Along with the Nokia Asha 305, the company has also announced the new entry-level Nokia Asha 306 in its popular Asha family. Today, there are 10 Asha devices available in more than 130 markets. This specs of this handset is almost similar to the Nokia Asha 306, except the Dual-SIM capabilities. The Nokia Asha 306 also comes with the Wi-Fi connectivity, which was missing in the previously announced Nokia Asha 305. This handset provides a smartphone-like experience to consumers, thanks to the new fully re-designed touch user interface.
Neil Mawston, Executive Director of devices research at Strategy Analytics, said:
“Nokia is taking another interesting step forward in connecting consumers to the Internet, seeking to improve their experience through a new touch user-interface that is allowing the company to compete in new mass-market price bands. The mass-market is a competitive segment, but we believe Nokia’s upgraded Asha portfolio has included an attractive package that can enable consumers to have lower running costs, taking advantage of things like its compressed browser and a long-life battery”.
Nokia Asha 306 Specs:
- 3.0 inch WQVGA resistive touch screen display
- Asha Touch UI
- 2 megapixel camera
- GPRS/EDGE
- Wi-Fi Connectivity
- Music player
- FM Radio
- Loud and clear inbuilt speaker
- Nokia Life
- 10 MB internal memory
- 32 GB expandable memory
- Micro SD card slot
- 2 GB Micro SD card bundled
- 2.0 mm Charger Connector
- Bluetooth 2.1
- Micro USB 2.0
- 3.5 mm headset jack
- Up to 25 days of stand-by time
- Up to 14 hours of talk-time
- 1110 mAh battery
Nokia Asha 306 will be available in Silver White, Red, Mid Blue and Dark Grey colors. This handset measures 110.3 mm x 53.8 mm x 12.8 mm and weighs just 96.3g. Nokia Asha 306 users will receive an exclusive gift of 40 EA games to download for free. These games range across action, arcade and sports, and include titles such as Tetris, Bejeweled, Need for Speed The Run and EA Sports FIFA 12. Nokia Asha 306 comes with a price-tag of EUR 68 (approx. $85/ Rs.4,700). This handset will start shipping from the third quarter of 2012.
Vodafone Group plc : Stake in Vouchercloud & Launch in Ireland - 4-traders (press release)
6 June 2012
VOUCHERCLOUD - THE UK'S LEADING MOBILE COUPON PROVIDER - LAUNCHES IN IRELAND
VODAFONE GROUP TAKES CONTROLLING STAKE IN THE COMPANY
Vouchercloud, the UK's leading mobile coupon provider giving shoppers the best local deals delivered directly to their smartphone, today launches in Ireland.
The service offers discounts, codes and vouchers for daily shopping from a wide range of High Street shops, restaurants and leisure providers as well as travel and financial services companies. Vouchercloud uses the smartphone's GPS system to locate discounting retailers nearest to the customer, then guides the customer to the shop's front door using the smartphone's digital mapping application. The voucher is downloaded to the smartphone screen with a single tap, then shown to the sales assistant in store to redeem the discount. Vouchercloud also includes a variety of offers to be used when shopping online.
Retailers can manage their own vouchers and discount offers via a simple self-service online portal, enabling businesses of all sizes - from small family-run firms to multinational chains - to draw on a powerful marketing tool to increase footfall and sales.
Vodafone investment
Separately, Vodafone Group ("Vodafone") announced today that it had increased its shareholding in Vouchercloud's parent company, Invitation Digital Limited (IDL), to 57%. Vodafone took a 21% stake in IDL in May 2011 and, further to the transaction announced today, has the first option to increase its direct shareholding in the future.
Vodafone intends to work with IDL to extend Vouchercloud beyond the UK and Ireland over the coming months as part of the global communications company's broader mobile commerce ("m-commerce") strategy. Further country launches - and details of Vouchercloud integration within Vodafone's other m-commerce activities - will be announced in due course.
