Nokia launches three new low-end devices

Today Nokia announced three new devices that it hopes will makes serious inroads in emerging markets. While they certainly aren’t much to write home about from a phoneaholic’s perspective, they are definitely interesting in that they place particular emphasis on entertainment and social media. Nokia seemingly feels the time is right to thrust mobile internet and social networking upon the up and coming masses and we’re more than eager to see how it works out. Provided data costs are reasonable, Nokia’s effort could certainly provide a means of low-cost entertainment that is well placed in emerging markets. Hit the jump for more details on the 2720 fold, 2730 classic and 7020.

2720 fold - It’s shiny, it flips, has access to email in three-easy steps (Billy Mays style) via Ovi Mail and might even come pre-loaded with Nokia Life Tools if you’re lucky enough to live in one of the “selected territories” that have yet to be disclosed. Other than that, there’s an FM tuner, MP3 ringtones and Bluetooth. Look for it sometime in Q3 for 55€ ($74 USD).

2730 classic - Touted as the most affordable 3G phone in the Nokia catalog at 80€ ($108 USD), the candybar 2730 classic is equipped with a 2-inch QVGA display, 2 megapixel camera, Bluetooth, FM tuner and comes pre-loaded with Ovi Mail while select markets will also receive Nokia Life Tools. Expect to see the 2730 classic ship in Q3 for 80€ ($107 USD).

7020 - A phone that is sure to prove itself popular in emerging markets, the 7020 is a clam shell device that has a monochrome external display, 2.2-inch internal color display, 2 megapixel camera, FM tuner, support for microSD cards up to 16GB and MP3 playback. What makes the 7020 the most interesting of the three new handsets however, is its focus on social media — the device comes pre-loaded with Nokia Life Tools, Ovi Share, Ovi Store, Nokia Messaging, Opera Mini and Nokia Maps in addition to Facebook, MySpace and YouTube bookmarks. The 7020 will run for about 90€ ($121 USD) in Q4.

Read