EE launches the UK’s lowest priced 4G smartphone, the Rook
EE, the UK’s most advanced digital communications company, today launched the Rook, the UK’s most affordable new 4G smartphone at just £39 for existing EE customers* and £49 for new EE customers. The Rook is available immediately from EE stores, EE telesales and via the EE online store and will allow a new sector of UK pay as you go customers to enjoy the benefits of superfast 4G.
With 44 per cent of UK pay as you go customers currently spending up to £50 on a handset, the Rook will be the only new handset in this price range to offer a superfast 4G experience – opening double-speed 4G to over 2.5 million UK consumers**.
The Rook runs the latest Android 5.1 Lollipop operating system, and features a 5 megapixel camera, a 4” high resolution FWVGA display screen and 8GB internal memory, all powered by a fast and energy-efficient 64 bit MediaTek® 1GHz Quad-Core processor enabling faster web browsing, smoother game play, quicker multitasking and further improved battery life. The Rook also comes with a 1,500mAh battery, which is good for over five hours of talk time and over 400 hours stand-by-time on a single charge.
Sharon Meadows, Director of Devices at EE, said: “At EE, we believe everyone should have access to 4G and the experiences it offers on the go. The Rook provides a great 4G smartphone at a compelling price – allowing even more people to enjoy the benefits of our superfast mobile network from high speed web browsing and downloads to gaming and streaming.“
The Rook builds on a range of own branded devices from EE designed to give consumers access to the UK’s fastest network, offering features and specifications traditionally associated with a higher price point.
As well as being on pay as you go, the Rook is available to EE corporate customers – providing a powerful and easily affordable smartphone for customers in medium and large enterprises.
Customers who purchase a Rook handset can also benefit from up to a 20% discount on select EE accessories. Further details on these, as well as more information on the Rook from EE is available at:www.ee.co.uk
Key Specifications:
|
Design Specifics |
OS |
Android 5.1 |
|
|
Form Factor |
Candy Bar |
|
|
Dimension |
126*64*10.3 |
|
|
Weight (g) (with battery) |
130g |
|
|
Antenna |
Internal |
|
|
QWERTY Keypad |
Virtual QWERTY |
|
|
TouchScreen |
Capacity touch screen |
|
|
Side Keys |
Volume key, power key |
|
Chipset |
Chipset (BB/RF) |
MediaTek® MT6735M with integrated 4G modem |
|
|
Processor |
MediaTek® Quad-Core 64bit processor |
|
Display |
Main Display technology, size, resolution, colour space |
TFT TN 4.0“ WVGA(480*800) 16M colour |
|
Camera |
Camera Sensor Type |
CMOS(RAW/YUV) |
|
|
Still Image Capture Resolution (in MP) |
Back: 5MP FF Front: 0.3MP FF |
|
|
Flash |
No |
|
|
Auto-focus |
No |
|
|
Function |
Digital Zoom: 4x Capture mode: EV / Scene mode / colour effect / continuous shot/face detection / anti-flicker / picture size setting / white balance
video mode: microphone/Video quality |
|
|
Image (formats, preview framerates) |
Capture Format : JPG Preview framerate: max. 30fps |
|
|
Video (Formats, resolution, preview / record framerates) |
Formats:3gp Resolution: back sensor (176*144/480*320/640*480/1280*720); record frame rates: vauto mode(30fps); night mode(15fps) |
|
Memory |
Combo Flash |
8GB eMMC +1GB RAM |
|
|
Total internal memory (end user available) in MB |
More than 1GB |
|
|
Maximum Capacity of external memory card (GB) |
32GB |
|
Battery |
Battery capacity(mAh) |
1500mAh |
|
Connectivity |
Bluetooth (Version , Power Class, Profile) |
BT4.0 |
|
|
Wifi Protocol |
802.11b/g/n |
|
|
USB Cable Connector (MiniUSB / 8 pin MiniUSB / MicroUSB / Others) |
5pin MicroUSB |
|
Accessory |
Headset (3.5mm/2.5mm/others) (OMTP/CTIA) |
3.5mm, CTIA |
|
|
Charger connector (MiniUSB / 8 pin MiniUSB / MicroUSB / Others) |
5pin MicroUSB |
Notes to editors:
* A £10 top-up at the time of purchase is required
** Statistics based on EE’s estimations of the current size of the UK PAYG marketplace who purchase a handset priced up to £50
Review devices available on request
For more information, please contact the EE press team on:
0845 373 7070
For more information about the MediaTek processor powering the Rook, please contact MediaTek press team:
Tom Woods | +44 207 632 3876 | twoods@waggeneredstrom.com
About EE
EE is the largest and most advanced digital communications company in Britain, delivering mobile and fixed communications services to consumers, businesses, government and the wholesale market. EE has approximately 14,000 employees and 548 retail stores, and serves more than 30 million customers across its mobile, fixed and wholesale businesses.
EE runs the UK's biggest and fastest mobile network, pioneering the UK's first superfast 4G mobile service in October 2012 and is the first European operator to surpass the 10million 4G customer landmark. EE's 4G coverage today reaches more than 90% of the UK population. EE’s 2G coverage reaches 99% of the population while 3G reaches 98%. EE's superfast fibre broadband service covers 74% of the UK population, and ADSL broadband service covers 98.7% of the population.
In the last few years, EE has received extensive independent recognition including being ranked the UK's best overall network by RootMetrics®; Best Network at the 2014 and 2015 Mobile News Awards; Fastest Network at the 2013 and 2014 uSwitch Awards; Best Network at the 2014 Mobile Choice Consumer Awards and the What Mobile Awards 2013 and 2014; Number One for Network Innovation at the 2013 Recombu Awards; Best Mobile Network at the 2014 Recombu Awards; Best Network for Business at the 2013 and 2014 Mobile Industry Awards; and Best Consumer Network at the 2014 Mobile Industry Awards.