The Nokia Lumia 625, which was announced last month, has now started shipping. The handset has already gone on sale in France with Orange (€189.90 PAYG), and will soon be available in other European and Asian markets. For example, it is scheduled to go on sale in the UK on August 28th, with an estimated PAYG price point of £179.

The Lumia 625 is a mid range Windows Phone 8 smartphone, most notable for its 4.7 inch screen and LTE (4G) connectivity. Other key specifications include 8GB of internal memory, microSD card support, a dual-core Snapdragon S4 processor (MSM8930) running at 1.2GHz, 512MB RAM, 2000mAh integrated battery, and a 5 megapixel camera with LED flash.

Here's how we described the design of the Nokia Lumia 625 in our initial coverage of the handset:

The design of the Lumia 625 is striking and, while it is clear that some corners have been cut in the material specifications, as you would expect in a mind tier device, it retains a sense of robustness and quality that makes it feel more like a more expensive device. Key to this is both the weight, which provides a sense of solidity and density, combined with the gentle curves that are used throughout the device, from the "pillowed" back to the curved edges on the protective Gorilla Glass over the display.

Nokia says that it has refined it uses of polycarbonate by further experimenting with layering to create the Lumia 625's semi-translucent back shells. The back shells, like the dual shot shells of the Lumia 620, are constructed of a "single piece of translucent polycarbonate, layered with an inner colour", which Nokia says is "designed to amplify and bring to life your final colour choice". The translucent element means that, in certain conditions, portions of the back shell almost seem to glow, a somewhat ethereal effect. All the colour variants, which are drawn from Nokia's core "pure colour range" (or mixes thereof), have a matte finish.

UK availability and pricing

The Nokia Lumia 625 will be available in the UK from Wednesday August 28th (two weeks from today). It will be available through O2, Vodafone, EE, Carphone Warehouse and Phone4u, with estimated pricing of £179 on PAYG and from free on a £21 per month contract. As an introductory promotion, and for a limited time, those buying a black or white Lumia 625 in the UK will be able to claim, through a website, a free coloured shell in Orange, Yellow or Green.

The estimated PAYG pricing, which comes from a Nokia press release, is lower than we originally anticipated (£200) and suggests that even on PAYG the handset will be receiving a small subsidy from operators (standard Nokia pricing for the Lumia 625 is £200 / €220 / $310 before taxes and subsidies).

We'll be taking a more detailed look at the Lumia 625 in the next week or so.