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

The company is reportedly getting ready to unleash a new wave of basic phones and underpowered Lumia smartphones to try to entice budget-conscious customers.

Don Reisinger
CNET contributor Don Reisinger is a technology columnist who has covered everything from HDTVs to computers to Flowbee Haircut Systems. Besides his work with CNET, Don's work has been featured in a variety of other publications including PC World and a host of Ziff-Davis publications.
Don Reisinger
One of Nokia's lower-end devices, the Asha 303.
One of Nokia's lower-end devices, the Asha 303. Nokia

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. Those devices are designed for emerging markets where the cost of a typical Lumia handset is simply too high for most customers.

According to Reuters, its sources wouldn't say when the cheaper Nokia devices would launch nor where they would be available. However, the company should deliver all of the details at Mobile World Congress next week. And as always, CNET will be there to cover every last detail.

Nokia declined CNET's request for comment on the Reuters report.

Catch CNET's full Mobile World Congress coverage here.