A group of IIT graduates in India have built an Android phone called Firstouch which can translate English into Indian languages and vice versa. The handset has a special 48-button virtual keyboard which makes space for Indian alphabets too. Sudhir Bangarambandi, Rakesh Deshmukh and Akash Dongre have patented this keypad as well as the Matra predictive text technology that comes along with it.
Firstouch lets users translate text written in English into their regional tongue such as Marathi, Gujarati or Hindi, by simple swipe gestures. The default keyboard carries the alphabets in English as well the Indian language for which it is designed. So there’s no need to switch keypads from one language to another just so you can translate them either way.
In terms of the general features of the Firstouch handset, its specifications are pretty basic, with a 4-inch touchscreen, dual core processor, 512MB of RAM, 4GB internal memory, support for 32GB expandability, Android onboard and so on. MoFirst Solutions is the company behind the phone and it was founded in 2008 by Bangarambandi, Deshmukh and Dongre.
Firstouch phone specifications at a glance:
– 1.2GHz dual core processor
– 4-inch 480 x 800p display
– Android Jelly Bean 4.2.2 OS
– 512MB of RAM, 4GB ROM
– 32GB microSD card support
– 2MP main camera with flash
– 0.3MP webcam
– Dual SIM dual standby
– 3G, 2G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, AGPS
– 1300mAh battery
The Economic Times says that the Firstouch will make its debut in Gujarat’s Rajkot district this May with a price of Rs 6000 attached to it. This will be followed by the handset’s release in June with Hindi and Marathi support.