NEW YORK-Nokia Corp. debuted three handsets targeting mobile music lovers at its Nokia Theater in Times Square. The phones are set to be available in select markets within weeks, but Nokia did not name the markets. The company also did not name any carriers that would potentially sell the devices.
The new Nokia 5300 XpressMusic phone can hold about 1,500 music tracks on a 2 GB microSD card. It features dedicated music keys so users can control their music and at the same time use other functions such as texting, browsing or taking pictures with the phone’s 1.3 megapixel camera. The handset is expected to retail for $317 and will be offered in the first quarter of 2007.
“With this product launch, we are emphasizing the benefits of the XpressMusic feature brand, which clearly labels those Nokia devices that guarantee an outstanding mobile music experience,” said Heikki Norta, senior vice president of mobile phones at Nokia.
Users can also plug in headphones or external speakers to listen to their music. The handset also transfers albums and music collections to a computer using a standard micro USB connector.
The handset maker also unveiled the Nokia 5200, a cheaper version targeting younger consumers. The handset lacks the “XpressMusic” tag. It is expected to retail for around $253. To download music to the device, users connect a USB cable or use Bluetooth technology to transfer music from the PC to the device using the Nokia Music Manager.
Finally, the company introduced the 3250 XpressMusic phone, which updates the 3250 “twist” design handset and doubles the music capacity up to 1,500 tracks. It should retail for about $500.
The new phones come just a day after Nokia unveiled a range of Nseries music phones.
