New Nokia Android D1C Smartphone to Come in Two Variants

Nokia went out of the smartphone market in 2014 after it sold its mobile manufacturing division to Microsoft. (Photo: Reuters)

Nokia smartphones are all set to make their way back to the market after some of its former managers licensed the handset brand from Microsoft. However, Nokia will now ditch the Windows OS and partner with Google and phone manufacturer Foxconn for this fresh attempt.

Nokia went out of the smartphone market in 2014 after it sold its mobile manufacturing division to Microsoft.

As per online reports, the first Android-powered device to come with the Nokia name is set to be the D1C. Specifications of it have been spotted on Geekbench and Antutu.

New reports suggest that the device is set to come out in two variants.

Also Read: Nokia’s First Android Smartphones Will Be Big and Powerful

The two models of the Android-powered Nokia D1C will differ in display size, RAM and camera. The smaller 5-inch Nokia D1C will come with 2GB of on-board RAM, a 13 Megapixel main camera, an 8 Megapixel front shooter, and 16GB of storage.

The device will be powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 430 chipset, with a 1.4 GHz octa-core Cortex-A53 CPU and an Adreno 505 GPU. It will run on Android 7.0 Nougat.

The other D1C variant will have similar specs, except that it will bring with it a bigger 5.5-inch display. The camera specs on this variant will also be bumped up with 1 MP rear camera, and 3GB of RAM.

Reports claim that both models are in prototype stage and extensive testing is being done to ensure an early 2017 launch.

Riding on Nokia’s Brand Image

These new smartphones are part of a push by a veteran of Nokia, Arto Numella, who plans to bring Android-powered Nokia smartphones to the market.

Numella is optimistic of the chances of Nokia’s new smartphones in this hyper competitive space as he hints at stealing business from Apple, Samsung and dozens of other players in the industry.

Nokia as a brand has seen little money being invested to market it in the last few years. However, it still enjoys strong presence as a consumer brand. Nokia Feature Phones are still among the strongest in the sub Rs 5,000 phone category.

For a new entrant, having an established brand provides it with an instant on-ramp... We see this as a brilliant opportunity to solve real life consumer problems and to deliver on the quality and designs that the Nokia brand has been always known for. Our team is uniquely placed in this setup to deliver promise of reliable Nokia phones for consumers.

Arto Nummela, CEO, HMD Global

No Funding from Nokia

However, as it stands, this new push by the Nokia smartphone brand will not be funded by the cash strapped company, but rather HMD which is owned by Smart Connect LP, a private equity fund run by Jean-Francois Baril, who was once in charge of Nokia’s world-leading supply chain management system. Other HMD managers have put in money of their own.

HMD is building its smartphone operating system in partnership with Google and all its Nokia devices will be manufactured by Foxconn of Taiwan, the world’s largest contract manufacturer.

(With Inputs from Reuters, IANS.)