Nokia Unveils Entry-Level Lumia 610 Windows Phone

Nokia unveiled the fourth member and newest addition to its Lumia family of smartphones at MWC 2012 today, the Lumia 610. Designed to be an affordable, entry-level smartphone targeted at younger audiences, the Lumia 610 is yet another Windows Phone 7 device from Nokia that's expected to begin shipping in the second quarter of 2012. Unfortunately, there is no news yet on whether or not that release is going to include a U.S. launch.

The Lumia 610, which will run the upcoming Windows Phone 7 Tango OS, will sports a 3.7-inch, 800 x 480 WVGA LCD display and come with a modest 256 MB of RAM and 8 GB of built-in, non-expandable storage. Nokia neglected to include any information in its press release or on its website regarding the Lumia 610's chipset type or its clock speed, but further research revealed that it is to be powered by an 800 MHz processor. The update from Windows 7.5 Mango to Tango will provide better hardware efficiency, allowing Microsoft to lower its previous 1 GHz clock speed hardware requirement.

The smartphone will have a sleek design and is fashioned with a "distinctive profile and finely beveled metallic edges," measuring 119 x 62 x 12 mm. It will also come preloaded with Nokia's suite of software, including Nokia Maps, Drive, Transport, and Music.

The Lumia 610 is going to come in white, cyan, magenta, and black varieties, and will have a price point of 189 Euros (roughly $252, presumably unsubsidized given the way Nokia is touting its affordability). Nokia has yet to confirm what specific carriers the phone will be available through, though it did specify that its data connection will be HSPA and will work on both GSM and CDMA networks.

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