New Nokia 3310 3G Rumor Killed By HMD Global
The Nokia 3310 (2017) feature phone was formally announced in late February with a Q2 release date. It was unveiled as a handset with 2G connectivity (well, 2.5G, technically), although a recent Nokia 3310 price spot indicated that a 3G version could also become available. However, after a rush of initial excitement, the rumor of a 3G model has now been killed by HMD Global.
When the company first announced the device the price was given as just €49. However, pricing has varied across different retailers and countries so far, although this is not altogether unusual. For instance, two European retail listings so far have been for €59 in Austria or €69.90 in Germany. A recent listing at Swedish retailer Inet gave a different picture though, as a Nokia 3310 3G version was listed with a price of 899 kr and an availability date of early May. That price translates to around €93, which might have sounded realistic if it were a 3G Nokia 3310. Other than 3G connectivity, the other specs listed on Inet are the same as for the 2G model that the retailer is also offering, this time with a price of 699 kr, around €73.
If you were hoping that a 3G Nokia 3310 was indeed on the way you might be disappointed at the latest news on this. Although the listing looked credible, the 3G model had never been officially announced by HMD Global, and now the company’s PR team has stated that the details are incorrect and that only a 2G version will be available. Therefore, it seems virtually set in stone that you won’t be able to get your hands on a 3G variant, although it is odd that the retailer is still accepting pre-orders. There is already heavy demand for the new Nokia 3310 following the incredible sales of 126 million units of the original version that was announced way back in 2000. Pre-registrations and pre-orders have been ramping up ahead of the new version’s release, some of this due to a wave of nostalgia and sentimentality. Other buyers simply don’t want or need a smartphone with all the bells and whistles or are opting for the new Nokia 3310 as a backup device.
The Nokia 3310 (2017) has a 2.4-inch display with 320 x 240 resolution, and 16GB of internal storage that can be expanded via microSD to 32GB. A highlight is its removable 1200mAh battery that should offer plenty of battery life, with Nokia claiming talk time of over 22 hours. The phone has a 2-megapixel rear camera with LED flash and it uses the S30+ operating system. While the rumor of a 3G Nokia 3310 phone was interesting while it lasted, it appears to have been a red herring for now.
