Nokia are back, though don't get too excited...

Published by at

Announced yesterday were a trio of Nokia smartphones, the first allowed (legally) since the Microsoft buyout of Nokia's Devices business back in 2013. It's a new day and a new team, with HMD Global handling it all, the 'Nokia' bit is mainly just the name, though the handsets don't look too shabby and they certainly look good value. Don't get too excited though, internally they're just generic Android slabs. Some details below.

The three new unibody aluminium smartphones are the Nokia 3, Nokia 5, and Nokia 6. While the last was already unveiled by HMD Global in China, the other two phones are brand new and all three will be available globally soon. All three run Android 7.0 and with 'stock' status, i.e. no manufacturer added skin and with full eligibility for monthly Android security updates.

Taking the phones in reverse order, and with a focus on the launch video promos:

Nokia 6

The Nokia 6 has a 5.5" 1080p display, a Snapdragon 430 chipset, 4GB RAM, 64GB storage, microSD card slot and stereo speakers. It also has a fingerprint sensor and a 3000mAh battery with Qualcomm quick charging. As befits the Nokia name (kind of), there's a decent, if not class-leading 16MP rear camera with f/2.0 aperture.

The Nokia 6 will be available for 229 Euros in a couple of months.

Nokia 5

The Nokia 5 comes with a smaller 5.2" 720p display, 2GB RAM, and a 12MP camera. Otherwise, the phone packs similar specifications to the Nokia 6. The Nokia 5 will retail for 189 Euros.

Nokia 3

The Nokia 3 has 5" 720p display, and just a 8MP camera, and will cost 139 Euros.

 _________

There's something slightly depressing about seeing such vanilla design and specifications with the Nokia name on them, though in fairness a lot of the Lumias released in 2015 were pretty boring too. And, obviously, I haven't handled these yet, so the usual caveats apply. It's good to see Nokia's name back in the industry, though not in a way that's directly relevant to AAS and AAWP readers, of course.

If you're a long time reader and keen on new designs and 'different' then take at least a sideways glance at the new Blackberry KEYone, whose hardware has at least a passing nod to the glories that were the Nokia E71/E71 and E6...

Source / Credit: Nokia