"The fast evolving dual-SIM market in India is a driving force for us”, says Rajan Chawla, mobile devices business country head for sales and operations, India and South West Asia, at Motorola Mobility. It’s a driving force for Nokia too, who have launched dual-SIM phones in India.
International handset majors have been rather slow to reach the message ‘blowin’ in the wind’ from India’s 850 million-plus mobile phone users: they like to hedge their bets by opting for 2 SIMS in their handsets. Local brands and the aggressively marketed models from China have been encashing this customer preference for almost a year before the European and American makers adjusted their product line-up for India.
We bring you news of almost simultaneous twin-SIM offerings this week, from Motorola and Nokia. 3 models from Motorola Motorola has launched three dual-SIM mobile phones: Motorola EX212 is a compact flip phone with a 6.0cm (2.4-inch) graphical display. Motorola EX119 presents both a full QWERTY keyboard and a 6.0cm (2.4-inch) capacitive touchscreen in a super-slim package while Motorola EX109 is a slim mobile phone which offers a full QWERTY keyboard.
At 13.9mm thin, Motorola EX212 ( Rs 5,190) has a classic slim flip design a reflective metallic surface, a large 6.0cm (2.4-inch) QVGA screen, and a wide keypad. It features a secondary LED screen in addition to its main screen for a dynamic graphical display even when the phone is flipped shut. The LED array displays incoming calls or messages on the mobile phone for greater convenience and ease of use. The EX212 also has a 2MP camera and an audio-video player that supports MP3 and many other audio and video formats. Users will also be able to enjoy FM radio on their Motorola EX212. Other features include a 3.5mm stereo headphone jack and support for microSD card storage of up to 16GB. It provides talk time of up to 375 minutes and a standby time of up to 625 hours.
With the combination of both a touch-screen and full QWERTY keyboard, Motorola EX119 (Rs 6,190 ) is only 9.9mm thin and features a 6.0cm (2.4-inch) touch screen display, It also offers five different home screen styles and built-in links to Facebook, Twitter, and other popular social network sites and email services. The Wi-Fi enabled Motorola EX119 supports IMAP idle push email. Other features include a 3MP camera, microSD card support up to 32GB, high speed USB 2.0 file transfer and support for multiple audio and video formats. Motorola EX119 also supports Bluetooth stereo sound, stereo radio and a 3.5mm earphone jack .
The Motorola EX109 (Rs 3,590) comes with a full QWERTY keyboard and a 5.0cm (2-inch) display. Well separated keys ensure a great messaging experience. Built-in links to Facebook and Twitter put these popular social networks in the palm of your hand. It comes with a 2MP camera, FM stereo with recording capability, a 3.5mm audio jack, and MPEG4 support for a great multimedia experience. The Motorola EX109 also supports microSD card up to 32GB and Bluetooth capability.
Nokia touch phones
Nokia’s dual SIM offerings are the Touch & Type slider phones, Nokia C2-03 and Nokia C2-06. The Nokia C2-03 (Rs 4949) , the third dual SIM phone Nokia has brought to market in the last two months, comes with Nokia’s special feature that allow the user to personalize up to five SIM cards with a dedicated look and feel, and an Easy Swap option that lets users change SIM cards in seconds without having to turn off the phone or remove the battery. It comes with a 2 mega pixel camera, stereo FM radio, media player and memory support that can be expanded to 32 GB.
A premium version is also available with Nokia C2-06 ( Rs 5349), which comes in a range of fresh colors with a clean, smooth and metallic finish.
Mr. T.S Sridhar, Regional Director (South), Nokia India said: “These ‘Touch & Type’ phones offer internet, maps and apps experience second to none in the market. With the choice of a touch screen or a keypad, we really have made everything available and easy to use in an affordable phone that comes in both dual and single SIM options.”
Both phones deliver a faster & improved internet browsing experience through the data compression technology of the Nokia Browser, keeping the costs of surfing low and speeding up page downloads; this technology benefits both consumers and operators. Users can now now use Local Search on Maps using both SMS and GPRS.
The new offerings also come with Nokia Life Tools that help improve life and work for consumers across India. Nokia Life Tools is a sms based service that offers a range of agricultural information, education and health services.
Aug 13 2011