Mobile Phones: Nokia unveils Asha lineup, bringing Series 40 to emerging markets: 200, 201, 300, 303

Thursday, 27 October 2011

Nokia unveils Asha lineup, bringing Series 40 to emerging markets: 200, 201, 300, 303

Nokia has unveiled the Asha lineup, a spate of lower-end devices that run Series 40 and blur the line between featurephone and smartphone. The devices -- named the 200, 201, 300 and 303, are all designed to encourage the "next billion" users to access the web, and seem directed toward emerging markets. The 200 includes an Easy Swap option that lets you throw in multiple SIM cards, and can offer up to 32GB of storage for media playback -- 52 hours of it, in fact. It, along with the 201, have exceptionally loud speakers that work great for parties and those crazy all-nighters, though the latter lacks the multi-SIM support. Both of these phones will be available for €60 ($85); the 200 is going to ship before the end of the year, while the 201 will be ready for your purchase by Q1 2012. The 300 and 303 are the touchscreen handsets of the bunch; the 300 is a candybar with a numeric keypad and offers a 1GHz CPU, 5MP camera and 3G. It'll be priced at €85 ($120) and will be available in Q4 2011. Similarly, the 303 offers the same types of features with a 2.6-inch display and full QWERTY experience, and should be ready before the end of the year for €115 (about $160).

All four Asha devices are made of polycarbonate and come with a Nokia Browser, which is powered by the cloud and compresses data by up to 90 percent, saving users from racking up excessive charges. Oh, and did we mention Angry Birds is coming to Series 40? Be sure to check out the vids for each Asha phone -- as well as the press release -- after the break.

Gallery: Nokia Asha 200, 201, 300, 303