Nokia Comes With Music may demand $150 premium

A recent report hazards some educated guesses at the price of Nokia’s recently announced Comes with Music audio track download service. While a direct conversion has the 5310 and N95 8GB phones bundled with the Comes with Music service cost $120 and $150 more than the handsets themselves, the actual price difference in North America is likely to be closer to $100, as Nokia devices traditionally sell for less stateside. The numbers come from UK smartphone retailer Expansys, which has published pre-order pricing for the Nokia handsets.

The Comes with Music service does not carry a monthly subscription rate, but the cost is instead built into the purchase price of a handset. Users can then download unlimited audio tracks from Nokia for one year and keep them once that year is up. While the prices are not official and may change closer to the October 2 release date in the UK, they are competitive with similar services from other providers and in line with earlier suggestions that pegged the cost of the music service at about £100 ($175).

Expansys is offering the Nokia N95 8GB for nearly £395 (about $693) while the handset with the music service is priced at about £480 ($842). The 5310 ranges from £133 to £145 ($233 and $254), while Comes with Music option and the phone are listed at £215 ($377). Nokia first announced Comes with Music and the Nokia World show last December.