Nokia C3, C6, E5 smartphones announced

Nokia has unveiled three new, affordable handsets that aim to improve mobile phone users’ access to messaging and social networking – the C6, E5 and C3.

According to the brand, the new mobiles will all be available in the second half of this year “in a variety of appealing colours” and could shake up the smartphone market currently dominated by the likes of Apple and HTC.

Anssi Vanjoki, the company’s head of markets comments: “People want the best messaging and social networking experience on an affordable device, whether it’s sending a simple text or instant message, an email, or a direct message from their Twitter account.”

They will all feature full QWERTY keyboards, with the C3 being the first on the popular Series 40 platform to do so.

And the device will also be the first in the range to offer access to social networking sites directly from the operating system’s homepage.

It will contain Wi-Fi connectivity, Ovi Mail and Ovi Chat too, just so you know.

The Symbian-based C6 seems to be aimed at the higher end of the market, with a 3.2-inch touchscreen and slide-out keyboard.

And the E5 – also Symbian-based – is being marketed at businessmen and women, it would appear.

Nokia – which was originally formed way back in 1865 in Finland as a paper manufacturer – states: “The Nokia E5 combines high quality business features with all of the personal networking and entertainment capabilities that a busy professional expects from a smartphone.”