Nokia announces the Lumia 620, a wallet-friendly Windows Phone 8 smartphone

Nokia's Windows Phone 8 line-up currently targets the high-end and mid-range smartphone market with the Lumia 920 and Lumia 820, respectively. However, starting from Q1 2013 the Finnish manufacturer will also offer a more affordable device powered by Microsoft's latest mobile operating system.

The Lumia 620 will come with a modest $249 price-tag, without operator subsidies or local taxes, and feature a 3.8-inch ClearBlack LCD display with a resolution of 800 x 480. Power comes from a 1.0GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 processor aided by just 512MB of RAM. On the back there is a 5.0MP camera capable of 720p recording at 30FPS and an LED flash to brighten up indoor shots. On the front the Lumia 620 sports a 0.3MP camera capable of shooting pictures and videos at 640 x 480.

On top of the 8GB internal storage, and 7GB available through SkyDrive, the Lumia 620 features a microSD card slot which can further expand the device’s storage capacity by another 64GB. On the connectivity front, the handset offers HSPA+; Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n; Bluetooth 3.0; NFC (Near Field Communication); a microUSB port and a 3.5mm audio connector.

The Windows Phone 8 device also features a 1300mAh removable battery which Nokia says can deliver 14.6 hours of 2G talk time, 9.9 hours of 3G talk time, 330 hours of 3G standby, and 61 hours of music playback.

The Lumia 620 has a modest 115.4 x 61.1 x 11.0 mm footprint and weighs 127 grams. The thickness may be on the more substantial side, but the rest of the dimensions are fairly decent.

The Finnish manufacturer also adds some software value to the mix, including Nokia Drive, City Lens, Mail, Maps (available from the app store), Music, and Transport.