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Orange Gova packs 4G, holds your hand through setup (photos)

Mobile network Orange has a new own-brand handset, the Gova, offering 4G and basic software to parts of Europe.

Andrew Lanxon
Andrew is CNET's go-to guy for product coverage and lead photographer for Europe. When not testing the latest phones, he can normally be found with his camera in hand, behind his drums or eating his stash of home-cooked food. Sometimes all at once.
Andrew Lanxon
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1 of 30 Andrew Hoyle/CNET

Mobile network Orange has a new addition to its own-brand handsets in the form of the Gova. Based on the newly announced Huawei Ascend G6, the Gova has a 4.5-inch display and 4G connectivity and software additions that make it super simple for new smartphone users to get to grips with.

Orange's own-brand phones are aimed at central Europe -- the Gova will be available in Spain, Romania, Slovakia, Poland, Moldova, Luxembourg, Tunisia and Mauritius. The EE network icon pictured on this phone is for demonstration only -- it won't be coming to the UK. There's no official word on how much the Gova will cost, but it's expected to be free on contracts at around €30 per month.

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The phone is fairly plain, but it's not unattractive.
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It's quite slim, which makes it easy to hold.
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There's a 5-megapixel camera on the back.
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Can you think of a better name than "Gova"? Why not put your entries into the comments below.
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It has the same rounded bottom as Huawei's G6.
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And the headphone port is stuck awkwardly on the side.
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Power button and volume rocker sit on the side.
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There's a micro-USB port on the top.
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It comes in two colours; a nice blue or a more sombre grey colour.
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Orange doesn't yet know which region will get each colour.
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The phone runs Android 4.3 Jelly Bean.
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Orange has loaded up a lot of its own software, including a handy app that launches on first start up that takes you through the absolute basics of using a smartphone -- handy if you're making a step up from an old feature phone.
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Press and hold is one of the techniques you'll be familiar with.
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And a quick tap, of course.
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A handy addition is the ability to perform actions by performing gestures on screen.
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There are various pre-set gestures to choose from.
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Or you can create your own.
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Making the gesture on screen can load up any of your apps...
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...call a contact...
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...or load a Google Maps search taking you from your current location to any pre-set destination.
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The Gova will join the Reyo, which Orange released back in December.
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It's a 3G-only phone with a 5-inch display, dual-core chip and Android 4.2 Jelly Bean on board.
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The phone is available now in Romania, Slovakia, Poland and Spain.
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It's hardly the most beautiful of phones, but at €169, SIM-free, it's cheap.
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It comes with the same Orange software additions as the Gova.
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It has 4GB of storage, but you can expand that with a microSD card.
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On the back is a 5-megapixel camera.
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The overall Android interface is easy to use.
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Android 4.2.2 is pretty old, but on such a cheap phone, that's excusable.

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