New images of the low-end Nokia 5230 have turned up online, suggesting that the handset will be with us early in the new year.

Even though we've already seen the official launch of the 3.2-inch touchscreen device, these new images are the first we've seen of it let loose out in the real world.

The pics surfaced over on the Swedish site DailyMobile.se and to our eyes it looks very similar to the 5800, suggesting that it's complementing the Comes with Music range.

Despite sharing some of the looks of its fuller-featured brother, the 5230 is a comparably budget offering, said to come in at around the £130 mark when it sees release here.

To bring the handset to this price level, sacrifices have had to be made, with Wi-Fi being the most notable exclusion.

Likewise, the camera will be 2-megapixels rather than the 3.2 of the 5800 - but on the bright side, the 5320 will still feature HSDPA connectivity. For the modest price-tag the 5230 will be available in a choice of colours, either with or without the Comes With Music service.

According to the source of the rumours in the report, the expected release date is set for January 2010, so we expect to here formal confirmation of this in the next month or so.