Nokia 500 is new Symbian phone, Windows Phone still 500 miles away
When we wake up, yeah we know we're gonna be, we're gonna be the phone fans who wake up next to the new Nokia 500. Da da da daah (da da da daah)!
When we wake up, yeah we know we're gonna be, we're gonna be the phone fans who wake up next to the new Nokia 500 -- but before you walk 500 miles and then 500 more, we need to proclaim this isn't the hotly anticipated Nokia Windows Phone.
No, the 500 is an entry-level touchscreen smart phone running Nokia's much-maligned and largely forgotten Symbian software. There's still no sign of a Nokia running Windows Phone, with the elusive Sea Ray prototype our only glimpse so far of Microsoft and Nokia's collaboration. Once it arrives, all Nokia smart phones will use Microsoft software, but lower-end phones will continue to use Symbian.
The 500 uses the latest Symbian Anna software. It packs a 1GHz processor, which Nokia says is its fastest to date. There's a 3.2-inch capacitive touchscreen, 5-megapixel camera on the back, 2GB of internal storage and a microSD card slot.
Nokia reckons the 500 will give you between 5 and 7 hours of talktime, over 450 hours of standby, or up to 35 hours of music listening. An FM radio and Internet radio are included along with the MP3 player.
You can download apps from the Ovi Store, and the phone comes with apps, including Shazam and Gig Finder, built-in. Lonely Planet and Michelin guides are also included alongside new Ovi maps, featuring turn-by-turn navigation. Social networks including Facebook, Twitter and popular Chinese site RenRen are updated directly on the home screen.
There'll be a black version in the autumn, with a white version to follow before the end of the year -- but if you're of a more colourful bent, they come with a choice of coloured covers in the box, with more interchangeable colours and designs on sale separately.
Other phones expected in the interim before Windows Day include the N9, powered by orphaned software MeeGo, and this very day spotted with a definite-looking date on a Swiss website.
The Nokia 500 doesn't have a price in Her Majesty's Pounds yet, but it will cost €150 (£130) if you're one of those there Europeans. Would you walk 500 miles for the 500, or do you just want Nokia to get on with it already and bring out a Windows Phone? Tell us your thoughts in the comments section below, or on our Facebook page.