Today Kyocera took the wraps off of the two newest additions to its smartphone portfolio, the Hydro and Rise. As you might've guessed, one of the Hydro's main features is its water resistance. Kyocera says that the Hydro is IPx5 and IPx7-certified, meaning it can withstand sprayed water like rain as well as being immersed in a meter of water for up to 30 minutes. As for the rest of the Hydro's spec list, you can expect to find a 3.5-inch 320x480 touchscreen, 1GHz Qualcomm MSM8655 Snapdragon processor, 3.2-megapixel shooter, 2GB storage, 512MB RAM, 2GB microSD card and a 1,500mAh battery. The Hydro also comes preloaded with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich.
The second handset introduced by Kyocera this morning is the Rise. Like the Hydro, the Rise has a unique feature to differentiate it from the other new Kyocera handset that debuted today, but instead of being water resistant, the Rise packs a slide-out hardware keyboard. Outside of the QWERTY, the Rise features fairly similar specs (and design) as the Hydro. The Rise features a 3.5-inch 320x480 display, 1GHz Qualcomm MSM8655 processor, 3.2-megapixel camera, 2GB memory, 512MB RAM, 2GB microSD card and 1,500mAh battery. And yes, just like the Hydro, the Rise comes out of the box with Android 4.0 in tow.
As far as availability goes, Kyocera says that we'll be seeing the Hydro and Rise become available across the nation in the second half of 2012. No possible carriers were mentioned, but both handsets feature CDMA/EV-DO connectivity. Considering that Sprint has released several Kyocera phones in the past, including the Echo, Milano, DuraPlus and DuraMax, it wouldn't be a surprise to see the Hydro and Rise eventually make their way onto the Now Network. We'll let you know more when we get it.
Kyocera Introduces Hydro And Rise, Android Smartphones Designed To Meet The Demands Of Real Life
Fully Immersible Hydro Combines Water-Resistant Durability with Sleek Style, While Underserved QWERTY Lovers 'Rise Up' for Convenient QWERTY Keypad
San Diego - May 08, 2012 - Kyocera Communications, Inc., a San Diego-based provider of Kyocera-branded wireless phones in the Americas, today announced at the CTIA Wireless 2012 trade show two new Android™ 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) smartphones designed to meet the everyday needs of real life: the waterproof Kyocera Hydro and QWERTY-plus-touchscreen Kyocera Rise.
Leveraging technology from Kyocera's ruggedized Dura Series and more than four years of experience building water-resistant mobile phones, Kyocera Hydro carries IPx5- and IPx7-level water resistance. Whether caught in a rainstorm or dropped in a sink, Hydro is certified as waterproof against sprayed water (e.g., rain) and immersion in water up to one meter deep for up to 30 minutes. It is Kyocera's first mass-market water-resistant smartphone for the North American market. According to a January study by TNS Global Research, more than 82.5 million handsets in the U.S. have been destroyed by water or moisture.† Additionally, in a recent Wireless Lounge survey 70 percent of consumers indicated they consider water resistance an important feature in their next phones.
"Kyocera has been making water-resistant devices globally since 2008, ranging from handsets for children to full Mil Spec, ultra-ruggedized devices, and Hydro is our seventeenth so far," said Eric Anderson, senior vice president and general manager of global sales and marketing at Kyocera Communications. "Wireless devices have become so crucial to our everyday lives; their durability must support our lifestyles. Kyocera Hydro combines a sleek, touchscreen design with water resistance to ensure it can withstand the spills and drops of everyday life."
Kyocera Rise offers the best of both worlds for diehard QWERTY users and feature-phone users looking to move up to a smartphone: an easy-to-use slide-out keypad and a high-resolution touchscreen in an Android 4.0 device. A survey by Yankee Group earlier this year revealed that 69 percent of consumers called a QWERTY keypad a "must have" or "nice to have" feature on their devices.‡
"For some people, keys ARE the key feature, yet there are very few QWERTY smartphones on the market to meet this demand," said Anderson. "Kyocera Rise is the ideal device for those underserved consumers for whom a touchscreen isn't enough and who demand the familiar tactile feedback of a keypad. With both Hydro and Rise, people have spoken loud and clear about what they want, and we've listened."
Both Hydro and Rise feature 3.5-inch HVGA capacitive 480x320 IPS LCD touchscreen displays and Swype for rapid text entry. They have MSM8655 1 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon® processors, 2GB ROM, 512MB RAM memory and support microSD™ memory cards up to 32GB. Each has a 3.2 megapixel camera with an LED flash and a 30 frame-per-second camcorder. On the network side, Hydro and Rise support EV-DO Rev A and 1X Advanced and are enabled with Wi-Fi (b/g/n), Stereo Bluetooth® (2.1 + EDR) wireless technology support and high-speed USB 2.0. They include 3-axis accelerometers, digital compasses, proximity sensors, ambient light sensors and Kyocera's "Eco Mode" software to monitor and conserve battery power.
Despite its water resistance, Hydro is a trim 4.53 x 2.44 x 0.50 in. and weighs only 4.16 ounces. Rise, with its slide-out QWERTY keypad, measures 4.44 x 2.38 x 0.56 in. (in closed position) and weighs 5.54 oz. Both phones will be available nationally in the second half of 2012.
Images of Kyocera Hydro and Rise can be found at http://toolkit.kyocera-wireless.com.
About Kyocera Communications Inc.
Kyocera Communications Inc. (KCI) is the headquarters for Kyocera- and Sanyo-branded wireless products and accessories in the Americas. The company's devices are driving the convergence of telecommunications, broadband and multimedia. KCI was formed in April 2009 through the combination of Kyocera Wireless Corp. and Kyocera Sanyo Telecommunications Inc., two wholly owned subsidiaries of Kyocera International Inc. The former was created when Kyocera purchased QUALCOMM Incorporated's consumer wireless phone business in 2000, while the latter was formed when Kyocera purchased the wireless phone business of Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd. in 2008. Based in San Diego, KCI leverages Japan's history of creating advanced consumer technologies around humanism and respect for the environment and blending them with a Western entrepreneurialism and style, resulting in a unique design language and a natural, user-friendly interface. For more information, please visit http://www.kyocera-wireless.com or follow the company on Facebook at www.facebook.com/kyoceramobilephones.
Kyocera Corporation (NYSE:KYO)(TOKYO:6971) (http://global.kyocera.com/), the parent and global headquarters of the Kyocera Group, was founded in 1959 as a producer of fine ceramics (also known as "advanced ceramics"). By combining these engineered materials with metals and plastics, and integrating them with other technologies, Kyocera has become a leading supplier of telecommunications equipment, printers, copiers, solar power generating systems, electronic components, semiconductor packages, cutting tools and industrial ceramics. During the year ended March 31, 2012, the company's net sales totaled 1.19 trillion yen (approx. USD14.5 billion). The company is ranked #426 on Forbes magazine's 2012 "Global 2000" listing of the world's largest publicly traded companies.
