Saw this phone on reddit earlier.<p>A few weeks ago, after an upgrade to iOS 8, I became unable to connect to wifi on my iPhone 4S and the speed of the OS became pretty bad, after it had been perfectly responsive since I first got it nearly 3 years ago.<p>Combine this with the fact that my expensive purchased-for-durability phone case, the third in the phone's lifetime, was starting to crack, and I started looking at other phones.<p>My contract is up in a couple of months. I went to a store and looked at the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 and the iPhone 6.<p>I found the Note 4 intriguing because I've been occasionally following John Carmack's discussions about the Gear VR (Oculus Rift that connects to the phone) and I thought it was coming out in a consumer version, but it looks like they are still labeling it as a developer kit, which makes me think there must be a reason for that (i.e. it's not really ready for prime time). Also, the phone is just massively huge, and I don't want to buy it, especially since given my way of doing things I'd end up buying some horribly large case on top of it.<p>Then I looked at the iPhone 6. First of all I do think it's too big in terms of screen size -- though I do like the thickness and weight of it quite a bit. But the base model is 16GB, and getting either a 16GB or a 64GB <i>on contract</i> was $200+ or $375+ respectively. I thought about it and almost broke down and bought a 128GB model outright for over $1000. In the end, I just couldn't justify it.<p>I think it's time for me to go back to sending SMSs on the telephone keypad. And time for me to stop getting warnings that my damn phone is not backing up (no wifi and me not plugging it in), time for me to stop worrying that the phone will die if I forget to charge it for just one evening, and time for me to stop buying expensive, crappy cases.<p>I really want this phone. And if I don't get it, I'll probably get something that is just like it.<p>TL;DR: I'm a fan.
I seriously doubt the fact that this phone will be able to make a dent in the Indian market. Just look at its price tag, it costs you around Rs. 2000($30) The basic internet pack charges (2g) is around Rs 130($2) per month. A person who is ready to take a subscription of $2 per month, will be able to afford a better phone with Android which won't cost him more than 3k.<p>One thing that I want to see in such type of phones is whatsapp support with an extremely good battery life. If such a phone comes up, it will be second phone for every person who is suffering from the battery problem of android ecosystem.
I travel a lot, and in addition to my iPhone w/AT&T International Roaming (Company picks it up - provides a constant phone number for people to call me wherever I am, and has all the smartphone goodness that is useful for a road warrior) - I also carry a Nokia 105 which I pop a local SIM into for all my local calling - Saves about $500-$1000/Month easily on calling charges. It looks like the Nokia 215 is the same price, with the addition of some basic Internet Connectivity as well. Same 30 Day battery life as well. Super happy to see Microsoft is continuing to make the super-low end Nokia phones, though hard to see how this fits their general business model, other than being "Mobile first"
What would be nice is a phone like this with GPS and 3G/4G (with tethering). That way I could ditch my smartphone and use my tablet for actual browsing with the feature phone serving as a router only (whilst still being usable as a phone the rest of the time).<p>All the feature phones I've looked at don't have 3G/4G with tethering, which means they're unsuitable for my use case.
<i>the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and Europe</i><p>The phones that I really like seem to never be available in the US. Admittedly, I have a unique taste in phones. I love the idea of a minimal phone OS with a qwerty keypad (or number pad). The new Blackberry Classic looks really nice too, but it's not available in the US and Blackberry has all but abandoned ship in the US market.<p>Nokia is getting <i>so close</i> to scratching that itch with this phone. I really hope there's a US version with similar specs somewhere up the pipe.
> Plus, a built-in torchlight provides convenience, whether it’s late at night or after you’ve turned off the lights.<p>So that's what a torchlight is for! Thanks, landing page!
This phone will come in handy for some of us in Africa. The African phone market is flooded with cheap dual sim chinese phones that "can perform more tasks" than what microsoft hopes to achieve with its phone. But for 29$ they are [the chinese phones] still a rip-off for many. Buggy software applications, short lifespan (3-6 months) and spread viruses like crazy.
I like how this phone includes that it's built to be durable as one of its major features. Phones should be tough. Waterproofing them should be standard. They should not break when dropped from 10+ feet. Their screens should not crack. On top of this, either optional or built-in warranty should include coverage for accidental damage. A phone like that would be worth quite a bit of money.<p>Another thing about the current generation of smartphones: unlike this Nokia offering, they are not yet "good enough". Chances are, you will replace your phone in 1-2 years, or at least you'll want to. Their speed is still growing very fast, and the demand on the CPU/GPU/RAM is growing very fast too. I can see buying this phone and keeping it for 5+ years: nothing in what it can do will see substantial improvements over that time period. Contrast this with the top of the line smartphones where simple things in 2017 will take 2x the processing power that they do now, because of the improved UI, etc.<p>Eventually, I think smartphones will settle down. I remember when PC's were getting faster and faster in the late 1990's, early 2000's. It seemed that you could upgrade every year and still not keep up. Eventually they got "good enough" where you can keep the same PC for 5-10 years (except power-users such as programmers, gamers, etc.) I look forward to a day when iPhones and such are a commodity such as this Nokia.
