Nokia branded handsets are returning to the market with the first announced device being a $26 dumb phone complete with the classic "Snake" mobile game. On Tuesday, HMD Global -which has the exclusive rights to use the Nokia brand name on mobile devices; revealed the Nokia 150 and Nokia 150 Dual SIM much earlier than previously expected.
"HMD Global Company," which is formed of ex-Nokia executives, acquired the rights and intellectual property licenses from the Finnish firm. This gives HMD exclusive global brand licensing rights for the next 10 years. Earlier this month took over the Nokia basic phone business from Microsoft and has struck a licensing deal with Nokia to bring the brand back to the smartphone market next year.
The Nokia 150 and Nokia 150 Dual SIM are basic feature phones which do not offer Internet access; however, they have equipped features such as an MP3 player, FM radio, Bluetooth v3.0 with SLAM, and a VGA camera with an LED flash. Nokia 150 and Nokia 150 Dual SIM, which feature 2.4-inch QVGA (240x320 pixels) displays, run on Nokia Series 30+ operating system, and are priced at $26 before local taxes and subsidies. The Nokia 150 and Nokia 150 Dual SIM offer battery life of up to 22 hours, according to HMD Global; the battery standby time of Nokia 150 is 31 days, while the Nokia 150 Dual SIM is claimed to deliver 25 days of standby time.
Both handsets will be available in black or white for just $26, and will be rolling out in Asia-Pacific, India, the Middle East, Africa, and Europe in the first quarter of 2017. Nokia 150 and Nokia 150 Dual SIM come pre-loaded with Snake Xenzia, and the try-and-buy version of Nitro Racing by Gameloft2, says HMD.
Nokia was once the world's dominant cellphone maker but missed the shift to smartphones. It sold all the handset activities to Microsoft in 2014 and is now focused on telecom network equipment. Nokia has been focusing on its crucial Networks division and new areas of technology such as 5G internet, virtual reality and health care.
