Microsoft Goes Back to Basics with the Nokia 130
- Monday, August 11th, 2014
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Microsoft has made a surprising move into the feature phone market with the introduction of the Nokia 130 handset.
The phone, which runs on the Nokia Series 30 OS, has a 1.8” colour display, a microSD slot and Bluetooth. Its an undeniably simple device, focused mainly on basic communication, though there are also built-in video player, MP3 player and FM Radio apps.
The key here is the handsets €19 (£15) pricetag, which Microsoft reckons makes it a good introductory device, or even as a spare for holidays. That latter use case is backed up by the devices battery life, which can apparently handle up to 16 continuous hours of playing video – a very welcome throwback to the days of feature phones.
When Microsoft acquired Nokia last year, it looked like a play to keep the manufacturers device exclusively on Windows Phone, but with the Nokia Xs selling point of being able to sideload ANdroid apps and now the Nokia OS-powered 130, the handsets released so far are actually surprisingly diverse.