With the tag sentence "Inspired by U.S. consumers who want an affordable smartphone that offers a simplified user experience and on-the-go entertainment", Nokia and T-Mobile USA have launched the C7 as the Astound, complete with much of the PR 2.0 software (including new web browser, portrait QWERTY etc) from day one, plus some extras, including Swype. We've got some quotes from the official press release and the Conversations blog post below, with relevant links.

The official press release for the launch includes:

Offering value without compromise, the Nokia Astound will be available exclusively from T-Mobile USA beginning April 6.

The Nokia Astound's sleek stainless-steel design features an 8-megapixel camera with dual-LED flash and 720p HD video capture, a brilliant 3.5-inch capacitive touch AMOLED display, free turn-by-turn navigation from Nokia and access to thousands of free and paid apps via Nokia's Ovi Store. The Nokia Astound makes it easy for consumers to stay connected. The Astound has three fully customizable homescreens, giving quick access to email, and the ability to check the latest from Facebook and Twitter, or just surf the web. Consumers can kick back and enjoy the Astound's entertainment features by playing pre-loaded games like Fruit Ninja, listening to the latest music with the Slacker Radio app, or browsing their own music and video collection, right at their fingertips.

"As millions more consumers make the switch to smartphones, Nokia is proud to offer an alternative that is not only easy and fun to use, but is also very sexy and sleek, unlike anything in its price point," said Mark Slater, vice president of sales, Nokia. "With a user experience rounded out by Nokia's Ovi services, including Maps and Store, consumers will be delighted to discover Nokia's premium design quality with no compromises on services and apps, made affordable with T-Mobile."

Uniquely crafted, the Nokia Astound is an example of the quality and impressive hardware that consumers associate with Nokia. Its AMOLED touchscreen is protected by ultrathin, damage-resistant glass and surrounded by stainless steel, which completes the attractive yet durable design.

Equipped with the latest commercial version of Ovi Maps*, the Nokia Astound provides free voice-guided, turn-by-turn navigation in almost 100 countries in 46 languages. The Nokia Astound comes pre-loaded with automotive grade maps for the entire U.S., Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean. 

Interestingly, the Nokia Conversations blog mentions that much of the PR 2.0 software for Symbian^3 will ship first on the Astound:

We’re also very excited to tell you about some of the latest updates to Symbian that will be available first on the Nokia Astound. This includes a new browser and portrait QWERTY keyboard, as well as split screen functionality to let you see the input area when typing which we know many of you will be excited about. These improvements will propagate to other devices in the new Symbian range shortly.

The Astound will be sold for (and yes, this is the usual confusing way smartphones get sold in North America) "$80 after a $50 mail-in rebate card with a two-year service agreement and qualifying voice and data plan". 

The availability of the Astound from April 6th gives hope to C7 (and N8 and E7) owners in other parts of the world that the official PR 2.0 software will be made available soon after. Nokia has mentioned 'Summer', so let's hope it's May rather than June or July.

Thanks to Mark Guim, there's also a hands-on with the C7, er... I mean the Astound, at the launch event: