Will anyone really buy a Tesco smartphone?

Tesco is set to launch its own branded smartphone by the end of the year, according to a radio interview with the supermarket’s Chief Executive, Philip Clarke.

According to reports today, the Tesco phone will be running a version of Google’s Android OS and will come with a number of Tesco services already installed, much like the brand’s Hudl tablet (pictured above) that launched last year.

When we hear “Tesco phone” we automatically think of a reliable, frills-free and budget device. This is probably because the supermarket’s competitive prices and trustworthy service our some of our favourite things about shopping at Tesco. However, Clarke explained that the phone would be competing with “the best smartphones available.”

Whether it’s set to actually compete with the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S5 and Sony’s Xperia Z2 remains to be seen. The question we have here at ShinyShiny HQ is whether anyone would want to have a phone associated with the supermarket brand. Sure it’s reliable and often cheaper than its competitors, but it hardly has the brand association that has so many people hooked on the likes of Apple and Samsung products. Furthermore, it’s likely to still cost a fair bit if it’s going head-to-head with some of the latest devices on the market.

Let us know what you think about Tesco’s step into the mobile market in the comments below.