Microsoft unveils best budget smartphone Nokia X2 at Rs 8,100

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After Nokia x.x+,xl    Its time for getting new

Microsoft Devices on Tuesday unveiled the successor to its Android-centred Nokia X handsets - Nokia X2 - priced at 99 euros, beefing up its budget smartphone portfolio to compete more aggressively with the likes of Samsung, HTC and Chinese players like Gionee, Huawei and ZTE.

Nokia X2 will be priced at 99 euros (about Rs 8,100) before taxes and subsidies and will be available immediately in select countries globally, Microsoft said on its official Conversations blog.

However, the details on the countries of launch were not disclosed.

With a 1.2GHz dual-core Snapdragon processor on-board, the dual SIM handset will have a 4.3-inch ClearBlack display, 5MP camera and will come with Microsoft-made apps like Skype, Outlook.com and OneDrive with 7 GB storage free cloud storage.

With a 1GB RAM, X2 has a mass memory of 4 GB (expandable up to 32 GB) and 1,800 mAh battery.

Besides Fastlane, X2 is equipped with another navigation option - the brand-new 'apps list' - which keeps the home screen clear for most used apps, bringing it in line with the existing Lumia experience, the blog said.

After taxes, the smartphone could be available in India for under Rs 10,000, which is a fiercely competed segment with international as well as homegrown players like Micromax, Karbonn and Lava vying for a larger chunk of the market.

Microsoft estimates affordable mobile devices market to be a "$50 billion annual opportunity".

According to analysts, India is the fastest growing smartphone market globally with over 44 million smartphones sold last year.

The new phone from Microsoft Devices, which operates the handset business acquired from Nokia earlier this year for over $7.2 billion, will compete with dual-SIM models like Moto G, HTC Desire and Samsung Duos.

Also, analysts suggest that about 80 per cent of the smartphones sold under Rs 12,000 in India are dual SIM devices.

Considered a late entrant, Nokia has been steadily increasing its portfolio of dual SIM devices.

In April, Devices Group EVP Stephen Elop had also explained that dual-SIM capability is "critically important" in emerging markets like India and China adding that in 2016, people will buy more than 100 million dual-SIM smartphones.