BLU Announces $299 Touchscreen Android Smartphone

While most tech enthusiasts are familiar with names like Samsung and HTC, there’s a smaller company that’s slowly edging its way into the ever-growing mobile handset market: BLU.

Granted, BLU has been around for several years now, during which it has produced and released several Android-powered smartphones. However, most of these devices have been on the low-end of spectrum, with an average cost of around $150. But BLU is shifting is business model so it appeals to a larger audience with its upcoming Pure XR smartphone.

Introducing the BLU Pure XR

With a price tag of $299 (without contract), The Pure XR costs a bit more than BLU‘s previous smartphones. This shouldn’t dissuade you from considering it, though, as it boasts some impressive specs that rival some of the market’s leading handsets.

BLU Pure XR Specifications

The BLU Pure XR is a true powerhouse considering its moderate price tag. It features a crystal-clear 1080p Super AMOLED 5.5″ touchscreen display that’s protected with Gorilla Glass 3. Like most modern-day smartphones, the Pure XR uses capacitive touch technology, meaning it identifies touch via the electrical charge produced by your body/finger instead of pressure This is in stark contrast to resistive touchscreen technology, which works to identify touch via the pressing together of an upper and bottom layer. Capacitive touchscreen devices typically offer better picture quality and higher accuracy, but they can only be operated with a bare finger or special touchscreen gloves. This is because wearing a pair of “normal” gloves prevents electricity from traveling from the operator’s finger to the device; thus, the device cannot register touch. The upcoming BLU Pure XR, however, operates entirely with capacitive touchscreen technology, meaning you’ll need a bare finger to use it.

In addition to an impressive full-HD display, the Pure XR also features a powerful octa-core MediaTek Helio P10 processor, 4GB random access memory (RAM) and 64GB of internal storage. If 64GB still isn’t enough, you can increase the Pure XR‘s storage capacity via amicroSD card.

Other notable features of the Pure XR include a 16-megapixel primary camera, 8-megapixel secondary “selfie” camera, 3,000 mAh battery, Type-C USB port, fingerprint sensor, and quick charging capabilities.

The BLU Pure XR is available for sale from Amazon and Best Buy for $299 unlocked. It’s a GSM-only handset, however, so it’s only compatible with select cell carriers, including AT&T, T-Mobile, MetroPCS and Cricket. You can not use the Pure XR with Verizon at this time.