Samsung Smartphone GamePad controller coming to India in January at Rs. 4,999

Samsung has announced that its recently unveiled Smartphone GamePad controller will be launched in India in January 2014. The South Korean giant confirmed the news at the Galaxy Grand 2 launch event, and also revealed that it will be priced at Rs. 4,999.

The news was first reported by Technodify. Samsung globally unveiled the Smartphone GamePad earlier this month, a device that is compatible with smartphones and tablets running Android 4.1 and offering Bluetooth connectivity.

Samsung revealed that the Smartphone GamePad has been optimized to work best with its own Galaxy line-up, and is compatible with devices such as the Galaxy Note 2, Galaxy Note 3, Galaxy S III and the Galaxy S4.

The Samsung Smartphone GamePad is attachable to Android smartphones ranging from 4-inch to 6.3-inch. It comes with Bluetooth and NFC support for other smartphones and tablets as well, enabling easy device pairing. Users can also utilize an HDMI cable connection to mirror the display on larger screen TVs, or use the AllShare app support for wireless display mirroring, requiring Android 4.3 Jelly Bean and above.

It's worth pointing out that the Smartphone GamePad has to be used in conjunction with the 'Mobile Console' app, which can be downloaded from the Samsung App store. Through the app, users can launch, browse and buy supported games. There are 35 compatible games available at launch, with more promised by the company in 2014. Games include EA's Need for Speed Most Wanted, Gameloft's Asphalt8: Airborne, Modern Combat 4: Zero Hour, and SEGA's Virtual Tennis Challenge.

At just 195 grams, the GamePad features an eight way D-pad, two analog sticks, four action buttons, two trigger buttons, a select button, a start button and a 'play' button.

Earlier on Monday, Samsung announced that the Galaxy Grand 2 will be released in India in the first week of January and will be priced between Rs. 22,900 and Rs. 24,900.