Looks great, I think I've found my new extra phone.<p>My backup travel phone is a dual-sim candybar, allowing me to leave my smartphone back at the hotel room while still taking my usual sim with me + a local sim of the country I'm visiting. This gives me a lot of freedom to really roam and still be reachable if I want to be, have some options if there's an emergency, to not really worry about my phone being lost or stolen, and not be tied to a power outlet.<p>My telephone company let's me have two sim cards which makes this really easy (whichever phone is turned on most recently is the active phone). I leave my spare phone in my car when I'm not traveling.
<a href="http://m.gadgets.ndtv.com/mobiles/news/seven-firefox-os-powered-devices-announced-mozilla-aims-to-power-25-smartphone-487300" rel="nofollow">http://m.gadgets.ndtv.com/mobiles/news/seven-firefox-os-powe...</a><p>Firefox Smartphone is a better choice for India. Same price tag and a much more open compute platform.<p>There are also several Chinese made Android smartphones around INR2000 which are attractive to budget conscious purchasers.<p>Remember that in India the phone is often the only compute platform a user has, and it is an aspirational purchase.
Note that on January 1, 2016, old-Nokia in Finland can use the 'Nokia' name on new phones again:<p><a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/ewanspence/2013/09/05/could-we-see-a-finnish-smartphone-from-nokia-in-2016-jolla-sailfish-android/" rel="nofollow">http://www.forbes.com/sites/ewanspence/2013/09/05/could-we-s...</a><p>There may be some strange brand contortions coming next year!
So here is the deal. If the phone has WiFi and Skype installed, nearly every single household in India will buy this in a heart beat. Plus they can get all those customers on Skype, for free.<p>I'm currently shopping around for a phone for my father, he doesn't want a smartphone. He needs a simple phone, through which he can make VOIP calls(Skype/Viber etc). Its perfectly alright if the phone doesn't have a camera, or GPS. But for sure it needs to have WiFi connectivity, you should be able to tether, should be rugged and durable and should be cheap.<p>Internet is taking off big time in India. And people want to make free calls over VOIP all the time. Smartphones are expensive, and aren't exactly very durable and rugged. Plus they get out of fashion very soon. A simple phone, Nokia standard, which you could use as a internet phone over WiFi with apps like Skype, Viber would sell like hotcakes here.
So it's a modern stick-phone. I'm actually flabbergasted that MS/Nokia made a non-windows-phone device.<p>To me, the big question is whether I can tether a tablet to it. A lightweight, convenient dumbphone with a tethered tablet in my backpack might be a nice form-factor.
<a href="http://www.microsoft.com/en/mobile/phone/215/specifications/" rel="nofollow">http://www.microsoft.com/en/mobile/phone/215/specifications/</a><p>> RAM: 8 MB<p>That's not much, considering what it can do. Decode H.264, run Opera Mini, and more.
So I need to pay for data on a severely restricted phone? Why would I do that? I understand the allure of a cheap phone but why should it have internet access? I understand if I can get a data plan specifically tailored for this (as in cheap).
1) 2G does not provide much in the way of usable Internet these days 2) Many countries are working to actively decommission their 2G networks - which is a good thing because the sooner they do this the bands can be re-used for LTE
I would replace my old and trusty SonyErricson Naite and SO's cedar with this if only it'd come with WiFi and/or 3G connectivity and that weird but reliable google maps app.<p>(Opera mini is also a requirement.)
They should be talking about battery life; and battery life with 3G on. They left it at "Exceptional battery life" and "Battery capacity: 1100 mAh"[1], the latter definitely didn't do anything to boost confidence.<p>This is too much to ask, I agree. But then if I just want a phone to make calls and text then I would buy something even cheaper than this phone.<p>[1] <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/en/mobile/phone/215/specifications/" rel="nofollow">http://www.microsoft.com/en/mobile/phone/215/specifications/</a>
Hm, this is a bit too full-featured for my tastes. I'm currently on a Nokia 101, and my gripes are few: if only the battery cover would stay on better (current solution: tape), and the build quality was $60 as opposed to the $10-20 currently, it'd be ideal. Other than that, it is perfection. I'm glad this type of thing is still being made, even if the trade-off between the triad [features, price, build quality] isn't exactly where i'd have liked it.
