It’s hard to believe, but Nokia appears to be moving forward with its much-discussed Android smartphone project, despite being in the final stages of a sale to Microsoft. First leaked under the codename Normandy, the phone is rumored to be a replacement for the aging Asha range of phones, which run Nokia’s Series 40 software.
This week has seen a flurry of new information regarding the Normandy, which is now also known under the Nokia X name. Whether this makes it through to production remains to be seen, much like the actual phone. Anyway, the source of the initial images, the @evleaks Twitter account, has also come up with a list of potential specs.
If they’re accurate, the little phone may have a 4-inch touchscreen with a 480 x 800 pixel resolution, and be powered by a dual-core, 1GHz Snapdragon processor with 512MB of RAM. Nothing special when compared to Nokia’s high-end Lumia hardware, but pretty good when stacked up against many Asha phones.
The list continues with a whole 4GB of internal memory, a MicroSD card slot, a 5-megapixel rear camera, and a modest 1500mAh battery. A dual-SIM variant for certain markets may also be launched. Prior to the @evleaks information coming out, a listing for the Normandy briefly appeared on a Vietnamese online retailer’s website, where it was also stated the phone would run Android 4.4 KitKat. Finally, as seen in supposed pictures of the Normandy, it will come in six different colors.
A lot of people have dreamed of a Nokia Android phone, but the Nokia X probably isn’t what they had in mind. The operating system isn’t likely to look much like Android either, as the leaked screenshots suggest it’ll be covered in a Windows Phone-like user interface.
The Nokia X is an enigma. Will it really be released, and if so, does that indicate Microsoft’s blessing? As Android will probably be underneath, will it meet Google’s standards and feature Google Play? Where will it go on sale, and for how much? All these questions and more could be answered at Mobile World Congress next month, when Nokia may add the Normandy to its slate of new releases also expected at the Barcelona show.
Updated on 01-29-2014 by Andy: A phone listed as the Nokia X has shown up on a benchmarking test website. The results indicate the phone will be a modest performer, keeping the Sony Xperia C company. It’s worth remembering benchmark results can be faked, so don’t take this as absolute proof of the Nokia X’s existence.
Article originally published on 01-28-2014
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