Nokia launches slimmest phone, six new models in India

New Delhi, May 3 (UNI) Finnish mobile maker Nokia today unveiled its slimmest 'Barracuda' phone and six other entry level handsets, including its cheapest 1200 model priced at 35 euros (48 dollars).

With a range of its low-cost phones, the company aims to capture a large share of the untapped rural market.

The company has introduced all the seven models -- 1200, 1208, 1650, 2660, 2505, 2760 and Nokia 2630 -- below the 100 euro price, when excluding operator subsidies and taxes.

''India is among the top three markets for Nokia. In an emerging market like this, price is not the only driving force.

Brand, quality and durability come first. However, any entry-level product is always a big investment,'' said Mr Soren Petersen, Senior Vice President, Mobile Phones, Nokia.

Nokia 1208 and Nokia 1650 will be available at 40 and 65 euros. While its 2660 and 2505 models will come at a price of 85 euros.

The Nokia 2760 has been priced at 90 euros and the Barracuda, or Nokia 2630, slightly below 10 millimeters (0.4 inch) thick, comparable with most of thin phones of its rivals at 85 euros.

RComm has, a day before, launched its 'Classic' brand of handsets at Rs 777, Rs 844 and Rs 888.

So far, the minimum price of a Tata Indicom CDMA handset is Rs 1,000, while an entry-level GSM phone costs between Rs 1,550 (Motorola) and Rs 1,750 (Nokia).

Nokia, which sells more than a third of all phones across the world, has a strong position in emerging markets but in developed markets like India, Motorola and Samsung have attacked it with popular thin phones.

UNI