Already tempted by the Asha 501, Nokia's featurephone disguised as a smartphone? Well the phone is about to roll out globally, meaning it won't be long until you can pocket Nokia's vibrant little number.

The Finnish phone maker confirmed that the Lumia-like handset will be launching in Thailand and Pakistan this week and then roll out to Europe and other countries in "subsequent weeks". This one won't be hitting the US and Canada for now.

Don't get too excited about the specs though - with only 2G connectivity on offer, the 501 is the budget buyer's choice. It also packs a 2-inch QVGA display, 3.2MP camera, along with a 4GB memory card in the box.

The phone runs on Nokia's overhauled Asha software, which brings in the big Windows Phone icons and simple swiping. Meanwhile there are two main screens, the 'Home' and the 'Fastlane'. The former has the traditional grid of apps while the latter is a feed of messages and updates, as well as recently-used applications.

Phoenix from the Ashas

Still, set at a recommended retail price of €75 (about £65), it promises to be perfect for those bridging the gap to a full smartphone, or for festival-goers looking for a decent backup handset that won't break the bank.

Not only will it be coming in at a budget price, it'll also be presenting itself in six colours: yellow, cyan, bright red, bright green, black and white.

Nokia claims that the phone will also offer 47 days of battery life on standby, and 17 hours of talk time. Not bad if you ask us.

The creator of the new Firefox OS platform, Mozilla, has confirmed that it's not planning to produce its own hardware alongside its mobile software.

Speaking to Digitimes, Mozilla's mobile device senior vice president Gong Li explained it was leaving the manufacturing process to its partners who include ZTE, Alcatel, Huawei, LG and Sony.

We saw a couple of handsets sporting Firefox OS at MWC this year in the form of the ZTE Open and Alcatel OneTouch Fire - both of which are low cost offerings aimed at emerging markets.

Li said if Mozilla started producing own-brand devices it would create unnecessary competition with ODMs, which could put them off developing for Firefox OS - and it's on a drive to recruit as many manufacturers as it can.

Samsung and HTC not in

Two noticeable absentees from the list are Samsung and HTC, which have decided to stick with Android and Windows Phone for the time being, although Li hasn't ruled out involvement from both in the future.

"Firefox OS is a new operating system. For vendors, the question of whether to adopt and when to adopt is based on considerations varying from one to another," he said.

"Some vendors will stick to Android and need not choose Firefox OS for the time being, others want to choose non-Android platforms but may not adopt Firefox OS."

It's still early days for the HTML 5-based Firefox OS and we're unlikely to see it make any great strides in the UK, US or Australia in the near future, but if it takes hold in the developing world it could become an overnight hit.

Windows Phone 8 fans: listen up. You could be getting a new toy to play with this year in the form of the HTC One.

Launched earlier this year running Android Jelly Bean, rumours are now suggesting HTC's flagship smartphone - and the best phone in the world today - could get an OS reboot before the year is out.

According to the folks at Neowin, an inside source has revealed that the Taiwanese firm is working on a handset which will look similar to the HTC One, with a screen somewhere in the region of 4- to 5-inches.

One plus 8

The unnamed source stressed that the device in question wouldn't be identical to the One, although you should expect a metal chassis, Beats Audio technology and, obviously, Windows Phone 8.

It's thought that the handset will also borrow the UltraPixel camera technology found in the Android flagship, although specs are far from confirmed.

HTC has already dipped its toe in the Windows Phone 8 water with the HTC 8X and 8S which were launched alongside the platform last year, with the former hand-picked by Microsoft to be its signature WP8 device.

However it's been all quiet since then over at HTC, so it's not a huge surprise to learn that the manufacturer may be planning its next onslaught.

Apparently we could see the Windows Phone 8 smartphone announced this Autumn, with a release date close to Christmas - this is definitely one to watch.

The world's worst-kept secret, aka the Samsung Galaxy Note 3, has emerged in another deluge of leaks, with two photos showing a svelte, bezel-challenged handset tipped for an August release.

The two photos, which come from two separate anonymous sources over in China, aren't giving that much away, although we can see that the handset is pretty slender despite being housed in an ugly case.

There's no guarantee that the other picture is of the Note 3 either, but it shows a large looking screen that stops just shy of the edge of the handset and its photographer says that the screen "takes up 84 per cent of the front surface of the device".

Take note

However, as Unwired View points out, there's a worrying lack of front-facing camera (looks like just a proximity sensor) does leave us pondering whether this is just a fake. You can see the full images below:

Not much more concrete is the word from one loose-lipped Samsung wireless business division insider who claims that the handset should enter mass production in August.

Talking about a drop in orders for devices like the Galaxy S4, s/he told ET News: "Since we will start placing orders for follow-up models, such as Galaxy Note III, from August, the impact to suppliers will be minimal."

The word on the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 so far has included a possible metal chassis, a 6.3- or 5.99-inch display, Android Key Lime Pie, a super-powerful octa-core chipset, 3GB of RAM and a 13MP camera.

• Find out everything we've heard about the Note 3 so far here

Any surprises left, Samsung? We're hoping to find out in August, or at IFA 2013 which takes place in September.