asha

The Nokia Asha 501 is a cheap, colorful touch-screen phone for emerging markets

The Nokia Asha 501 is part of Nokia's budget range of phones, aimed at emerging markets like India and Latin America. It'll land in the UK in Q3 this year, with wider European availability from June. Nokia has said that it won't be shipping to North America any time soon -- if ever.

It has a low-resolution capacitive touch screen and uses only 2G data networks, but it has a fun, vibrant, plastic design and a supercheap price tag of $99.

Design If you've spent time with any of Nokia's recent phones, the 501 will … Read more

Nokia teases global event for Thursday

Nokia has something "colorful" up its sleeve for Thursday, though the company is mum on the details.

The Finnish phone maker said Wednesday that an event is taking place in New Delhi, India, and teased it by asking if you're "ready to add some color to your week?"

A live global Webcast of the event will kick off at noon local time in New Delhi, 9:30 a.m. in Helsinki, and 7:30 a.m. in London. Nokia didn't specifically list the U.S., but the overseas times would put the Webcast at … Read more

Nokia unveils keyboard-toting Asha 210 for emerging markets (hands-on)

Following Monday's teaser photo of a keyboard-equipped device, Nokia announced today its newest entry-level handset, the Asha 210.

As a member of the Asha family, which is the company's line of inexpensive phones aimed at emerging markets, the 210 will not be heading to the U.S. Rather, it will launch in Q2 in parts of Europe, Latin America, Africa, and Asia for about $72 (before tax and subsidies). It will come in single- and dual-SIM models as well.

Nokia is also partnering with three social networking and messaging apps, and bringing them onto the Asha 210. Depending … Read more

Nokia at MWC 2013: Join us Sunday (live blog)

BARCELONA, Spain--Will Nokia unleash another Lumia smartphone?

Nokia kicks off the first official day of Mobile World Congress with its press conference, and you can get all the news right here.

Rather than a high-end superphone, Nokia is expected to unveil a line of more budget-friendly phones in a bid to go after the mass market. That could mean a lower-end Lumia device, as well phones from its Asha line of ultra-low-end phones.

CNET UK's Luke Westaway, photographer Sarah Tew, and I will be bringing you all the details, photos, and commentary from the event. The event kicks off … Read more

Nokia plans smartphone fight at low end of market, report says

Nokia has its sights set on the lower end of the handset market, according to a new report.

The company next week at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona will unveil cheap basic phones and low-price Lumia smartphone models aimed at budget-conscious shoppers, Reuters is reporting today, citing sources from within Nokia. The Lumia smartphones will run on Windows Phone 8, but it's not clear what software will be on the lower-end, non-Lumia models.

Nokia is certainly no stranger to the lower-end of the mobile phone market. Last January, in fact, the company announced that it sold 1.5 billion Series 40 phones. … Read more

Nokia unwraps $62 Asha cell phones -- but not in the U.S.

Nokia has announced two new phones designed for budget-conscious and socially-networked users, although they won't be available in the United States.

Unveiled today, the Asha 205 and 206 feature phones each sell for $62. They also offer quick access to Facebook and the ability to share photos and files with users of any other mobile phone.

Both phones are slated to reach consumers by year's end. But they'll only be up for grabs in certain markets, and users in the U.S. are out of luck. Asha phones are not compatible with Microsoft's Windows Phone OS, … Read more

Nokia delivers Lumia 510 for emerging markets

Nokia has launched the Lumia 510 smartphone, the cheapest Windows Phone-powered smartphone from the Finnish phone giant.

Designed for emerging markets, such as India, China, South America and Asia, the entry level smartphone bridges the gap between the Nokia Asha and the top-end Lumia devices currently on sale.

Sporting a 4-inch display with a 800x480 resolution, the latest Lumia weighs only 129 grams. The device itself is powered by a Snapdragon S1 processor with 256MB of RAM and 4GB internal storage. It also includes a 5-megapixel autofocus camera, GPRS/EDGE connectivity designed for developing cellular networks, along with 802.11n … Read more

Nokia goes after emerging markets with $99 Asha handsets

Nokia today unveiled two new Asha handsets in a concerted effort to appeal to customers in emerging markets.

Dubbed the Asha 308 and the Asha 309, the devices come with 3-inch touchscreens and 2-megapixel rear cameras. Unlike the company's Lumia line, the handsets aren't running Windows Phone. Instead, they run Nokia's Series 40 operating system, which it offers to consumers in emerging markets that are looking to invest more heavily in mobile products.

The Asha 308 and Asha 309 are nearly identical. However, the Asha 308 comes with built-in dual SIM, allowing owners to switch between up … Read more

Nokia promises 'something amazing' on Sept. 7

Photos snapped outside Nokia's currently-closed Helsinki store proclaim that "something amazing" will happen on Sept. 7. The message seems to indicate that the store itself will reopen for business on that date. But the implication is that Nokia will unveil something much bigger.

Other images posted by blogging site My Nokia Blog tell customers to "prepare to be amazed at all the new things in your Nokia store." The company is also inviting people to visit the Web site NokiaGraffiti.me next week to discover more. The site is currently unavailable.

The timing of this … Read more