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"Fresh from a change of direction which will mean an end to Nokia X,\u00A0Asha and S60 devices, Microsoft has pulled a bit of a surprise with the announcement of a \u20AC19 ($25) device aimed squarely at first-time phone buyers across the world.\r\n\r\nThe company is\u00A0putting all its smartphone efforts into the Windows Phone platform, but the new Nokia 130 bucks that trend since it is built on Nokia's Series 30 software.\r\n\r\nMicrosoft says the device is &amp;quot;the most affordable mobile phone with video and music player,&amp;quot; but it is certainly limited in its functions. The Nokia 130 sports an MP3 player, an FM radio and can play movies from an SD card because there's no internet. The company claims\u00A0the handset supports 46 hours of audio playback, and 16 hours of movie watching. The 1.8-inch phone also comes with a (basic) color display, a claimed 13 hours of talk time, and in single- or dual-SIM versions.\r\n\r\nDespite the less-than-impressive specs, the device is interesting because it appears to go against the focus on Windows Phone. That could be because the launch had been planned for\u00A0some time by Nokia, but by\u00A0letting this phone get released, Microsoft is hinting that it still has plans for the\u00A0entry-level\u00A0tier segment\u00A0-- where margins are low, but Nokia's\u00A0brand remains strong among consumers.\r\n\r\nUpdate: In an interview with Re/Code,\u00A0Microsoft phone unit VP Jo Harlow says the company will retain Nokia's\u00A0entry-level phone business because &amp;quot;Microsoft doesn\u2019t have any other project that can reach these consumers.&amp;quot; Harlow believes that these cheap devices can serve \u00A0as a bridge that brings new users into Microsoft's ecosystem.\r\n\r\nThe device is available in some colorful options, and is due for release this quarter. The company hasn't confirmed which markets it will be sold in, but we'd expect it to surface in regions like Africa, Latin America, South Asia and Eastern Europe.\r\n\r\nUpdate 2: Microsoft says the device will &amp;quot;be available in select markets, including China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines and Vietnam&amp;quot;.\r\n\r\nWe've reached out to Microsoft for further information about its plans for Series 30 devices, will update this post with any response that we're given.\r\n\r\nIn the meantime, if you're curious about the Nokia 130, the video below will give you a rundown.\r\n\r\nhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6SX3Gxbawc"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://thenextweb.com/microsoft/2014/08/11/microsoft-isnt-out-of-the-entry-level-market-yet-after-announcing-a-25-nokia-feature-phone/>