Up to 4 Nokia Android Smartphones Confirmed for Release Q4 2016
Up to 4 Nokia Android phones and tablets, will be released towards the end of this year. Rumors spread sometime August it would have Nokia C1, powered by Android OS released before the end of 2016. This was confirmed by Mike Wang, president of the joint management team at Nokia China. The launch, however, will likely take place sometime early 2017.
The Paper, a local news source quoted Mike Wang, general manager at Nokia Siemens Networks, as saying the Nokia brand name will return to smartphones and tablets before the end of the year. These will be the first set of phones Nokia will be producing after it’s non-complete deal with Microsoft came to an end in May, 2016.
Nokia was working on their new mobiles from last year when it started hiring software experts, testing new products and seeking sales partners as it plots its return to the mobile phone and consumer tech arena it abandoned with the sale of its handset business.
Finally, Nokia announced it’s come back after licensing its brand and intellectual property of old-fashioned feature phones for $350 million to FIH Mobile, a subsidiary of Chinese smartphone manufacturer Foxconn and a newly formed company called HMD Global. HMD, headed by a Pekka Rantala, former Nokia exec, will be designing the devices, with Foxconn being the manufacturing partner.
Rumors has it that the premium Nokia Android phones powered by SD820 SoC, sporting 5.2 and 5.5-inch QHD OLED displays, respectively, featuring a 22.6MP camera, and running Android 7.0 out-of-the-box. But, that is what they are, rumors.
Nokia had been a leader of feature phone markets for a long time until it received a tough competition from the rising popularity of smartphone makers. It will be interesting to see how Nokia performs as it teams up with Foxcon, to start designing smartphones, in the overly crowded smartphone market that will only multiply in the coming years.
As usual, various leaks of the upcoming Nokia Android devices are expected to flood the internet anytime soon. There are no tangible information on the price tags. For now, we keep our fingers crossed to seeing Nokia return to connecting people.
