Nokia Unveils Latest Windows Phone 8 Device: Lumia 620 Packs 3.8 Inch ClearBlack Display, NFC, Costs $249 (Before Taxes)
Marko Ahtisaari, Executive VP of Design, Nokia, has unveiled its latest Windows Phone 8 device: the Nokia Lumia 620. The product design chief was speaking at the LeWeb conference taking place this week in Paris.
Context & Ripple Effects
Nokia’s Windows Phone effort began with the €420 Lumia 800 in 2011 and moved to a flagship-led Windows Phone 8 range in 2012, including the Lumia 920’s larger display, wireless charging and PureView camera. Carrier pricing had already put the Lumia 920 and 820 into subsidized U.S. channels, alongside HTC’s 8X.
The Lumia 620 adds a lower-priced, smaller-screen option with NFC to that range. It matters because Nokia and Microsoft are closely aligned in smartphones, so broader Lumia price coverage also broadens the hardware base for Windows Phone.
First-order effects
- Nokia gains a $249 Lumia tier beneath its 920 and 820 models, giving Windows Phone buyers a lower-upfront-price device without abandoning NFC or the ClearBlack display.
- Microsoft gains another Nokia handset through which to place Windows Phone 8, while Nokia’s Lumia lineup spans both flagship and value-oriented buyers.
Second-order effects
- The Lumia 620 makes the 920 and 820’s previously announced European positioning part of a wider Lumia price ladder, requiring Nokia to distinguish higher-end models through their larger displays, wireless charging and camera features.
- AT&T’s subsidized Lumia 920 and 820 offers, which were priced against HTC’s 8X in the same Windows Phone launch window, face a broader Nokia portfolio competing for Windows Phone demand across retail and carrier channels.
Third-order effects
- If Nokia continues filling price tiers around Windows Phone 8, smartphone competition shifts from a single flagship contest toward portfolio coverage, where software partners need devices at multiple price points.
- Nokia’s close Microsoft partnership makes Lumia range expansion a test of whether hardware breadth can increase Windows Phone’s installed base against iPhone and Android rivals.
The trend: Nokia is building Windows Phone around a full price ladder, pairing premium Lumia flagships with lower-cost devices to widen the platform’s addressable hardware base.