“With
our ultra-affordable mobile phones and digital services, we see an inspiring
opportunity to connect the next billion people to the Internet for the first
time”
Vice President of
Microsoft Devices Group, Jo Harlow, in a press release on Monday January 5th
2015 announcing the launch of the US$29 Nokia 215
While
Samsung launched the US$90 Samsung Z1 in India and Xiaomi is still plotting to
take over the world with their “Small Rice” as chronicled in my blog article
entitled “Xiaomi
in India after success in China - Xiaomi Looks to the West as the World is
theirs for the Taking”, Microsoft's Nokia 215 might just
beat them to the punch.
That's
because the Nokia 215,
a budget feature phone launched during CES (Computer Electronics Show) 2015 in
Las Vegas, Nevada is priced at US$29, making it the cheapest feature phone with
smartphone capabilities on planet Earth as stated in the article “Meet
the world's cheapest smartphone”, published January 5, 2015: 8:00 AM ET By
Aaron Smith, CNN Money.
So says their Press Release entitled “Meet the new Nokia 215, Microsoft’s most affordable Internet-ready phone”, published January 5, 2015 By Microsoft News Center, Microsoft that touted the Nokia 215 as the lowest cost smartphone released by the Redmond, Virginia based company.
And
yes, it does look a lot like the US$20 Nokia 105 launched in April 2014 in
India as noted in the article “Nokia
105: The cheapest handset launched in India”, published April 10 2013, India Today.
From
all accounts, it was a smash hit for Nokia, who were back then in a partnership
with Microsoft as noted in the article “Nokia
profits from sale of US$20 Nokia 105”, published 29 Jun 2013, 02:25, by
Alan F., Phone Arena.
So
now they're back for seconds with an upgrade that actually boasts an actual
Camera and Internet connectivity, which brings the price up to US$29.
So
what do you get for US$29? A lot it seems!
US$29 Nokia 215 by
Microsoft - Loads of Goodies packed in a Candy Bar feature phone
You
may have noticed that the US$29 Nokia 215, albeit modeled
after the US$20 Nokia 105, is packed to the hilt with features as reported in
the article “Microsoft's
Nokia 215 Internet-Ready Phone Is Just $29”, published JANUARY 5, 2015
04:12PM EST BY CHLOE ALBANESIUS, PC World.
Running on the Nokia Series 30+ OS, whatever that is, and supporting the 900/1800 MHz bands, the US$29 Nokia 215 comes in one of two (2) versions based on SIM (Subscriber Identification Module):
1. Nokia
215 Single SIM
2. Nokia
215 Dual SIM
The
screen is a 2.4" QVGA, a step above older Nokia feature phone but still
way below the standard to be even considered a budget smartphone. It's little
and cute with svelte significant numbers of 116mm x 50mm x 12.9mm and weighing
no more than a heavy-calorie Candybar at 78.7 grams.
Oh,
yes, you have some colour choices too:
1.
Green
2.
Black
3.
White
True
to its feature phone roots, it's got a handy FM Radio to keep you up to date
with Cricket Matches and a flashlight for finding thing when the government
decides to shut off the power. Should in case you find that there's nothing on
the radio, you can surf the web using a built in Opera Mini Browser and Bing
Search.
Want
to know the weather?
MNS
Weather has you covered and interestingly too, it's also got Social Media baked
in i.e. Facebook and Twitter. However, if you can load MP3 via the USB Cable
that comes with the phone unto the 32 GB MicroSD Card that it supports, then
you can skip the Internet and the Radio altogether and just jam on your
headphones plugged into its 3.5mm AV Port!
Like I said, a feature phone with some smartphone like features. But then it's got a little more that should make it a tad interesting to Developed World peeps, no matter how sophisticated your taste in smartphones!
Despite
the basic 3G Internet and the VGA Rear-Facing Camera, it's option to be
Dual-SIM would be much beloved by Americans - if it were in their country - as
aside from being no-contract, you're freed from being locked into one Network.
Two (2) Networks to choose from, with Battery life to match that of a regular
feature phone:
1.
29 Days Standby on a full charge for the
Nokia 215 Single
SIM
2.
21 Days Standby on a full charge for the
Nokia 215 Dual SIM
Then
there is the presence of Bluetooth 3.0, not quite Bluetooth 4.0 but still an
advanced feature typically found on smartphones.
This
means, quite simply, if you just happen to have a Bluetooth speaker such as the
US$250 Mars by Crazybaby Levitating Bluetooth Speaker as described in my MICO Wars blog article
entitled “Mars
by Crazybaby Levitating Bluetooth Speaker Levitation Produces good vibration
free sound” or even a US$100 Samsung Level Bluetooth Speaker as described
in my Geezam blog article entitled “How
Samsung's Top 7 Christmas Gift List can make Christmas Unforgettable”, then
you can stream your MP3 and have a party virtually anywhere.
Even
more interesting is the proprietary SLAM Technology that allows you to share
those very same MP3 files (or any file for that matter) by just simply tapping
two (2) Nokia 215 together.
This, again, is a lot like a NFC or Bluetooth sharing in higher-end and even
Budget smartphones.
Sweet,
you say to yourself! So it's not to far below a budget smartphone, you think to
yourself after struggling to read the above sentences. When is this coming to
America, you ask? Alas, the answer isn't as easy as it sounds!
US$29 Nokia 215
launched in Developing World Countries - How Microsoft's Nokia Mobile division
will conquer India
For
Americans wanting this US$29 phone, I’m sorry, but this isn't for you.
It's for the Developing World peeps in these
following Territories in the First Quarter of 2015 who can't afford an Apple
iPhone or are restricted from owning one:
1.
Middle East
2.
Africa
3.
Asia
4.
Europe
So
why those territories and no Developed World Countries like USA, Canada and
England!????
For
the Middle East read Qatar and Saudi Arabia, where the restrictive caveats of
their Telecoms Regulators don't permit high powered smartphones with IM
(Instant Messaging) services that uses hard encryption.
Terrorists
love those.
Asia
is really India, China and the Far East, as these markets are still growing despite
rumours of a slowdown in the Chinese market! China has similar restrictions
like the Islamic States, thus making them a market still not yet fully
exploited.
India, though, is a Greenfield that's so lucrative, that Huawei, Xiaomi and now Samsung are eagerly launch new smartphones in that region alone this 2015 as reported in my blog article entitled “Xiaomi in India after success in China - Xiaomi Looks to the West as the World is theirs for the Taking”,
Already
Samsung has launched the Tizen OS based US$90 Samsung Z1 as stated in my blog article
entitled “US$90
Samsung Z1 Launches in India - Xiaomi Redmi and Google Android One competition
with Tizen OS and Samsung Galaxy S5 stylings”.
Microsoft
has truly made a calculated gamble in buying Nokia Mobile for soem US$7.2
billion dollars as reported in the article “Microsoft
closes Nokia deal, pays more than expected”, published 25 April 2014 12:07
pm BST by Rich Trenholm, CNET News.
With
signs of a turnaround now in the air based on the net profit of €443 million
(roughly $505 million, £330 million, or AU$637 million) in 2014 as reported in
the article “Nokia
makes strong profit in year of 'first steps' after Microsoft sale”, published
January 29, 2015 3:10 AM PST by Claire Reilly and Rich Trenholm, CNET News.
This
strategy will help Microsoft's Nokia Mobile division will conquer Microsoft CEO
Satya Nadella's Home country of India in 2015, the Year of the Sheep!
Here’s
the link:
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