14 DAY TRIAL // Today, Nokia announced the launch of three new Series 40 mobile phones, the C2-02, C2-03 and C2-06, all of which come with a brand new feature into the mix, namely Nokia Maps.
With these handsets, the leading mobile phone maker debuts the free location service to its S40 handsets, so that more users can enjoy it at low cost.
Nokia already offers the Maps to Symbian users, and also promised them for users of future Nokia Windows Phones, and it seems that even more devices will enjoy access to the service.
“One feature of the new S40 phones launched today that deserves extra attention is the provision of free Nokia Maps, allowing a much wider range of people to make use of the service, without incurring heavy data charges,” a recent post on Nokia Conversations reads.
“This new service offers a significant boost to the capabilities of Series 40 phones, further blurring the lines between smartphones and feature phones.”
The Nokia C2-03 and all of the flavors it will arrive on shelves with will have the Nokia Maps pre-installed. Users will enjoy maps data for their specific region right from the start.
One thing that should be noted here is that the service was made available on S40 devices without the need of a built-in GPS receiver.
“Maps for Series 40 doesn’t rely on a GPS device in the phone, either, but rather triangulates the user’s position from cell tower locations. This, together with smart routing software, means that Nokia Maps can still provide turn-by-turn directions for drivers,” the said post reads.
On appealing feature that Nokia Maps arrives on S40 devices with would be the possibility to view maps and plan routes entirely offline.
Moreover, users will benefit from online features, including finding the location or performing advanced search, with minimum data usage. Sharing the location can be done at the cost of an SMS message, Nokia explains.
Of course, users will also have the possibility to load additional maps on the handset using the memory card, which should prove a great feature when traveling aboard. At the moment, the Nokia Maps service is available in a number of over 100 countries.