Today Stephen Elop announced the new Nokia Asha 501 on the stage of the Nokia press in India. It’s the first product of the new generation Ashas with a brand new platform. The design is inspired by Lumia and Nokia picked red as the signature color.
The new Asha platform is based on the SmarterPhone acquisition Nokia made a few years ago. The new interface focuses on swipe events and a new feature called Fastlane.
The new Asha platform is based on the SmarterPhone acquisition Nokia made a few years ago. The new interface focuses on swipe events and a new feature called Fastlane.
The Nokia Asha 501 is made of only two parts to make it more durable and cheaper to manufacture. The back is removable to access the microSIM, the pre-installed 4GB microSD card (up to 32GB supported) and the battery.
The phone packs a 3" QVGA capacitive touchscreen on the front (133ppi), it supports two finger multitouch. On the back, there's 3.2MP fixed-focus camera.
The new Asha platform is a grandchild of the MeeGo OS. The phone wakes up with a double tap. It features two home screens - one is Fastlane, the other one is the app drawer.
Fastlane promises to show your present and your past. Present includes currently running apps (yes, multitasking, hell froze over), while Past shows messages and other notifications you’ve received.
The Nokia Asha 501 focuses on 2G connectivity as large parts of emerging markets still rely on the slow mobile Internet. There are two apps to help with that - the Xpress browser compresses traffic and Xpress Now that recommends content based location, preferences and trending topics. Also, a partnership with Facebook and Airtel ensures people can access the social network for free, even without a data plan (this will be for a limited time only).
The Nokia Asha 501 features Wi-Fi connectivity for faster local data transfers, plus Bluetooth 3.0 and microUSB 2.0. 3G-enabled Asha 5xx phones will launch later.
The new Nokia Asha OS will be a very social platform with Facebook, Foursquare, Linkedin, Twitter, Youtube and more available out of box.
There's going to be a dual-SIM version too. The second SIM card is exchangeable without having to remove the battery, a feature Nokia was keen to point out is unique to them.
The Nokia Asha 501 measures 99.2 x 58 x 12.1mm and weighs 98g.
The new Asha platform promises to be very efficient - the 1,200mAh battery in the Asha 501 is enough for up to 17 hours of talk time and 48 days of standby (26 days for the dual-SIM).
The Nokia Asha 501 will start shipping in June in 90 countries on 60 operators. It will cost $99 before taxes and subsidies for the single-SIM version.
FASTLANE
The Asha 501 is powered by a new software platform, which fully leverages Nokia’s investments in Smarterphone, which it acquired in 2012 and builds on the best aspects of Series 40 to create something fresh and innovative.
The result is an evolutionary operating system that is fast, responsive and easy to use.
The Asha platform is faster, more responsive and more flexible too. This means new features and functionalities can be anticipated with future updates.
Developers will be able to create apps for the Nokia Asha 501 that will also be compatible with future Asha platform-based devices.
Living in the Fastlane
The forward-thinking approach to the Asha 501 extends to the user experience.
At its heart is a landmark new feature called Fastlane. Inspired by the much-loved swipe motion gestures on the iconic Nokia N9, Fastlane makes it faster and easier to access whatever is most important to you.
Whether it is the applications you use the most, the latest images you’ve captured or your social network updates, Fastlane is designed so that you’re never more than a swipe away.
Think of it as intelligent multitasking, or think of it as an interactive second home screen. Either way, Fastlane tracks your past, present and future, showing up to 50 of your most recent activities. It brings all the different elements of your smartphone experience together.
The result is an evolutionary operating system that is fast, responsive and easy to use.
The Asha platform is faster, more responsive and more flexible too. This means new features and functionalities can be anticipated with future updates.
Developers will be able to create apps for the Nokia Asha 501 that will also be compatible with future Asha platform-based devices.
Living in the Fastlane
The forward-thinking approach to the Asha 501 extends to the user experience.
At its heart is a landmark new feature called Fastlane. Inspired by the much-loved swipe motion gestures on the iconic Nokia N9, Fastlane makes it faster and easier to access whatever is most important to you.
Whether it is the applications you use the most, the latest images you’ve captured or your social network updates, Fastlane is designed so that you’re never more than a swipe away.
Think of it as intelligent multitasking, or think of it as an interactive second home screen. Either way, Fastlane tracks your past, present and future, showing up to 50 of your most recent activities. It brings all the different elements of your smartphone experience together.
