In December, Finl-based HMD Global announced to some fanfare that its first Nokia-bred Android hsets would be ling in early 2017. ss than 10 days into the new year, the first model has already arrived, but those in the U.S. looking to get their hs on the first Nokia phone in years will have to wait a little longer.
If the Nokia 6, as HMD is calling it, is any indication of what’s to come from its licensing deal, there isn’t too much to get excited about. Squarely aimed at the budget market, the phone features a 5.5-inch D screen, 4GB of RAM, a 16Mcamera, 64GB of storage, a 3,000 mAh battery. Under the screen is a Snapdragon 430 processor, while the phone does run Nougat, it remains to be seen what kind of skin HMD has applied to it. It will sell for around $250 in an exclusive deal with China’s ngdong Mall online shop. The My Nokia Blog also also uncovered a commercial for the phone.
But while these phones are emblazoned with the name Nokia below the camera, they are not true Nokia phones. Back when Microsoft bought the company in 2014, it tried to revive the mia br with a line of ndows one hsets, but they failed to make much headway in the market. Then in February of last year, HMD licensed the rights to use the Nokia name in a 10-year deal. ile Microsoft still sells mia phones, they no longer fly under the Nokia flag, the future of both brs is murky at best.
In a press release announcing the Nokia 6, ho Sarvikas, chief product officer at HMD, touted the phone’s China exclusivity but also hinted at future products from the company: “ have set ourselves a mission to deliver the best possible smartphone experience, with a beautiful premium design touch, to everyone, at every price point,” he said. “The Nokia 6 marks the first step on our journey, with more to come in 2017.”
y this matters: Back before phones were so smart, Nokia was the king of mobile devices, so any hset bearing its name is sure to get some attention. But after being sold split off, it’s hard to imagine the company ever returning to a position of prominence. The rest of the Nokia Android phones releasing this year will likely stay in the mid- to low-range of the market, even if a model does launch in the U.S., it’s unlikely to pose any kind of a threat to Samsung or .