Vodafone Group Commercial Development Director Tobin Ireland said: "Mobile couponing is set to grow rapidly across Vodafone's businesses as cost-conscious consumers increasingly turn to their smartphones to hunt for bargains and collect loyalty points. We look forward to working more closely with Vouchercloud in future as m-commerce services become ever more central to consumers' daily lives."
IDL Chief Executive and Co-founder Scott Davidson said: "Our vision is to build the world's leading mobile couponing business, making it easy for consumers to save money and get the best deals from a wide range of retailers, wherever they are. We are delighted that Vodafone shares our vision of the future and look forward to a long and successful partnership."
- ends -
Note to Editors
Vodafone Group
Vodafone is one of the world's largest mobile communications companies by revenue with approximately 404 million customers in its controlled and jointly controlled markets as at 31 March 2012. Vodafone currently has equity interests in over 30 countries across five continents and more than 40 partner networks worldwide. For more information, please visit www.vodafone.com.
IDL/Vouchercloud
Since its UK launch in 2010, Vouchercloud has gained 1.8 million registered users. The App has been downloaded more than 2.5 million times and as at April 2012, there were 700,000 active users and more than 2,000 active merchants offering 8,000 discounts, vouchers and loyalty schemes.
Invitation Digital Limited (IDL) has gross total assets of 1.2 million. For more information, please visit www.vouchercloud.com .
Parties to the Transaction
Vodafone Ventures Limited, Vodafone Sales & Services Limited, Invitation Digital Limited, Victoria Abbott, Roberto Alvarez Ceballos, Mark Andres, Jon Bidgood, Hayley Bidgood Nash, Claire Bush, Peter Clements, Scott Davidson, Kerry Davidson, Joanne Kennedy, Greg Le Tocq, Noman Mohammad, Samantha Oliphant, Douglas Templeton, Donna Thomas and Matthew Wood.
For further information:
Pet Shop Boy finally finds success with actual (virtual) shop - The Register
Pet Shop Boy finally finds success with actual (virtual) shop
Vodafone shops around, spunks cash on muso's Vouchercloud
Posted in Cloud Business, 6th June 2012 12:37 GMT
Free whitepaper – Enabling Datacenter and Cloud Service Management for Mid-Tier Enterprises
Vodafone has splurged on a controlling interest in Groupon-tribute-act Vouchercloud, the spawn of the Pet Shop Boys' keyboardist Scott Davidson. Voda is now mulling over spunking a load more cash on Telstra's New Zealand operation.
Vodafone already owned 21 per cent of Vouchercloud's owner, Innovation Digital Limited, but has now upped that to 57 per cent. The telco has retained first option rights on any future shares, ensuring that it can maintain a controlling interest.
IDL was set up in 2010 by Davidson, formerly of the popular musical combo, and claims almost two million downloads of its smartphone client despite being UK only. Vodafone's intention is to immediately push Vouchercloud internationally, starting with Ireland and extending to other Vodafone territories shortly.
Vouchercloud offers discount codes displayed in its phone app, as well as printable vouchers, much in the same mould as Groupon although the emphasis is on mobile.
The app uses GPS to pinpoint your location and deliver offers specific to wherever you happen to be standing - but it is limited to smartphones (BlackBerry, Windows Phone, Android and iOS) unlike operator-specific competitors including O2 More and Orange Shots, which deliver similar offers via SMS/MMS, and track location based on the whereabouts of the nearest phone mast.
O2 More and Orange Shots are both opt-in services: customers voluntarily hand over demographic details in exchange for vouchers, and both have proved popular. Vouchercloud has been an operator-independent alternative, and it will be interesting to see if Vodafone keeps it that way.
Advertisers rarely want to deal with separate operators, which is why the UK networks launched Project Oscar - a cooperative cross-operator advertising platform based on, but not limited to, wireless NFC technology.
If the EU gives the go ahead to Project Oscar, against the objections of Google and PayPal, then Oscar will be able to sell advertising in text and picture messages, push offers via NFC, and embed adverts and vouchers into apps across network operators. However, if Europe's competition watchdog blocks the project then Vouchercloud's smartphone-only approach could be the only cross-network deal in town.
