AfterDawn: News

Microsoft unveils $25 Nokia 130 phone for Asia, Africa

Microsoft, through its newly acquired Nokia, is looking to expand their presence to the emerging markets of Asia and Africa, unveiling the new $25 Nokia 130.

The company says the 130 is "an ideal handset for first-time mobile phone buyers, or for people seeking a reliable backup phone to complement their existing smartphones." The device runs on Nokia's own Series 30 OS, not Windows Phone, so the strategy is a bit different for Microsoft than usual.



Available in China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines and Vietnam starting in the Q3, Microsoft says it wants a bigger piece of the "estimated" 1 billion people around the globe that do not have a mobile phone, at all. The company also says that over 300 million phones priced under $35 are sold every year.

The phone is available in single or dual-SIM models, has a microSD slot for 32GB of extra video or music, and has a 1.8-inch display (non-touch of course) with a full 9-digit keyboard and a trackpad. Most notably, the phone has 36 days of standby time, at least 10 times higher than most smartphones.





Written by: Andre Yoskowitz @ 11 Aug 2014 20:58

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• 4 comments

• mightyzog

  So they want to sell a cheap ass phone to "emerging markets" then have the audacity to say that it could be a backup phone for people who have a smartphone. Sounds like they are just throwing darts at a board as to what direction to head in next.
  
  He Microsoft.... Who in an emerging market can afford to have a "backup" phone.
  
  MORONS!!!!

  11.8.2014 23:12 #1

• Bozobub

  Err... It's a valid market. And guess what? I have a cheapass Trakphone, as a backup to my smartphone - lol.

  12.8.2014 00:19 #2

• mightyzog

  Do you live in an emerging market like the piss poor countries that were mentioned in the article?? And that billion people that they are trying to tap into.... If they wanted a cheap ass phone, they wouldn't have had to wait for Microsoft to come to the rescue with one. If there is already this market out there, then probably, these people don't want or need a phone. Just because Microsoft is coming out with this phone isn't going to change people's minds.

  12.8.2014 05:08 #3

• Bozobub

  You ARE aware that in any large market, new customers are created every day, right? It's called being born. And no, that market is NOT currently saturated.
  
  And using the phone as a backup was not intended for emerging markets, either; it's just a minor, tertiary market.
  
  Whether or not THIS phone succeeds - which is, of course not a given - the fact remains that the market for cheap phones certainly is there; your argument starts as moot from the very beginning.

  12.8.2014 09:39 #4