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Saved by the Belle: the Nokia 700, announced mere moments ago, is the first phone to show off Symbian Belle, Nokia’s latest update to the Symbian software that currently powers its phones.
The 9.7mm-thick case encases Nokia’s smallest smart phone, containing a 1GHz processor, 2GB of internal memory and a 5-megapixel camera with LED flash and high-definition video. The front is dominated by a 3.2-inch AMOLED ClearBlack touchscreen.
The 700 launches in the UK and will cost around £240. It comes in silver, black, blue, burgundy and purple.
Two other new phones also bring Belle to other countries: the Nokia 600 and Nokia 701.
Ring my Belle
The Belle update gives your phone six home screens, which you can fill up with widgets, magic little icons that update automatically and display the latest information of your choice, from the weather to your messages to your friends’ latest social network shenanigans. Widgets come in five different sizes, so you can personalise the home screens to your heart’s content.
Symbian Belle also includes single-tap near-field communication, or NFC, which lets your phone communicate with other gadgets by tapping them together. It’s best known in tills for paying for stuff, although we don’t have many shops that offer it yet. You can also swap files between devices, or pair with NFC-enabled mobile accessories like speakers or headsets, or even get extra levels in games.
Belle of the ball
Nokia has committed to Symbian for the foreseeable future, despite the fact it will be replaced before the end of this year by Microsoft’s Windows Phone software on all Nokia’s smart phones.
Belle will ring the changes on your current phone too. The update comes to the Nokia N8, E7, C7, E6, X7 and Nokia 500 in winter this year.
It’s been a right-old phone fiesta lately, in the run-up to next week’s IFA technology trade show: we’ve seen the Samsung Galaxy M Pro, Galaxy W, Galaxy Y and Y Pro, Motorola Fire and BlackBerry 9360 unveiled in the last couple of days.
