Did Nokia out a higher-end Lumia?

The Lumia 800 isn't even out yet, and there's already talk of the next big Nokia smartphone on the way.

The head of Nokia France, speaking to France's LesEchos newspaper, said that the company plans to have a full range of smartphones in an effort to attack every segment of the market, WMPoweruser reported.

The exec likened the Lumia 800, which many assume to be Nokia's flagship Windows Phone device, to a BMW Series 5, and said that there would be a full range of products, including a Series 3 and a Series 7 model. If the Lumia 710 is the lower-end model, and the Lumia 800 is a mid-tier product, it suggests that a more powerful smartphone is in the works.

While Lumia is meant as a portfolio of products, the Lumia 800 is the current flagship phone, said Nokia representative Keith Nowak.

"We haven't revealed what else may be in store in the future for the Lumia portfolio," he said.

The Lumia 800 and Lumia 710 were unveiled at an event in London last month, providing the first tangible fruits of Nokia's alliance with Microsoft. While physically similar to older Symbian phones, the user experience is completely different, thanks to the Windows Phone operating system.

The Lumia 800, which features a unique polycarbonate plastic body, a faster processor and a better camera, was meant to be the higher-end device. It's expected to be priced around US$585 when it launches.

Nokia is also packing in special apps, including its navigation service, a Pandora-like music app called MixRadio and an ESPN hub in an effort to get its phone to stand out in the crowd. The phone is debuting in Europe first, with other regions to follow.

Nokia will certainly need as much attention as it can get for its products. The company is throwing a massive marketing campaign around the world to get the word out on its new phones. It is banking on its strong brand recognition in different markets around the world to drive its comeback.

In the US, Nokia is still relatively quiet, with no carrier partner announcements yet. The company has a larger challenge in the US in reviving its brand, having struggled in the region for years.

A higher-end Lumia phone could potentially run on a faster 4G connection, which would at least draw the interest of the US carriers, which are all rolling out their next-generation networks now.

Not content to simply dish on another Lumia phone, the Nokia exec also confirmed that Nokia would have a tablet running Windows 8 in June. Microsoft's next-generation operating system is expected to ship sometime next year.

Nokia hasn't released information about its plans for a tablet, Nowak said.

Via CNET