There are plenty in the 60 and up crowd for whom smartphones are confusing things because they obfuscate the entire purpose of owning a cell phone: making calls. My parents both still have clamshell style flip phones because they don't use their phones primarily as an entertainment or computing device, but as actual phones. This kind of phone would be a great halfway point for them: give them the functionality of a smart phone without making their phone confusing.
This brings back fond memories of the Nokia 5310 XpressMusic [1] that I used for two years. The battery lasted a week, and using T9 on that phone was the fastest I've ever typed on a mobile device. It's nice to know that the 215 exists if I ever want to return to those days.<p>1. <a href="http://www.gsmarena.com/nokia_5310_xpressmusic-2087.php" rel="nofollow">http://www.gsmarena.com/nokia_5310_xpressmusic-2087.php</a>
<i>"Weighing 78.7 grams, the 215 has a VGA camera with space for a 32GB microSD card. ..."</i><p><a href="http://www.cnet.com/uk/products/nokia-215/" rel="nofollow">http://www.cnet.com/uk/products/nokia-215/</a><p>'Europe' availability specified. 2G in UK for some years to come. Might get one on payg and I can listen to my music and take the odd low res pic of funny signs (what I mainly use the camera for).
The new Nokia model numbers keep getting smaller, along with the shrinking feature set and capabilities. They really are aiming for the low end/budget demographic. Although I wonder if the subsidies will help or hurt sales in the low end though. Its got the retro Nokia look which probably helps sales. Since it has only 8MB of RAM, it's no surprise that Microsoft didn't put WinPhone on it.
A 2G phone touted as "our most affordable Internet-ready entry-level phone yet". Has Microsoft's "Nokia"/Windows Phone division lost it's mind completely?<p>I know it's a cheap phone, but then don't market it as an internet device. It's 2015. 3G even in a cheap phone should be standard if you call it an internet-ready device.
This or similar phones from MS, won't change anything. People will still go for android with a similar price range and more screen size. We got two such phones for our office to use on travel sometime back, but they just lie there with no takers. People still use their regular phones with the power backup on the go.
Like a smartwatch + keypad.<p>2G connectivity is slow... but I would love super-lite webpages. Like m.mobile; maybe w.watch? This could also use them. Needs less bandwidth, data, CPU, RAM, battery - and clearer because just the text.<p>If it has an x86 CPU (specs don't say), it could be the world's smallest DOSbox. 8MB RAM is plenty for DOS.
Just give me the titanium Nokia 8850 [1] with color screen, whatsapp (preferably also telegram), imap and calendar sync.<p>1 <a href="http://www.retromobile.nl/images/productimages/big/8850zilver3.jpg" rel="nofollow">http://www.retromobile.nl/images/productimages/big/8850zilve...</a>
Nice, I was travelling recently and was looking for something like this.<p>It's very easy to get a cheap phone, but touch screen phones tend to have worse battery life, and many of the entry-level phones don't have a browser or location services (GPS functionality is a big plus when travelling.
I've been looking at those nokia asha's with keyboard. I think I would enjoy using something like that. I am a fan for sure, however, it is not likely I will abandon my OnePlus soon which also solves my main complaint, that battery dies quickly on 'modern' phones.
> Nokia 215 and Nokia 215 Dual-SIM will be available in select markets<p>This is not the first modern and cheap phone they have. Yet they are not available to purchase. So yeah, nice news, but not really relevant unless you live in Africa.<p>(Yes, I know they say Europe this time, but I don't really believe them)
This looks great. It builds on Nokia's strengths (people loved them for their durable low cost phones).<p>I hope they get the UI right; old Nokia phones had a great UI before they added all the 'smartphone'-crap.<p>And I hope they'll sell them in Austria too; this looks like a great backup phone.
It certainly is targeting Indian market. Names and places in the Ad is Indian. Nokia still resonates with many Indians for its durability and Reliability. With Internet ready, it will for sure strike a chord with indians in low price segment and as back up phone.
"Meet <insert product name here>".... "introducing <insert product name here>", cue artsy and friendly music and lots of people having fun.<p>I get that all this stuff works really well in marketing products, but its getting really stale.
Neither fish nor fowl.<p>Maybe somebody could make a product and make money in this segment but the odds of that somebody being Microsoft are nil. The only context in which this makes sense is keeping this part of the former Nokia alive long enough to sell it.
Right now in Russia you can buy an Android 4.4 smartphone (Beeline Smart 3) with Wifi, GPS and 4 inch screen for $30. Not sure how Microsoft's phone can compete with similarly priced Chinese or Indian smartphones.
