The GSM phone weighs 93 grams, or a little over 3.3 ounces, and has anti-slip sides for a better grip, which reduces the risk of damage from dust and rain.
Nokia said the phone offers voice and messaging at an affordable price for fast-growing and emerging markets in Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Asia Pacific. It is expected to be available during the fourth quarter of 2003. The company did not say how much it would cost.
About 186 million new cellphone subscribers will sign up every year between now and 2007, bringing the global total to 2 billion, research firm In-Stat/MDR predicted in a recent study.
Though China is still tops worldwide in overall subscriber growth, Southeast Asia and virtually untapped countries in Africa and the Middle East will lead the growth charge over the next few years, the study said.
Nokia thinks that there is a market of 600 million low-spending potential subscribers to be tapped.
"We believe that with the right business model for the new growth segment, together with terminals, network equipment and services, there is a true opportunity for profitable business for mobile operators," Jorma Hakkinen, Nokia's vice president of Mobile Entry Solutions said in a release.
The Finnish cellphone maker also announced preconfigured base station products and a new network-planning concept for service providers that's designed to help operators maximise the number of subscribers per site and minimise the number of sites required.
Using standard site products, service providers will be able to speed up implementation and reduce the need for site visits. Remote network maintenance and centralised network management save operational costs.
Nokia said these savings will help cellphone companies in countries that have low revenues, allowing them to offer handsets and services that are tailored for entry-level customers. Their businesses can be profitable even at $5 monthly-average revenue per user, the company said.
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