Nokia Lumia arrives in SA

The first two Nokia smartphones based on Windows Phone were launched in South Africa last night, and will be in store from 7 February.

Nokia announced the arrival of the Lumia range of smartphones in South Africa at an event at Vodacom World last night. The Nokia Lumia 800 brings content to life with familiar Nokia elements such as high end imaging capabilities, and social and Internet performance with one-touch social network access, easy grouping of contacts, integrated communication threads and Internet Explorer 9.

“This is the day that something unique, bold and exciting arrived in the South African smartphone market,”” says Gerard Brandjes, Vice-President for Nokia in South and East Africa.

The Nokia Lumia 800 is expected to be available countrywide – together with Vodacom – on the 7th February 2012 on a Vodacom Business Call contract, with 100MB data per month for 24 months, at R279 per month.

“”This is an important launch for us because the Nokia Lumia 800 is in line with our strategic focus, to drive data by bringing all the latest options and technologies to our customers, which includes offering devices with all the major operating systems. We’re therefore excited to be the first operator to offer Nokia’s Lumia 800 with Windows Phone to the South African market,”” says Romeo Kumalo, Vodacom’s Chief Commercial Officer.

The second device in the range the, Nokia Lumia 710, is a no-nonsense smartphone that can be personalised with interchangeable back covers and thousands of apps, and brings the same Nokia Lumia experience to more people around the world. The Nokia Lumia 710 is expected to arrive in South Africa in the second quarter.

Based on the Windows Phone 7.5 Mango release, the Nokia Lumia smartphones are designed to appeal to people with “”lively social lives””, providing instant social and image sharing and new signature Nokia experiences:

Completing the mobile audio offering, Nokia also introduced the on-ear Nokia Purity HD Stereo Headset by Monster, co-designed and co-developed by Monster Cable, a recognized leader in high performance audio. This is the first output of the exclusive long-term partnership between Nokia and Monster Cable, intended to introduce a range of premium audio accessories to reflect the bold style of the Lumia range. The estimated retail price for the on-ear Nokia Purity HD Stereo Headset by Monster is approximately R1 799, and should be available in a similar timeframe to the Nokia Lumia 800.

Product specifications, as described by Nokia:

Nokia Lumia 800: Stunningly social

Nokia Lumia 710: Designed to be personal and affordable

The Nokia Purity HD Stereo Headset by Monster – The ultimate mobile audio experience

* Follow Gadget on Twitter on @gadgetza

“