Sorry Microsoft, but that era has passed and pie was eaten by Nokia. (Well deserved by Nokia)<p>Building an affordable phone with Internet access capability is not biggest demand currently.<p>10 years ago, Nokia discovered what was missing in communication market. A cheap, good looking and everlasting phone. They sold it to literally everywhere in the world. It was like buy one and use forever.<p>I am not really sure what is the biggest gap in communication market but it is definitely not this. Here are the things i can list which i think the most important ones to focus on.<p>- Battery life<p>- Unique and beautiful designs (Phones are getting too similar to each other)<p>- Durability<p>- Making phones use cases wider to interact real life scenarios.<p>Lets see if we are gonna see something original in 2015 otherwise people will as usual wait for iPhone 7, Galaxy S6, and Nexus 10.
Been trying to buy a 3210 as a back-up phone for many years, but even now, I find the form factor to be pretty weird. Just go with the 3210 design, and I'm down for one.
I don't believe this to be something new. My mom had been using this ( very very similar - the OS) from Nokia since 2009. Nokia released many such cellphones in India.
No GPS, but will opera mini run maps at all do we think? Perhaps openstreetmap? I generally know where I am, it's going the right way I have trouble with...
This brings back fond memories of the Nokia 5310 XpressMusic [1] that I used for two years. The battery lasted a week, and using T9 on that phone was the fastest I've ever typed on a mobile device. It's nice to know that the 215 exists if I ever want to return to those days.<p>1. <a href="http://www.gsmarena.com/nokia_5310_xpressmusic-2087.php" rel="nofollow">http://www.gsmarena.com/nokia_5310_xpressmusic-2087.php</a>
This brings back fond memories of the Nokia 5310 XpressMusic [1] that I used for two years. The battery lasted a week, and using T9 on that phone was the fastest I've ever typed on a mobile device. It's nice to know that the 215 exists if I ever want to return to those days.<p>1. <a href="http://www.gsmarena.com/nokia_5310_xpressmusic-2087.php" rel="nofollow">http://www.gsmarena.com/nokia_5310_xpressmusic-2087.php</a>
This brings back fond memories of the Nokia 5310 XpressMusic [1] that I used for two years. The battery lasted a week, and using T9 on that phone was the fastest I've ever typed on a mobile device. It's nice to know that the 215 exists if I ever want to return to those days.<p>1. <a href="http://www.gsmarena.com/nokia_5310_xpressmusic-2087.php" rel="nofollow">http://www.gsmarena.com/nokia_5310_xpressmusic-2087.php</a>
Nokia 105 - $20<p>Nokia 130 - $25<p>Nokia 215 $29<p>Not sure why Nokia keeps coming out with new phones but I like it. Yeah it may be expensive in 2nd / 3rd world countries still but I personally like the no distractions of a dumb phone. If they called a cellphone a tether when they first came out, they are handcuffs now and I like the feeling of breaking free from it all and focusing on other things in life like the people in my life, or self improvement etc...
I find it odd that it's the same price as the cheapest lumia phone...<p><a href="http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msusa/en_US/pdp/AT-T---Nokia-Lumia-520---No-Contract/productID.283842800" rel="nofollow">http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msusa/en_US/pdp/AT-T---N...</a>
You can get Nokia Lumia 520 for the same price, at least for now:
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00E45043A" rel="nofollow">http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00E45043A</a>
"Plus, a built-in torchlight provides convenience, whether it’s late at night or after you’ve turned off the lights. Or, for those who have no access to electricity (in 2014, that’s still almost 20% of the world’s population), the torch is a necessity!"<p>So how exactly is the Nokia 215 supposed to be charged in the first place?
The "1 month of battery life" is such bullshit, and I'm surprised so many people, especially on Reddit, believe it without question. Nokia announced a phone like this a year ago, too, and the same happened.<p>The "2 weeks" of battery life or even 4 weeks thing is at least a decade old. It's nothing <i>new</i>. Old Nokias and Sony Ericsson's used to promise that all the time. The thing is that's just <i>idle time</i>. You're not going to keep your phone in idle that much.<p>This type of marketing definitely came from the Nokia guys themselves - this "old type of thinking". It reminds me of when laptop makers used to promise "8h of battery life" on their laptops <i>5 years ago</i>, when their laptops only lasted 2-3h with normal use. They were also thinking idle/almost no usage-time, and being misleading about it in their marketing campaigns.<p>For most people here, I imagine that phone will last them 3-4 days, which is nothing to scoff at, but it's also not nearly as much as "1 month" of battery life as they imply, and you also lose so much more compared to a smartphone. Yes you get "Internet", but it will also be a pain to use it on that non-touch tiny screen.<p>The price is also <i>not that special</i>. There have been feature phones costing that much for years. The only difference is now some components have become cheap enough that they can also add some that make having Internet on it a <i>little more usable</i> than before.<p>People here are aware Firefox launched a $25 Firefox OS <i>smartphone</i> right?