gadgets and technology devices: Nokia preparing dual-sim phones for 2010?

Nokia preparing dual-sim phones for 2010?

After being knocked off from the no. 1 position by Samsung in the UK market, Nokia now seems to be realizing that competition has heated up. Rumors are now rife that Nokia may soon be coming out with dual-SIM cell phones, as early as second quarter of 2010. After Samsung, LG and Motorola made similar moves, Nokia, too, seems to be following the same lines.

Nokia is expected to target emerging markets, having lost some of its market share there. One point that must be noted here is that many carriers do not prefer such cell phones, for obvious competitive reasons. So, it’s highly likely that such phones will come out as individual manufactured units and not paired with services of a carrier (i.e. it won’t be like you buy a new cell phone connection and get such a dual-SIM Phone for using it).

Reason for using dual-SIM phones depends on the preference of the users. Some people like affordable value-added services of one carrier and good coverage network of the other. Some people simply like to keep their personal and professional lives separate. It could also be like, I have a Reliance CDMA and my girlfriend has an Airtel GSM (the new 80 number series). Connectivity between the 2 numbers is a real pain, both for calls and SMSs. What I can do is that use regular services of Reliance on one SIM and keep the other Airtel GSM number specially for her and a few other close friends.

What would it mean for Nokia in India?

In India, quite a few players have already stepped it up in the dual-SIM cell phone market. But most of these phones are on offer from so called “Tier-II” (i.e not-so-popular) cell phone makers, like Spice Mobile, Acer, Intex, Airfone and Karbonn. (Karbonn is even going great guns in promoting their brand by sponsoring the current India vs SL Cricket series. What better way to promote it in India! ). The only high-profile manufacturer of dual-SIM phones in Indian market is Samsung. However, Nokia has a huge customer loyalty in India. So, if Nokia can tap these customers, by packing dual-SIM capabilities with comparable other features and most importantly cost effectiveness, it would re-ignite the whole brand following that Nokia once had in India, now diluted by a whole bunch of competitors that entered the Indian market a few years ago.

However, there has been no official announcement on release of dual-SIM devices from Nokia, so far. But is expected any time soon. Stay tuned to OnlyGizmos for latest updates on the story.

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