Nokia has once again reinforced its entry level portfolio with two new handsets dubbed Nokia X2-05 and C2-05 both running on Symbian S-40 operating system. Unlike other industry players who have completely shifted to Android based devices, it seems the handset maker’s appetite for its traditional Symbian platform especially for devices ranging in entry level genre is not fading away anytime soon. Nokia X2-05 and C2-05 are closely similar in terms of features and functionality except for their form factors; X2-05 comes with a slider keypad while its sibling Nokia C2-05 boasts of a durable bar form factor design. The two siblings are priced lower than most devices in their genre and as expected, C2-05 is slightly edging X2-05 on its price tag due to a unique and stylish slider design; X2-05 is estimated to cost €46 while C2-05 €50.

Nokia C2-05

Of the two entry level siblings, Nokia C2-05 looks more fashionable considering its slider form factor compared to X2-05 which has a bar form factor. It has a 2.0 inch LCD display panel enhanced with up to 65k colors and a VGA camera. Nokia C2-05 comes with integrated multimedia features such as Fm radio, a MicroSD card slot and Bluetooth for connectivity purposes. Although its doesn’t support 3G connectivity, Nokia C2-05 supports dual band GSM/GPRS/EDGE network known to offer modest internet connection speed for basic online activities such as social networking and e-mails. A slim disappointment on this handset is revealed by a smaller 2.0 inch screen compared to X2-05’s 2.2 inch panel though not touch sensitive.

Nokia C2-05 Features and Specifications;

• 2.0 inch TFT Resistive touch screen, up to 65k colors
• 64MB internal storage capacity, Micro USB v2.0
• Expandable by an external MicroSD card of up to 32GB
• VGA camera (640×480 pixels), Fm radio and Fm recording
• Bluetooth, WAP 2.0/xHTML browser

Nokia has unveiled two additional Symbian based budget phones coming as cheaper alternatives to a slightly high priced C5-03 sibling. Despite most consumers routing for a cheaper version for the flourished N9 at this point in time, the handset maker seems to have settled for affordable variants to C5-03 smart phone. The new Nokia C5-06 and C5-05 phones have had some of their functionalities and capabilities such as camera and 3G-connectivity downgraded compared to their predecessor C5-03; unlike C5-03 which houses a 5.0-Megapixel digital camera, both Nokia C5-06 and C5-05 have a downgraded 2.0-Megapixel rear camera. In addition to a downgraded camera, the two newcomers do not support 3G networks, they fall under 2G budget feature phones genre. Nokia C5-05 is also referred to as C5-04 for the Canadian market only.

Nokia C5-05 (C5-04 for Canada)

Nokia C5-05 houses a 3.2 inch (640×360 pixels) nHD resistive touch display panel capable of up to 16m colors which is significantly similar to C5-03’s TFT screen. On top of that, both these two handsets come with 40MB internal storage capacity which can be expanded using an external MicroSD card up to 16GB although C5-03 is shipped with a 2GB MicroSD card included. In addition, C5-05 runs on a 600HMz processor and Symbian series 60 operating system just like its predecessor sibling. The main difference separating the two is camera and 3G support though they are closely similar.

Nokia C5-05 (C5-04 for Canada) Features;

• 3.2 inch (640×360 pixels) nHD resistive touch screen, 16m colors
• 600MHz processor, 40MB internal storage
• Symbian Series 60 operating system
• Supports MicroSD card up to 16GB

Nokia C5-06 Symbian Phone

Nokia C5-06 is pretty much similar to its sibling C5-05/04 featuring a 3.2 inch (640×360 pixels) nHD resistive touch screen, 40MB internal storage capacity, 128MB RAM, 256 ROM and supports a MicroSD card of up to 16GB capacity. Nokia C5-06 houses a 600MHz modest processor and runs on Symbian 60 series operating system just like its sibling.

