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After the horns-blaring, pompom-shaking announcement of the C6-01, C7 and E7, Nokia has quietly slipped out the C3 Touch and Type.
It’s very different to the previously revealed phones, as it doesn’t run on Symbian 3 or carry a Qwerty keyboard. Instead it has a traditional numeric keyboard with a display offering ‘touchscreen functionality’, which could turn out to be very basic, as the C3 runs on the Series 40 OS. This is already used in millions of non-smart phones around the world, so is unlikely to bring anything new to the table.
It has a classic look to it, with Nokia Conversations describing it as reminiscent of the Nokia 6700 and 6300 phones. It’s aimed at those of you who want familiarity and the ability to operate single-handed, lacking the bells and whistles of a powerful smart phone. But it will have 3G and Wi-Fi connectivity, as well as a 5-megapixel camera with flash. It’ll also be able to support microSD memory cards for storage up to 32GB.
It doesn’t look very different to the Nokia X3 Touch and Type we saw back in August, and neither is the most glamorous of handsets. This’ll be why Nokia held back the announcement until well after we saw its three big boy smart phones. Nokia knows how to make these kinds of phones well, and they’ll sell shiploads without any great hoopla.
The C3 will cost around €145 (£120), and you might consider that reasonable for a budget Nokia, but Alcatel’s announcement of a smart phone that can run Android 2.1 for under £100 puts that in a somewhat different light. But until the C3 is in for review we won’t be able to make any firm judgements. Keep your eyes peeled.
