It's certainly been a busy week for Nokia, with the arrival of Symbian Belle and some great-looking new handsets to go with it. But this week also saw the announcement of the intriguing Nokia C3-01 Gold Edition. Let's take a closer look at how it differs from the standard model. 

Nokia has a rich history – pardon the pun – of producing limited edition gold versions of its handsets. We've seen 18-carat gold versions of the Nokia 5800 and Nokia N97 mini in years gone by, while more recently the Nokia C7-based Nokia Oro has kept the tradition going.

And now we have the Nokia C3-01 Gold Edition. It's based around the Nokia C3-01 Touch and Type, the innovative C Series handset offering both a physical keypad and a touchscreen on the same device.

If you had to ask us up front which Nokia phone we'd pick to be given a golden makeover, it certainly wouldn't have figured anywhere near the top of our list, but on laying eyes on the Nokia C3-01 Gold Edition, Nokia has chosen well.

With its luxurious golden coat the Nokia C3-01 takes on a refined look that shows off its traditional candybar form factor as a statement of design simplicity, and overall it suits the golden touch.

So we know the Nokia C3-01 Gold Edition is dressed in 18-carat gold plating, but what else does it have to offer? Well, the keypad has a ceramic feel for added tactile feedback, and Nokia has loaded up a limited edition gold theme to suit its appearance on the outside.

But the Nokia C3-01 Gold Edition has one fairly significant surprise up its sleeve that we weren't expecting at all: Nokia has pulled out the standard Nokia C3-01 Touch and Type processor and replaced it with a high-end 1GHz chip – the same processor that's found in all the new Symbian Anna smartphones launched this week.

It's a completely unexpected move, and gives the Nokia C3-01 Gold Edition a feeling of substance and that it's not just skin-deep beauty it has over its conventional C Series cousin.

What do you make of the Nokia C3-01 Gold Edition – are you pleased to see the obvious bling partnered by a genuine spec boost under the surface? Let us know what you think in the Comments!