Nokia Lumia 610, World's Cheapest Phone, To Launch In June

The cheapest Windows phone on the market will launch in June, according to Nokia.

The phone caters for the lower end of the mobile phone market, and offers a tiny 256mb of memory and internal memory of 8 GB.

The top end iPhone in comparison, has memory ranging from 8 GB to 64 GB.

The affordable Nokia 610 has a reasonable 3.7” screen, will run on the Windows Phone 7.5 operating system, and will come with Nokia’s own drive, maps and music apps.

Besides calls, messaging and access to the internet, the Nokia can deliver detailed navigation, off-line maps and some pre-loaded music.

The Nokia phone will not carry Skype, or have the capability to have Skype, however.

Axing Skype could make the phone a deal breaker for true lower-end customers, as the free phone calls it offers are a natural fit for customers on a lower budget.

In a statement, Nokia said "we found the user experience does not guarantee to Nokia and Skype the expected level. Therefore, we do not recommend users to use Skype on the Nokia Lumia 610. Nokia Lumia 610 users in the Windows Phone Marketplace will not be able to download Skype, Windows Phone version."

The phone is primed for the emerging African and Indian markets, where cheap phones with internet access are being embraced much faster than PCs with internet connections.

Would you buy a cheap Windows phone that can't access Skype?