If last night’s proceedings were anything to go by, you’d think that Nokia are all ‘full steam ahead’ with their push of the new Lumia Windows Phone devices (the Nokia Lumia 820 and Lumia 920). However just days ago the company’s other significant product line greeted two new additions in the from the the Nokia Asha 205 and the Nokia Asha 206.
The Asha 205 takes the torch from the Asha 201 and Asha 302 as the newest in the range with a full QWERTY hardware keyboard. Although the layout is recognisable when compared to these two other Asha devices, one element is fundamentally different: the Asha 205’s focus is on social networking and as such it features a dedicated Facebook button, much like the Android-powered HTC ChaCha and HTC Salsa.
The Asha 205 also debuts another feature from called ‘Nokia Slam’ which although not directly referred to as NFC is a proximity-based sharing tool which allows users to share an item over Bluetooth with whichever compatible device is closest in proximity. There’s no need for pairing either, so it’s a quick and easy way of handing your content to your friends.
What specifications does the Nokia Asha 205 have?
- Screen: 2.4-inch QVGA (320×240) TFT display
- Memory: 64MB onboard (10MB user accessible), expandable via microSD slot up to 32GB
- Camera: VGA, fixed-focus
- Input: Full QWERTY hardware keyboard and dedicated Facebook button
- Connectivity: Bluetooth 2.1 with Nokia Slam, GPRS/EDGE
- Battery: 1020mAh
- Colour: Black/blue, orange/white, pink/magenta, grey/white, black
What operating system does it run?
Being a member of Nokia’s Asha family, the 205 comes running Series 40 Asha, a derivative of the older Series 40 OS with some notable tweaks and support for new features, like Nokia Slam and the latest edition of Nokia’s Xpress Browser which can help compress data down by up to 90%.
What are the alternatives?
Asha handsets all offer affordability and functionality, with the aforementioned 201 and 302 being worthy QWERTY alternatives. If the QWERTY aspect isn’t a necessity, then Nokia’s old Windows Phone handsets are also worth a look as both the Lumia 610 and 710 will likely be on offer with a competitive package.
When will the Nokia Asha 205 be available?
Nokia say the Asha 205 will be available this quarter with an unsubsidised price of $67 (£42).
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