India Telecom

November 8, 2005
Nokia launches handsets to drive mobility

NEW DELHI -- Nokia launched two new affordable handsets models, 1110 and 1600, which target first-time buyers and have talking alarm and clock in five regional languages along with innovative features for ‘ease of use’. With these new mobile phones, Nokia has expanded its entry-level portfolio in India.

The Nokia 1110 (black and white display) and Nokia 1600 (coloured display) are ideal for first time users as they have an inbuilt graphical demo mode which allow users to access and familiarise themselves with the main functions of the handset, even without inserting a SIM card. Another stand out feature of these new handsets is the unique Talking Alarm and Clock in five regional languages including Hindi, Tamil, Bengali, Marathi and Gujarati.

Nokia handsets are renowned for their ease of use and the Nokia 1110 and 1600 phones continue this tradition with a new intuitive user interface that makes full use of graphical icons and large font sizes and the built-in hands-free speaker. With the new menu structure accessing basic features, such as managing calls and contacts become easier. In addition to polyphonic and MP3-grade sound ringtones, the Nokia 1110 and Nokia 1600 also feature a unique cost-management feature, such as Nokia Prepaid Tracker support to help users monitor their phone usage. This will be an operator dependent service.

Reiterating Nokia’s intent to drive affordable mobility in India and grow the base of mobile phone users. Sanjeev Sharma, Managing Director, Nokia Mobile Phones, said: “With the introduction of these new handsets we have further strengthened our entry level product portfolio by bringing in feature rich handsets with localised applications. Only 5 percent of the population understands the English language. Nokia has always tried to reach out to the masses, which has been demonstrated by our past endeavours in introducing Hindi SMS and even in our earlier campaigns. These handsets are yet another example of Nokia’s innovation and commitment to introduce products that are relevant for Indian consumers. The Nokia 1110 and 1600 announce the dawn of a new age. Its unique talking alarm will wake up millions of Indians, not only to their daily lives, but also to a new era of mobility which has been captured in our campaign called Jaago India Jaago,”

Detailing the rationale behind the Jaago India Jaago advertising campaign, Sharma said: “Indians are extremely proud of how the country has been progressing. The growth of mobility is one of the key indicators of the economic progress in India. The advertising campaign therefore uses the ‘Talking Alarm’ functionality of the Nokia 1110 and 1600 as a metaphor to convey how more and more Indians were waking up to mobility through Nokia handsets and participating in the progress.”

Both these handsets also offer much longer talk time than the current entry phones. Nokia 1110 and Nokia 1600 phones have excellent voice quality and coverage based on state-of-the-art radio software. The new technology enables operators to add voice capacity within their networks smoothly and cost-efficiently while improving network capacity and call quality.

Contact:
Nokia
www.nokia.com