RED delays its pricey holographic phone, the Hydrogen One, yet again
Fingers crossed this is the last delay for the RED Hydrogen One.
The phone was made official last year, as the "world's first holographic media machine." Since then, there have been many delays, and while the plan was for an end of summer release date, RED is pushing it back again.
The good news: The Hydrogen ONE is coming to AT&T, Verizon, and Telcel, a carrier in Mexico, on Nov. 2. However, if you've pre-ordered the device, it will start to ship on Oct. 9. RED Founder Jim Jannard explained the new launch plan in a blog post but cautioned this is all subject to change.
The reason RED gave for the delay is regulatory red tape. The FCC just gave its seal of approval last week, but Jannard says the device was "set back in certification" in his post. The FCC filing also let loose that the Hydrogen ONE has a monstrous 4,000mAh battery inside.
That should be plenty to power the 5.7-inch holographic display, which can display 3D content with no glasses required. You can take advantage of the unique display by shooting in "4-View" (holographic mode) with the built-in camera. Like the high-end digital cameras RED is known for, it should have a fantastic lens on the back. The Hydrogen One can even act as a viewfinder for a larger sensor, like this one from Lucid.
Jannard noted the Hydrogen One's starting price is an sticker-shock-inducing $1,295. For the initial release, it will only come in either black or gray aluminum, while a titanium variant will launch in 2019 in very limited quantities.
Along with the consumer launch on Nov. 2, RED will ship out "Houdini" pre-release samples to select beta testers, but it's first-come, first-served. These models will be black and ship on Aug. 31, but there are several rules around them: Testers can only share pictures of the outside of the device, camera shots can't be blurry, and only nice things can be said (🤔). It will be a beta device all around, hardware and software included, but a feedback app will come pre-installed.
Hype is still building around the RED Hydrogen One, and we look forward to going hands-on at some point. We may even say nice things about it.
Topics Android
