While Nokia announced its Nokia X series would run a forked version of Android and not include access to apps like the Google Play Store, the smartphone has been hacked to do just that and more.
A member on XDA posted a video (see below) that shows the Nokia X running the just released Google Now Launcher as proof and a guide on how to enable the Nokia X to run Google apps and services. You will have to root the smartphone in order to gain this access and this can void the warranty of the smartphone, so proceed with caution.
If true, this hack would make many users quite happy.
Ever since Nokia released its first Lumia smartphone, many Android fans have been hoping the company would take a dual-OS smartphone strategy, instead of only releasing handsets running Microsoft's Windows Phone OS. Any chance of that ever happening seemed to be finalized when Microsoft revealed that it would acquire Nokia's device and services division last year, or so it appeared.
Soon there were rumors that Nokia had been secretly working on an Android smartphone ,in case things hadn't worked out well with committing to use Windows Phone OS to power its smartphones. The rumors soon turned into leaked images of what the Nokia Android smartphone looked like, but it was still unclear if this was simply a prototype that would never see the light of day or an upcoming device. The smartphone had what many Android fans wanted, an Android smartphone with a Nokia Lumia design. Even though Nokia makes its smartphone's cases out of polycarbonate, it is highly regarded for the quality of the build and design of its smartphones.
A few weeks ago we got our first glimpse of the smartphone with its display powered on and its Windows Phone-inspired user interface. Nokia heard the whispers and wasn't doing much to deny an upcoming Android smartphone and neither was Microsoft. Nokia changed its Facebook and Twitter page to Android green prior to its Mobile World Congress announcement of the Nokia X series.
Just like Amazon's Kindle Fire tablets, Nokia chose to use a forked version of Android that allows it to control the smartphone's user interface and its ability to use Google Android apps like the Google Play Store and Google Maps. The Nokia X instead uses a Nokia app store and the company's HERE Map service. If you were let down by Nokia cutting off access to such popular Android apps, you'll be happy to know the Nokia X has been rooted and can now run all your favorite Google Android apps.
Check out the video below to see the Nokia X running the version of Android you're used to seeing.
