Nokia announced at an event in Hong Kong another upgrade of its Symbian platform, with three new smartphones featuring NFC launching this quarter. Following Symbian Anna, the new Symbian Belle operating system starts with the mass-market Nokia 600, 700 and 701 smartphones. Belle marks the introduction of Nokia NFC phones, including the ability to tap the phones with NFC-enabled accessories (such as a new headset also launched from Nokia) and with other NFC phones to share photos, videos and other content. Nokia said more Symbian Belle devices will launch in 2012, and the OS upgrade will also ship on the N8, E6, E7, X7, C7, C6-01 and Oro and be available later as a download. Belle also adds enhancements to the user interface, such as six instead of three home screens, additional widget sizes, and a pull-down menu and taskbar to access functions from any home screen. The three new smartphones include the Nokia 700, which the company says is its smallest Symbian phone and is expected to retail for EUR 270 excluding tax and operator subsidies. The monoblock handset comes with a 1Ghz processor, 3.2-inch Amoled screen with ClearBlack display, 2GB of internal memory (with up to 32GB microSD card slot), HD video capture and 5MP camera with LED flash. Nokia said it's also its most "eco-friendly" smartphone, with a long battery life, extensive use of eco-friendly materials and features to minimize battery consumption. The Nokia 701, based on the C7 design, features a 3.5-inch ClearBlack display, which Nokia says is the world's brightest smartphone display. It also has active noise cancellation, a 1GHz processor, an 8MP camera with dual LED flash, a front-facing camera and HD video capture. Priced at EUR 290, it comes with 8GB internal memory and a 32GB microSD card slot. Finally, the Nokia 600 is aimed at music lovers, offering Nokia's loudest phone at 106 Phons. It comes with a built-in FM radio antenna for listening to radio without headphones and FM transmitter that makes it possible to broadcast music to any FM radio. It claims 60 hours of music playback time, a powerful internal loudspeaker and the ability to stream music wirelessly to NFC-enabled accessories. Available at EUR 180 from Q3, the Nokia 600 comes with a 1 GHz processor, 5MP camera with LED flash and HD video capture, and 2GB of internal memory plus a 32GB microSD card slot.
