After releasing a revamped 3310 last year, Nokia is rearing the nostalgia train again with the new 8110, a legendary Nokia phone from the good old days, nicknamed the "banana" phone. It's the same phone used by Neo in The Matrix and is one of Nokia's most iconic handsets to date.
HMD Global, which owns Nokia and actually the one manufacturing the phones, announced the revamped 8110 during the Mobile World Congress, and it's as much as an attempt to milk nostalgia like the throwback 3310 model before it. Available in either black or yellow, the curved phone features a sliding cover that lets users answer and end calls, much like the original model.
Nokia 8110: Specs, OS, And More
Things don't look as exciting on the software side. The phone runs on Smart Feature OS, meaning it's a mere feature phone, and users won't be able to install any serious apps on it like they can on higher-end Nokia flagships, such as the just-unveiled Nokia 8 Sirocco. That being said, HMD still added an app store, so there's probably a chance lightweight variants of major apps — Facebook, Twitter, probably even Instagram — will make their way onto the phone at some point.
The 8110 will ship with LTE support across Europe, and there'll be dual SIM versions as well. The phone comes with a Qualcomm 205 Mobile Platform processor, a surprisingly high 512 MB of RAM, and 4 GB of onboard storage. There's only a 2-megapixel rear shooter, so don't expect this to take any groundbreaking photos.
Despite the pictures, the phone is actually pretty tiny in person, as The Verge notes. It sports a 2.4-inch QVGA display that's enough to enjoy an improved version of the popular Snake game. Despite the obvious lower-end specs, the battery isn't anything to sneeze at. The phone offers up to 25 days of standby battery, which is pretty darn impressive.
What's The Plan, HMD?
On a more serious note, what exactly is HMD's game plan here? Will annual re-releases of old Nokia handsets be a thing going forward? More importantly, how do these phones fit into the overall schema of reigniting Nokia's presence in the crowded smartphone market, which it once dominated? No answers to these questions for now, but those wearing nostalgia-tinted glasses probably don't care.
The phone ships in March for €79 — about $97.
Thoughts about the Nokia 8110? Do you think HMD should keep on re-releasing iconic Nokia phones? As always, if you have anything to share, feel free to sound off in the comments section below!
