The HTC Salsa or How Not to Price a Product

HTC recently launched the Salsa Android smartphone in India for Rs. 22,000. While HTC can be depended on to launch quality handsets, the Salsa seems like a strange device to launch. While most of its specs seem like they belong to a mid-range (Rs. 10-20K) smartphone, it's launch price places it amidst high-end smartphones.

The two main reasons why the price just does not make sense are the display and the processor. 3.4 inches is a very strange size for a display. Most phones either go for a 3.5-in or larger display or stick to 3.2 inches. Plus, the Salsa's display resolution is capped to a surprisingly low 320x480 pixels. On paper, it looks like a very average display for that price.

I know the processor speed is just not representative of the phone's usability (a fact that Nokia tried to force in recent times before finally giving up) but you can't discount the fact that a 1GHz processor has almost become an entry point for a new high-end smartphone. The HTC Salsa asks for a lot of cash but only offers an 800MHz processor in return.

Now maybe the Salsa will actually turn out to be an awesome phone that kicks ass and redesigns the entire landscape for smartphones, but more likely than not, it looks like it will suffer a massive price drop within a month or two or swiftly be forced down the road to oblivion.

Think the HTC Salsa is brilliant and most likely to become the gateway to world peace? Tell me I'm wrong on Twitter @postwar

Other stories of interest:

HTC Salsa: Facebook-ing to a New Rhythm
HTC Salsa, ChaCha Facebook phones appear at MWC 2011
Top 5 High-End Phones

Nikhil Pradhan

Senior Reviewer

• Nikhil Pradhan

Nikhil Pradhan is a die-hard PC gamer who pities the fools that look at any other form of gaming. He has lost countless hours in the various worlds that make up Western RPGs and also arguing about why Metallica has never lost their mojo.