three phones have nearly identical specifications.  Above that you have the more premium Cosmos line. But for everyone else the Apollo will really turn on the heat.