Nokia's budget Asha 308 and Asha 309 S40 handsets revealed
If you’re after a new smartphone, are on a tight budget, and don’t mind hearing some behind-your-back snickers from your iPhone and Galaxy S3-owning mates, Nokia’s freshly uncovered Asha 308 and Asha 309 smartphones may be just what you’re looking for.
Both running the ageing, and admittedly clunky, S40 OS, they’re more or less identical barring one key difference: the Asha 308 can house dual-SIMs and switch between the two on the fly, while the 309 can handle only one SIM card at a time.
Other than that, they’re practically the same handset, with both packing a 3-inch WQVGA capacitive touchscreen, Wi-Fi connectivity, a 2MP camera, support for microSD cards up to 32GB in size, native Facebook, Twitter and YouTube clients and 40 free EA games.
Though only housing 2G cellular connectivity, Nokia promise a fluid mobile browsing experience through their Xpress Browser, which they claim delivers 90% more efficient mobile browsing. Not sure what metrics they’re using to deliver that lofty claim, but we presume it has something to do with how quickly you can get the Gangnam Style fan club page up and running on the handsets.
Sure, so there’s not much, if anything at all, here to make your jaw-drop, but Nokia are putting these out at practically pocket-money prices.
Priced up at $99, you’re looking at roughly £60 for these phones when they hit the UK, SIM-free. That’s pretty much a bargain for a brand new phone that’d have been considered top of the line a few short years ago.
No confirmed UK pricing yet, but we’ll pass that on as soon as we get it. Expect to see this pair touch down before the end of the year.
Hit the video at the top of the page to see the phones from every angle, accompanied by a seriously kooky soundtrack.
