Nokia C2

First impressions

Alongside the news that Nokia will be unleashing its MeeGo platform on the world in the form of the N9, it also lifted the curtain on a trio of low-end devices that all fall under the same C2 naming banner. The C2-02, C2-03 and C2-06 also share the same sliding form factor, although they have incrementally different innards.

Two of the three handsets will sport dual-SIM capabilities, but it is the absence of 3G in all of the C2 models that is the most important factor to consider for the Aussie market. There are fewer 2G-only handsets shipping down under with every release cycle, especially in the smartphone space, in which the C2 resides.

If one or more of the C2 variants arrive in Australia, there will be some key features to look out for. Nokia is touting a big improvement in its web browsing and Nokia Maps in low-end devices, though the usability of both may be limited by the C2's 240x320 (QVGA) resolution display.

We had heard reports that Nokia's future low-end devices would be packing a fast 1GHz processor to help run the various apps that users will want to download through the Ovi Store. We'd assumed that this would begin with the C2, but we haven't been able to confirm this with the official documentation that we've seen so far.

Outlook

There's a good chance that we might not see the C2 launch in Australia, but it is indicative of good things to come for the budget-priced smartphone category. Nokia knows that a smartphone needs a good web-browsing experience regardless of price, although it won't fulfil this promise with the C2's 2G-only connectivity. Still, it whets our appetite for more Series 40 devices to be launched later in the year.