New Microsoft-Nokia smartphone is-Android

Microsoft on Tuesday rolled out its first new Nokia smartphone since acquiring the Finnish group's handset division -- using the Android operating system from arch-rival Google.
Microsoft said the Nokia X2, an updated version of a handset unveiled this year before the takeover was completed, was "designed to introduce the 'next billion' people to the mobile Internet and cloud services."
The device will be sold worldwide as a dual-SIM phone at a price of $135 (99 euros), Microsoft said in a statement.
While Microsoft has been struggling to get a foothold in the smartphone market with its Windows Phone operating system, the X2 "provides access to a world of Android apps and popular Microsoft services," the statement said.
Even though it uses the rival Android platform the X2 offers "a gateway to Microsoft services," including the Skype messaging program and OneDrive cloud storage.
The initial Nokia X was unveiled at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in February, before Microsoft completed its takeover of Nokia's handset division in April.
The new version cuts the price of a phone which has had success in some countries.
"The Nokia X family is going from strength to strength, with the Nokia X smartphone achieving top-selling status in Pakistan, Russia, Kenya and Nigeria, while earning the third-best-selling smartphone spot in India,” said Timo Toikkanen, head of mobile phones for the Microsoft Devices Group.
"The Nokia X2 elevates the Nokia X experience with a stellar new design, ease of use and new Microsoft experiences. We're proud to continue to bring smartphone innovation to lower and lower price points."
With the Nokia X unveiled in February, Android applications work, but users cannot access Google's services, notably its applications store, Google Play.
Tuesday's statement said users would have access to the Nokia Store as "the place for finding the highest-quality Android apps" for the device.
Windows Phone has managed to get only around 3.5 percent of the global smartphone market, while Android has more than 80 percent, according to recent figures from research firm IDC.
- 'As many phones as possible -
Roger Kay, analyst with Endpoint Technologies, said the Android phone makes sense in view of the fragile position of the Windows Phone platform.
"Google has the dominant platform and Apple is number two, so there is a question about whether there is room for a number three," Kay said.
He added that the Nokia unit appears to be maintaining some independence after being acquired by Microsoft and that "they want to sell as many phones as possible."
"Microsoft is hanging onto the phone business by its fingernails," he said. "One bump and they could be gone. You still have a whole phone business in Nokia so it makes sense to be on the dominant platform."
Microsoft closed the deal in April with some adjustments from the announced price of $7.52 billion (5.44 billion euros). The US company agreed to exclude factories in India and South Korea.
Nokia was the world leader in mobile phones until it was challenged by Apple's iPhone in 2007 and later Samsung.