Back to square one: Nokia announces X5

Looks like the square form factor is gaining popularity. First there was the KIN One and then we saw the tastefully executed, Android 2.1 running Moto FlipOut, now Nokia shows us how it’s definitely hip to be square.

The Finnish phone maker today announced the introduction of its latest “entertainment-oriented” mobile phone sporting the square form factor dubbed Nokia X5.

Sitting between the X3 and X6, the Nokia X5 sports a distinct square QWERTY slider form factor. Nokia is saying that this phone is a music powerhouse with excellent sound quality, dedicated music keys and loud speakers.

Besides the music inclinations, the full QWERTY keyboard lends the X5 some serious messaging cred. The device supports all the major IM and webmail services out of the box and also offers easy access to Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and Hi5.

The QWERTY keyboard is not the only input option available. There’s sensors built into the X5 that when you spin the phone while listening to music, it will play a new random track, and if you shake it, the X5 will show you how many unread messages you have in the phone.

More details on the X5 and a demo video awaits you after the jump.

Specs wise, there’s really nothing so shout about with the X5, save for the generous 5MP camera with LED flash and 4X digital zoom. The square gets 200MB onboard memory with option to expand all the way to 32GB via MicroSD. Nokia has included a 2GB card out of the box.

Indonesia will be the first country to get the X5. Sales is expected to start there sometime around Q3 at around RM670 unsubsidized with four colours to choose from. Nokia hasn’t announced availability in other countries at the moment.

Nokia didn’t mention if the X5 has WiFi and whether it runs on 3G, these omissions will really put a handicap on the X5 no matter how hip the form factor is.