Preview: Nokia 5130 XpressMusic, Nokia 7100 Supernova

Geez. Six new Nokia models in one day, with one common theme: they’re all budget phones. The two best of the worst include new phones from the XpressMusic (fondly called the XpressPlastic series on this blog until this year) and Supernova series (a strictly middle-of-the-road collection of handsets). Inside: a look at the Nokia 5130 and 7100.

Nokia’s cheapo phones have really come a long way. While the company still makes tons of phones that come loaded with the bare minimum of features and look like they were produced in the ’70s, handsets like the new 7100 Supernova demonstrate why Nokia is still king of the emerging markets. I have to admit, the 7100 actually looks like a decent phone. Stylish, even.

For 75 euros ($97.50 USD, unsubsidized price), you get a slider that has that 5800 XpressMusic/Tube look, a 1.3 megapixel camera, an FM radio, MP3/AAC ringtones, QVGA screen (65k colors supported), and even Bluetooth. It’s pretty darn good for entry level.

The only real flaw I can see with the 7100 is the decided lack of a good battery: Nokia stuck a BL-4S, which is only good for up to 3.5 hours of talk time.

Release date for the Nokia 7100 Supernova: Q4 2008.

At 90 euros, the Nokia 5130 XpressMusic is the most expensive of the bunch. Like several other phones in the XpressMusic series, the 5130 comes with a 3.5mm headphone jack, microSD support, 2 megapixel camera, and an MP3 player. But at this price point, you also get a couple bonus features: quad-band GSM connectivity, and 6 hours of battery life. Oh, and the retail package also includes a free* 1 gig microSD card.

According to the press release, there’s a dedicated music key. And while those dots on the sides look like some onboard stereo speakers, it isn’t mentioned anywhere so we’ll have to call a negative on that one.

The Nokia 5130 XpressMusic is expected to be released in Q1 2009.

Source: nokiaphoneblog.com