Nokia C1 and C2: First ever dual-SIM for Nokia

While other handset manufacturers like Samsung and LG have had their own dual-SIM phones for quite some time now, Nokia just made the announcement earlier that they’re joining the party with the Nokia C1 and Nokia C2 (and no, it’s not the bottled tea drink).

Of course, as expected, the dual-SIM handsets that Nokia is releasing are pretty basic and entry-level units (think sub-Php2k Nokia 1100).

The Nokia C1 has 3 sub-models (C1-00, C1-01 and C1-02) with the C1-00 being the cheapest among the three at around Php1,700 before taxes. The handset can run on standby for 6 weeks — the longest in any Nokia phone ever. Not really dual but double SIM (meaning, one SIM active at a time).

And when they said basic entry-level phone, they really mean no features except the ability to make calls and SMS plus FM radio. That’s it! Oh, and a built-in flashlight.

The Nokia C2 has a bit more features in it — Bluetooth, VGA camera, WAP browsing and GPRS with the FM tuner capable of FM recording. The price isn’t very far from the C1 at around Php2,500. Both SIM cards are active with one of the slots hot-swappable (can be switched or replaced anytime even while the phone is turned on).

Being the highest-selling mobile handset brand, I think it’s high time for Nokia to give in to market demand. As I said in my previous entry (Why the resistance to dual-SIM phone?), other local handset brands (including the China phones) have already made a killing selling dual-SIM handsets. One dual-SIM distributor even proudly announced they’re selling 20,000 units a month of the MyPhone (and that’s just one distributor).

Units will be out sometime in 3rd quarter of 2010.