Nokia C5-06 Features/Specifications

• 600MHz processor, 40MB internal storage, 128MB RAM
• 3.2 inch (360×640) TFT resistive touch screen
• 2.0-Megapixel camera (1600×1200 pixels)
• MicroSD card up to 16GB, FM radio
• WiFi 802.11b/g/n, Bluetooth

Nokia C5-06 Price in Kenya:

The introduction of Dell Streak Pro 101DL to an already competitive Android market segment has elicited mixed reactions from consumers most of whom praised Dell’s initiative to significantly raise benchmarks within which high-end smart phones are grouped. During the same launch, Panasonic Lumix 101P was also unveiled featuring the most powerful 13.0-Megapixel digital camera in the industry so far; until now, smart phones ranging in the high-end genre have been known to house an 8.0-Megapixel camera or a lesser 5.0-Megapixel, a 13.0-megapixel camera is obviously breathtaking significantly raising benchmarks for other handset makers. On the other hand, Dell Streak Pro 101DL has not been left out, it boasts of a 1.5GHz dual core processor speed caching up with most of its peers in the same genre.

HTC is making good use of its Sensation’s popularity by introducing variant products targeting various market segments across the globe. Latest developments from the handset maker has witnessed the introduction of HTC Sensation XL following in the footsteps of its sibling Sensation XE though with a modest single core 1.5GHz processor speed contrary to its sibling’s dual core 1.5GHz processor. Consumers have also admitted seeing major similarities between HTC Sensation XL and its Windows Phone powered sibling HTC Titan in terms of Qualcomm MSM8255 chipset that features a 1.5GHz processor and Adreno 205 GPU. Just like other Beats enhanced handsets from the manufacturer, HTC Sensation XL features the Beats audio enhancements and a unique pair of Beats headphones that are shipped in its retail package.

The latest droid device from Panasonic has undoubtedly raised benchmarks defining digital cameras on smart phones in high-end genre; Panasonic Lumix 101P smart phone features an actual 13.0-Megapixel digital camera up from 8.0-megapixel commonly associated with high-end Android devices. The handset maker was very keen in ensuring Panasonic Lumix 101P phone stays abreast despite a very competitive market segment by encapsulating flourished features such as a 1GHz dual core processor instead of a scrawny single core processor inside most handsets falling in its genre. Despite major industry players such as Samsung introducing powerful devices such as Galaxy Note that drastically raised benchmarks for high-end smart phones, Panasonic Lumix 101P smart phone has managed to outshine them considering its 13.0-megapixels camera with enormous capabilities comparable to a dedicated digital camera.

After several days of cat and mouse games’ regarding HTC’s latest Android device, the handset maker has decided to go official by announcing the new HTC Explorer smart phone. HTC Explorer which had previously been referred to as Pico in leaked, unconfirmed and blurry images is designed with reasonable hardware configurations some of which resembles that of its earlier siblings such as Wildfire S but with affordability in mind. The handset maker is clearly targeting consumers in need of low priced Android smart phones but with basic functionalities; HTC Explorer’s digital camera’s megapixels have been reduced to 3.15-Megapixel down from 5.0-Megapixel placed in its sibling Wildfire S. it however comes equipped with additional exclusive features such as a data monitor that essentially allows users to track their data usage without seeking a third party’s services.

Huawei has beefed up its Android based line of products by introducing a more enhanced Huawei Honor U8860 smart phone featuring a 1.4GHz single core processor. The handset maker has been very aggressive of late in a very competitive Android market segment by introducing variant products ranging from high-end smart phones to entry-level devices. Unlike its sibling Vision 3D which boasts of having the manufacturer’s proprietary 3D user interface and a modest 1GHz processor, Huawei Honor was designed to offer the best user experience in terms of performance comparable to its peers on the market. As the Android based smart phones bench marks continue to rise at unpredictable pace, its very unlikely devices featuring modest processors less than 1GHz will continue to survive competition. Huawei Honor’s arrival is therefore timely and it’s expected to gather a reasonable ground among other devices in its genre.