A slew of Nokia-branded mid-range smartphones from Finland-based HMD Global are poised to launch this year.
Two of the rumored smartphones — dubbed the Nokia D1 (or D1C) and the Nokia E1 — have been creating quite a stir online and now, a new report sheds light on the specs of one of these handsets.
Online publication NPU has managed to lay its hands on the specs of the entry-level Nokia E1 smartphone. The publication, however, does not cite its source of information and merely says "as per the latest information with us."
Rumored Specs
The publication reveals that the Nokia E1 will sport either a 5.2-inch or 5.3-inch 720p display. The entry-level handset will likely be powered by a quad-core Snapdragon 425 processor clocked at 1.4 GHz and house 2 GB of RAM. It will deploy Adreno 308 GPU.
The on-board storage for the Nokia E1 is expected to be 16 GB and the handset will be powered by the latest Google OS i.e. Android 7.0 Nougat. The smartphone will also reportedly boast a 13-megapixel primary camera and come equipped with a 5-megapixel front-facing camera, which can be used to click selfies and make video calls. There is no word on the battery size.
This is not the first time rumors pertaining to the Nokia E1 have surfaced online. In December 2016, we reported that sketches of the Nokia E1 and the Nokia D1 had leaked, offering a peek into the design of the two alleged smartphones.
The sketches suggested that the Nokia E1 would be less curved on the edges when compared with sibling Nokia D1. Moreover, the home button on the Nokia E1 looked like a capacitive circle. The Nokia branding was placed on the top right corner of the handset.
Judging by the latest leaked specs of Nokia E1, HMD Global is targeting budget-conscious buyers as the handset boasts basic specs. That the handset will come with Android 7.0 Nougat out of the box could lead many price-conscious buyers to gravitate toward the device vis-à-vis other entry-level options.
Release
HMD Global reportedly has six to seven Nokia-branded Android smartphones in the pipeline and previous rumors have pointed to a Q1 2017 release.
Previous rumors have suggested that the Nokia E1 would be priced approximately $150. HMD Global is anticipated to take the wraps off the Nokia E1 at the MWC 2017 in Barcelona in February.
The Nokia E1 could possibly be one of the cheapest entry-level smartphones to make its way to consumers this year. The affordable pricing is likely an intentional move from the company to push the handset's sales and generate more revenue.
Despite its cheap price point, HMD Global's CEO Arto Numella has asserted previously that the company will not compromise on quality and it is "bringing in innovation where it matters the most for consumer, and removing the clutter."
With a month to go for the MWC 2017, we will soon be able to see what the Nokia E1 has in store for consumers.
Photo: Kārlis Dambrāns | Flickr