A quick check on the date – having convinced myself that April 1st didn’t fall on a Sunday this year – but the Sunday press and online media have all been suckered into an incredulous story that Finnish telephone giant Nokia are releasing a re-imagined version of their iconic – apparently industructable – and rather beautiful Nokia 3310, complete with Snake game!
Wait a moment, it’s true….!
In 1999 I had a blue Nokia 3210 – which I loved – although I haven’t switched it on inside ten years. It was an amazing phone selling over 160m worldwide and was superseded in 2000 by the Nokia 3310 which also sold incredibly well – in excess of 126m units.
How long have you complained that the iPhone – in nearly its 8th incarnation and a truely fabulous piece of miniaturized engineering – has forgotten that the word “phone” appears in its name? The quality of the microphone and speaker can be suspect and I wonder if the fact that you can use your iPhone to control a drone on the surface of the Moon has meant that the tech crammed into its small handset has compromised some other elements – like it ability to be a phone?
I suspect for our Finnish friends who have swapped the old monochrome screen for a coloured version, allowing limited internet capacity on 2G browsing and a new mega long-lasting battery are onto a winner. Priced at €49.00 – see our featured image – I will certainly have one and I’ll get a completely new SIM card and give my phone number to only those with whom a telephone call would be welcome interruption.
Nokia was established in 1865 when Finnish Engineer, Fredrik Idestam, set up a wood pulp mill in Southern Finland. Realising that demand for pulp was growing he opened a second mill on the Nokianvirta River, which inspired the name of his new company.
Nokia is known for its evolving culture but I feel that this may not be the last time either Nokia or others re-imagine their iconic and classic designs, breathing new life into them – don’t throw away your old chargers just yet.
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