Nokia hits 1.5 billion sales of their Series 40 mobile phones

Nokia has announced one of the most significant milestones in its history with the sale of its 1.5 billionth Series 40 mobile phone. The device was sold to a female consumer in the Brazilian city of São Paulo and it represents a historic moment for Nokia as they continue battling amongst the front runners in the smartphone genre. 

The 1.5 billionth phone that was sold was a Nokia Asha 303, which is a touch screen handset with QWERTY keypad designed for web browsing, social networking and gaming, and features pre-installed entertainment and applications, such as Angry Birds Lite. The device was purchased from a Magazine Luiza store in São Paulo by Mayara Rodrigues. Nokia Brazil, Vice President, Almir Luiz Narcizo, and retail network President, Luiza Helena Trajano handed over the phone to Mayara Rodrigues.

Congratulations!

Walking down memory lane, the first Series 40 phone to be released was the Nokia 7110 that was developed in 1999. Since then, this family of phones has evolved to quite an extent that they are now considered 'Smartphone Lite', thanks to their new Nokia Asha range. Series 40 phones do somehow try to blur the line between feature phones and smartphones. With recent innovations, including Nokia Maps for Series 40, Nokia Browser and Web Apps, Nokia Money and Nokia Life Tools, consumers can go about doing their basic tasks, like accessing the Internet and using locally relevant apps and content, at a much cheaper price.  

Mary McDowell, Executive Vice President for Mobile Phones at Nokia, said: "We are incredibly proud to reach this milestone. Having 1.5 billion Series 40 devices sold is a hard-to-reach mark, let alone one attainable in a single line of products. At a time when we are maintaining our commitment to connecting the next billion customers around the world - it is gratifying to consider how Series 40 devices have made mobile technology accessible and help continue to change people's lives for the better."

It’s definitely a milestone for the Finnish company, but will they have similar success in their new Microsoft Windows Phones? Only time will tell.