Welcome back! Nokia makes grand return with 4 devices from HMD Global - plus a 'human' campaign

Dubai - Android-powered 3, 5 and 6, plus throwback 3310 rolled out; #UniteFor campaign also unveiled

HMD Global has put the smartphone world on notice: Nokia's back.

The Finnish company, once the dominant force in its arena, announced its grand revival in the mobile device stage with the unveiling of three new Android-powered smartphones, plus the iconic, retro-inspired 3310, in a bid to make up for lost ground and reintroduce the name that is all-too-familiar with many users, especially at the turn of the century.

At HMD Global's much-hyped event in Dubai late on Wednesday, the company flaunted the new Nokia 3, 5 and 6 smartphones, which all run on the latest Android 7.0 Nougat operating system. HMD Global is a fellow Finnish firm that has its headquarters across Nokia's and which acquired the rights to manufacture its devices in May last year.

HMD Global stayed true to Nokia's tradition by naming its devices after numbers; '4' has been avoided, owing to respect to those who practice tetraphobia.

But the one the drew the most cheers was the return of the 3310, which gained popularity for its 'indestructible' build, long-lasting battery and games including Space Impact and the wildly-popular Snake. The feature phone - which was redesigned from both hardware and software points - runs on the Nokia Series 30+ OS.

"HMD is writing the next chapter of the Nokia mobile phone story. It has stayed in the market as a feature phone, but now Nokia will take a unique take on Android," Arto Nummela, chief executive officer of HMD Global, told Khaleej Times at the event.

Pixel-like experience, revved-up security

He promised that the new phones will be an "absolute, amazing experience" for users, which he says have been rated as the easiest to use, especially among younger users, owing to the "pure Android" software that was perfected by Google for its very own Pixel smartphone.

"It's like the Pixel; we are bringing that Pixel experience at our price points," Nummela pointed out, referring to the very affordable costs of the Nokia 3, 5 and 6 - Dh499, Dh649 and Dh799, respectively. Availability, meanwhile, will be on June 29 and July 12 for the 3 and 5, while the 6 is expected to roll out some time next month.

And to stress its commitment to device security, Nummela guaranteed that there is nothing to worry about these new devices thanks to monthly updates to its software.

"You can say your phone is always secure; you can trust your Nokia Android phone. It's always up-to-date," he said. "At the moment, no other manufacturers are doing these continuous security updates."

Nostalgia

Saving the best for the last, HMD Global finally unveiled the much-anticipated 3310 remake, which they feel will appeal most to those who need a second, inexpensive mobile or who are content with a feature phone.

The original 3310 - which debuted on September 1, 2000 - attained cult status and was that year's best-selling device, raking in sales of over 126 million units. The Telegraph ranks it as the ninth best-selling mobile of all time.

It is slated to hit UAE shelves this month and will retail for Dh199.

#UniteFor shows 'human' side

While the rollout of the new devices is the highlight, HMD Global has more 'human' reasons to be back in the game.

The company on Wednesday also announced the launch of its new #UniteFor campaign across the Middle East and North Africa, with the aim of taking its commitment to the region further with regards to uniting diverse communities to help those in need.

The project features the companies collaborating with the Sharing Fridges group in providing refrigerators across the region, stocked with food and drinks intended for the less-fortunate. 'Care packs' were also donated to workers by HMD Global, aside from the 33 refs they pitched in.

This is also reflected in Nokia's new devices, which, thanks to its ease of use, gives a simpler, more 'human' experience for users.

"With the #UniteFor campaign, we are writing the next fresh and moral chapter of 'connecting people'," Pekka Rantala, chief marketing officer of HMD Global, told Khaleej Times, referring to Nokia's iconic slogan.

"The whole insight is that connecting as such is not enough anymore; the world today is very connected from many, many perspectives, but people may be more disconnected than ever before," he added. "We would like to remind people to come together and unite, to have progress and achieve this jointly."

The launch indeed is a new era. And when asked about the Nokia 7, 8 and 9 smartphones - rumoured to be higher-end smartphones and that would come out soon - Nummela answered in jest, but did drop a hint.

"Yes, we've reserved some numbers for future developments," he said.

"I'm not here today able to announce anything about that, but the uniqueness of the Nokia brand is that [if] it is working very well in the low-price point, [it would] work very well in the premium segment."

THE LOWDOWN

NOKIA 3: 5-inch IPS LCD display, sculpted Corning Gorilla Glass, 8MP wide-aperture main and front cameras, Mediatek MT6737 quad-core 1.4GHz CPU, 2GB RAM, 16GB storage with up to 256GB microSD, 2650mAh battery, NFC, single-/dual-SIM

NOKIA 5: 5.2-inch IPS HD display, sculpted Corning Gorilla Glass, 13MP main camera with dual-flash, 8MP, 84-degree wide-angle front camera, Qualcomm Snapdragon 430 octa-core 1.4GHz CPU, 2GB RAM, 16GB storage with up to 256GB microSD, 3000mAh battery, NFC, single-/dual-SIM

NOKIA 6: 5.5-inch full-HD display, sculpted Corning Gorilla Glass, 16MP main camera with dual-flash, 8MP front camera with HD recording, Qualcomm Snapdragon 430 octa-core 1.4GHz CPU, 3GB/4GB RAM, 32GB/64GB storage with up to 256GB microSD, 3000mAh battery, NFC, dual-SIM

- alvin@khaleejtimes.com

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