Nokia opens the year 2008 by announcing two new mobile phones, aimed for basic users in the “developing” countries. With the price of less than US$60, the main feature of Nokia 1209 is its price. No fancy camera or MP3 player, however the phone is aimed for users who only need to make phone calls, SMS, and other basic stuffs. The interesting (and maybe not so useful) feature is the shared phonebook. Nokia 1209 can accomodate up to 5 users with different phonebooks in one device. Errr… why? Well, it appears in some Asian countries one family can only afford one phone, so they have to share it. Nokia acknowledge this through research, so it’s not just shooting in the dark. The other phone is Nokia 2600 Classic, a more advanced yet very affordable phone. It supports EDGE and mobile email, with an attractive price tag (less than US$100, I presume).

One question remains, where are the more advanced phones? I mean Nokia has been announcing the Touch UI, yet no device sporting touchscreen has come up in the market. Hopefully, we don’t have to wait for long for the iPhone killers.

Popularity: 24% [?]