Even if Project Oscar goes ahead Vodafone will want similar power in all its territories, so will be pushing Vouchercloud into international expansion.
Those territories could well include New Zealand as over the weekend Vodafone was pushed into putting out a statement confirming rumoured talks with Aussie operator Telstra to buy up its Kiwi arm, TelstraClear, though it's saying nothing more about that deal right now. ®
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Nokia introduces Asha Touch range of keypad-free feature phones (video) - engadget
Nokia accelerates the journey to mobile internet with the introduction of Asha Touch device range
Fun, colorful range of touch screen phones will bring fast mobile web browsing, social networks and gaming to millions
Bangkok, Thailand - Nokia has today taken another step towards connecting the next billion consumers by unveiling the Asha Touch family of mobile devices, taking the full touch experience to new price points. The three new phone models - the Nokia Asha 305, Nokia Asha 306 and Nokia Asha 311 - further expand the successful Asha family, first introduced in October 2011. Today, there are 10 Asha devices available in more than 130 markets, providing young, social consumers with a choice of phones to match their own lifestyle.
These latest phones have been designed to provide an incredibly rich, smartphone-like experience to consumers who want to be set free from excessive data consumption costs and short battery life. The Nokia Asha 305, Asha 306 and Asha 311 offer a new, fully re-designed touch user interface, combining the proven ease-of-use from Nokia's heritage with digital design innovations specifically fit for the purpose.
The beautifully crafted Nokia Asha 311 is a fast and fluid 3.5G capacitive touchscreen device, powered by a 1GHz processor to provide a great internet experience. The bright and edgy Nokia Asha 305 is a fun and affordable phone, featuring the exclusive Easy Swap dual SIM. Its sister, the Nokia Asha 306, is a single SIM model, and becomes Nokia's most affordable Wi-Fi handset to date.
"By introducing the Asha Touch phones to the market, we're accelerating our commitment to connect the next billion consumers," said Mary T. McDowell, Nokia's executive vice president for Mobile Phones. "These phones deliver on what young, urban people value most -- a great-looking device; and an intuitive and affordable experience for connecting to the internet, to their friends, and to a world of entertainment, web apps and content."
Great for fast, affordable mobile internet and gaming entertainment
The new devices take full advantage of the Nokia Browser 2.0, a major recent update which uses Nokia's cloud technology to reduce data consumption by up to 90%, meaning that consumers can enjoy faster and cheaper internet access. Web sites load up to three times faster in comparison to devices without cloud-accelerated browsing, making it simple for users to find and select from more than 10,000 web apps available for download. They deliver a richer and more interactive consumer experience whilst using less data than a stand-alone internet connected app.
Consumers can easily stay connected with friends and family at the touch of a button as well as share files and links across their social networks. Furthermore, the Nokia Browser's Download Manager feature helps consumers to manage external content easily, saving music, video or pictures on a memory card, while surfing the internet.
The Asha family is also getting positive support from developers and consumers. Nokia Store has just broken the 5 billion downloads landmark. From January to April, 42% of all content downloaded from Nokia Store was delivered to Asha and other Nokia devices based on the Java ecosystem. Just one year ago, that number was 10%. Also, there are 410 Nokia developers with apps which have achieved more than 1 million downloads. India Games and Pico Brothers just passed 100 million.
As well as providing a great, social online experience, the Nokia Asha 305, Asha 306 and Asha 311 have been created with entertainment in mind. All users will receive an exclusive gift of 40 EA games to download for free* and keep forever. These games range across action, arcade and sports, and include titles such as Tetris®, Bejeweled®, Need for Speed(TM) The Run and EA SPORTS(TM) FIFA 12. The Nokia Asha 311 also comes with 15 levels of Angry Birds pre-loaded onto the phone, perfect for making the most of the touchscreen and 1GHz processor.
