Nokia to unveil cheaper Windows smartphones

Nokia will next week unveil a new, cheaper smartphone using Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 operating system in a bid to target a wider market for its new range of devices, two sources close to the company said.

Cheaper phones are the key for Nokia and Microsoft in their battle to win a larger share of the market, analysts say.

In addition to the new Lumia 610, Nokia will also use the Mobile World Congress trade show in Barcelona next week to unveil a global version of its high-end Lumia 900 phone, sources said.

The latter, high-end phone is LTE-capable in the US where it has already launched.

Nokia is set to unveil the phones at a news conference next Monday, on February 27.

Nokia last year dumped its own smartphone software platforms in favour of Microsoft's Windows Phone, which has so far had a limited impact due to the high prices of phones using it.

Microsoft's share of the smartphone market fell to a mere two percent last quarter, compared with three percent a year ago and 13 percent four years earlier, according to Strategy Analytics.

(Reporting By Tarmo Virki; Editing by Greg Mahlich)