Nokia has officially launched its first Android handsets – the much-rumoured Nokia X, the X+ and XL - at an event in Barcelona.
The X and X+are both entry-level devices with 4-inch screens, while the XL is larger at 5-inches.
The X is available now for 89 euros. The X+ and XL go on sale from April for 99 euros and 109 euros respectively.
The UK and US prices for the phones have not yet been announced.
Nokia's CEO also announced the Lumia phones will be reduced as a result.
The X range has been designed to look similar to Nokia’s current basic Asha smartphones, which run S40 software.
Nokia made the announcement at the annual Mobile World Congress event in Barcelona.
Nokia also announced a basic smartphone called the 220, with a 2MP camera, for 29 euros and the Asha 230 for 45 euros. The X series is a significant release for Nokia, despite the basic specifications.
Previous Nokia handsets ran the Windows Phone operating systems, and although the software has slowly been gaining ground on both Android and iOS, it still lags behind.
Windows Phone has been criticised for being difficult to use and runs a fraction of the popular apps seen on the other platforms.
Android, on the other hand, holds the majority share of the smartphone market in every region globally and has an app store with more than 700,000 apps.
It is also synonymous with budget and low-end handsets because its intuitive design appeals to less technical users.
Nokia will be hoping to attract this end of the market, as well as appeal to emerging markets with the release of X and X+.
It hasn't abandoned Windows Phone completely, though. Although the operating system is Android based, Nokia has added the tiles and personalisation features seen on Windows Phone
Similarly, the Nokia X range doesn't use Google apps or cloud services.
It seems Nokia has chosen Android purely for the apps than the interface, and will use Microsoft's cloud services including OneDrive instead.
The Nokia X range also complements the firm’s existing range of budget handsets, namely the Asha range.
The Asha range starts at £42 ($69) with 2MP and 5MP camera models. The original Asha 501 handset was announced in May last year and began shipping in June. It has a 3-inch screen, 3.2MP camera and comes in red, green, cyan, yellow, white and black.
The latest Asha devices, announced in October added improved sharing options, for example, photos can be shared with one click to Facebook, Twitter, over Bluetooth and now Whatsapp.
Asha 500 has a 2MP camera and starts at $69 (£42), the 502 and 503 handsets both have 5MP cameras and costs £55 ($89) and £61 ($99) respectively.
Leaked images of the new Nokia handses emerged earlier this month, under the name Nokia X.
Teaser invitations to this morning’s press conference hinted towards this name, too, before a series of ‘early built’ images were posted on Chinese site Coolxap.
Rumours about a Nokia handset running Android began towards the end of last year, and these leaked shots appeared to confirm it; with grids and icons similar to those found on existing Android phones.
This is likely to be the last Nokia release before Microsoft officially takes over, following an acquisition in September.
The launch of an Android Nokia phone is the company’s latest foray into new areas of the market.
Alongside the Asha handsets, Nokia also launched its first tablet last year – the Lumia 2520 10.1-inch tablet running Windows RT.
It also launched its first 6-inch, phablet device, the Nokia 1320, to compete with some of the other larger models on the market including the HTC One Max and the Galaxy Note range.
Nokia’s wider offering may have something to do its recent takeover from Microsoft.
Microsoft signed a deal to buy Nokia’s phone business in September for 5.4bn euros ($7.2bn; £4.6bn).
Nokia has also licensed its patents and mapping services to Microsoft.
The purchase is set to become official soon and 32,000 Nokia employees will transfer to the Washington-based firm, which recently hired a new CEO Satya Nadella.
