Published in Mobiles

Microsoft releases a $37 feature phone

by on21 September 2016


Still making Nokias

Software king of the world Microsoft appears to be still making Nokia phones, despite flogging  its feature phone business to a subsidiary of Foxconn.

This morning it showed off its latest Nokia 216 feature phone which it is planning to peddle in India for $37. The new Nokia 216 is one of the most basic phones that Microsoft manufactures. It includes a 2.4-inch QVGA display, with 0.3-megapixel cameras at the front and rear, running on the Series 30 OS with the Opera mini browser. It has some really cool technology called a headphone jack which means that it is not affected by wi-fi noise and is easier to control (we expect Apple to copy this feature any day now).

There's 16MB of RAM on board, enough to run the Series 30+ OS, Opera Mini Browser and other essential apps from the Opera Mobile Store. Storage is basically whatever microSD card you provide, up to 32GB. The Phonebook, on the other hand, can take up to 2000 contacts.

Basic connectivity is all you can expect and that means 2G GSM in the 900MHz and 1800MHz spectrums, Bluetooth 3.0 and no Wi-Fi. You do get a stereo FM radio receiver and a micro-USB 1.1 port - the iPhone 7 lacks that.

It is rather pretty too. In India priced at INR 2,495 ($37), in a choice of white, black or mint colours. The Nokia 216 measures 118 x 50.2 x 13.5mm and weighs 82.6g with the included removable 1,020mAh battery. Vole has not revealed much about gobal availability. It would be quite good as a burner phone and something you leave in your car for emergencies.

Vole still sells millions of feature phones every month. Microsoft previously hoped that feature phone users would create a Microsoft account and become part of the glorious Microsoft ecosystem. It is not clear if Microsoft ever got its wish, but while it has killed off its Lumia smartphones the feature phones are still there.

Last modified on 21 September 2016
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