Nokia X teasers ramp up ahead of Mobile World Congress
Mobile World Congress is approaching faster than a bullet from a desert eagle, and Nokia is continuing to tease us a about an announcement they’ll be making at the big show in Barcelona. We’re almost certain it’s going to be the “Nokia Normandy” phone we’ve been hearing about so much, an Android-running entry level device that is said to cost just $100.
Recent rumors have given it a name change, of course, with the latest suggesting it’ll be called the Nokia X. It looks like the Finnish company could indeed be running with that, as all their official teaser image for the announcement shows some sort of green X.
Not convinced that the arrows in the photo above make up an X? How about the “X” marking the spot on the map, or the X shape in the stand of DNA making up the tree’s roots in the couple of images used to tease the announcement on Chinese social network Weibo? That other picture with the kid in a monkey costume and an actual monkey? Well, yea, we’ve got nothing on that.
Nonetheless, it’s all very interesting and it all points to us seeing this peculiar device launched in the week to come. The device itself might not be setting the world on fire, though. Just look at these specs it’s said to don:
- OS: Android OS, v4.4.2 (KitKat)
- Processor: Dual-core Snapdragon 1 GHz MSM8225Q (Snapdragon 200)
- Display: TFT technology, size 4 “- 480×854 ~ 285ppi
- GPS: Yes, A-GPS support
- Memory: 4 GB, 512 MB RAM
- Card slot: microSD (TransFlash) up to 32GB support
- WLAN: Wi-Fi 802.11 b / g / n, Wi-Fi hotspot
- Bluetooth: Yes, v4.0 with A2DP
- Main Camera: 5 MP, 2592 x 1944 pixels
And now you see where that $100 price tag comes from. It’s safe to say this thing is headed straight for developing markets, but it has our attention regardless. Part of that might be due to the fact that Nokia’s new potential owner is the maker of Windows Phone, and because Nokia practically swore they’d never make an Android phone.
This won’t be your typical Android phone, it seems. All of the UI leaks suggest this will be heavily skinned by Nokia, giving us a style that’s reminiscent of Windows phone while neglecting to employ some of Android’s most unique features such as customizable home-screens.
We’re not even sure if this thing will have access to Google Play, as Nokia seems to be positioning the X as more of a supercharged feature phone than a smartphone. We’ll have to wait for the big unveiling to see what exactly we’re getting, though, so stay tuned as Mobile World Congress kicks off next week.