"Nokia is taking another interesting step forward in connecting consumers to the Internet, seeking to improve their experience through a new touch user-interface that is allowing the company to compete in new mass-market price bands. The mass-market is a competitive segment, but we believe Nokia's upgraded Asha portfolio has included an attractive package that can enable consumers to have lower running costs, taking advantage of things like its compressed browser and a long-life battery", says Neil Mawston, Executive Director of devices research at Strategy Analytics. "It is also interesting to see how Nokia is promoting its Asha strategy with global launches taking place in important high-growth markets such as Asia. Nokia resonates well there and the response from local consumers is likely to be positive".
Product details
The Nokia Asha 311 is a colourful, compact touch screen device that comes with all the features you'd expect for a fun and easy mobile experience. It boasts a bright and colourful, scratch resistant capacitive glass screen with polarization filters ensuring users get the best experience from the unique and visually entertaining user interface. The Nokia Asha 311 also features a 3.2MP camera and pre-installed Nokia Maps, in addition to the 15 level pre-bundled version of Angry Birds.
The pre-loaded social client makes accessing Facebook, Twitter and many other global social networks simple while Nokia Browser makes using mobile internet fast and affordable. It also includes the most popular messaging services. "WhatsApp has a clear vision of creating a reliable and easy to use cross-platform messaging application that enables people to stay in touch with their family and friends from all around the world," said, Brian Acton, Co-Founder of WhatsApp Inc. "By partnering with Nokia whose worldwide reach in mobile is well established, WhatsApp becoming available for the Asha Touch devices will enable us to further realize our core mission".
The Nokia Asha 305 is a fun and entertaining Easy Swap dual SIM phone, helping users make the most of their phone while retaining control of their costs. The phone features a bright and colorful 3" WQVGA resistive touch screen along with Bluetooth and Dual Band connectivity. Forty EA games are available for download with every phone as well as a 2MP camera, Nokia Maps and the revolutionary Nokia Browser which helps significantly lower data costs.
The Nokia Asha 306 is the sister device to the Nokia Asha 305. Along with all the great features that come with its sister, such as bright and colorful, 3" WQVGA resistive touch screen and 40 EA games for download - a Nokia exclusive offer, the Nokia Asha 306 also provides WLAN, enabling users to stay connected while on the move. It also supports video streaming through both GPRS and WLAN, meaning this handset truly is a fun way to stay in touch.
The estimated retail price for Nokia Asha 305 is EUR 63 and it's expected to start shipping in the second quarter of 2012. The estimated retail price for Nokia Asha 306 is EUR 68. The Nokia Asha 311 has an estimated retail price of EUR 92. Both devices are expected to start shipping in the third quarter of 2012. Above mentioned prices exclude taxes and subsidies.
The new devices images are available at Nokia.com/press.
*Data costs may apply.
Nokia Unveils Three New Asha Feature Phones - techweekeurope.co.uk
Nokia today unveiled three Asha touchscreen phones, further expanding its portfolio of mid-range feature phones aimed at emerging markets.
Nokia has struggled with sales of its smartphones in recent times, but has enjoyed continued success with its range of feature phones. The Asha range was unveiled last October as part of the company company’s strategy to attract the “next billion” consumers, pointing towards emerging markets.
The newest additions to the range, the Nokia 305, 306 and 311, promise a smartphone experience without the associated data costs and short battery life.
Asha Wednesday
The Nokia Asha 311 is a 3.5G feature phone, has a scratch-resistant capacitive touch screen, a 1GHz processor and a 3.2 megapixel camera, while the Asha 305 is a dualband, dual SIM feature phone with a 2 megapixel camera. The Nokia 306 has all the features of the 305, but also has WLAN capabilities, with Nokia billing it as as the most affordable Wi-Fi phone that it has ever sold.
All phones feature Nokia Browser 2.0, which the Finnish manufacturer claims can reduce data consumption by up to 90 percent using its cloud technology and load webpages three times faster. Customers will receive 40 free games from EA, including Tetris and FIFA, while they will also have access to the Nokia Store. According to Nokia, 42 percent of all content downloaded from the store between January and April was to an Asha or Nokia java phone.
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