Nokia 1 Becomes The World’s First Smartphone To Come With Android Oreo (Go Edition)

Apart from big launches like Nokia 8 Sirocco and Nokia 7 Plus, HMD Global also announced an entry-level smartphone at the MWC 2018 which has been making a hell lot of noise in the industry. Dubbed as the Nokia 1, it is the world’s first smartphone to come with Android Oreo (Go Edition) and comes with an interesting specs-sheet, to say the least.

For the unknown, Google has been trying really hard to re-engineer the Android operating system to make it more compatible with lower-end devices. While the tech giant has been attempting the same for nearly four years with Android One, the initiative has been rebranded as the Android Oreo “Go edition” which is designed to run exceptionally well on smartphones with 512MB or 1GB of RAM.

Coming back to the Nokia 1, other than being the first ever Android Oreo (Go Edition)-powered smartphone, it comes with Xpress-on interchangeable polycarbonate covers with rounded corners and a rather compact design which also is eye-catching, at the same time.

As for the software, Nokia 1 is said to be the fastest entry-level smartphone with Android Oreo with faster app launches and better battery efficiency. Nokia 1 Android Oreo (Go Edition) comes with a slew of pre-loaded optimized apps like Google Go, YouTube Go, Google Assistant Go, Gmail Go, Google Play, Google Maps Go, Gboard, Chrome, and Files Go.

In addition to that, Nokia 1 will have the latest version of Android OS, Google Play Protect as well as a customized Google Play app which will highlight apps optimized for Go edition.

Nokia 1 Specifications

• 4.5-inch (854 x 480) FWVGA IPS display with 16:9 aspect ratio, 217.7 PPI, 61.6% screen-to-body ratio and a scratch proof layering.
• Quad-core MediaTek MT6737M Cortex-A53 Soc clocked at 1.1GHz and paired with Adreno 304 GPU
• 1GB RAM and 8GB of internal storage, expandable up to 128GB via microSD
• Android 8.1 (Oreo) Go Edition out of the box.
• Hybrid Dual SIM Support
• 5MP rear camera with f/2.2 aperture and LED flash
• 2MP front camera with f/2.4 aperture
• 2150mAh Removable Li-Ion battery offering 9 hours of talk time.
• Dimensions: 133.6 x 67.78 x 9.5 mm
• 4G VoLTE, Bluetooth 4.2, WiFi 802.11 b/g/n (2.4GHz), GPS, Micro USB 2.0 and 3.5mm AV jack.

Nokia 1 Price And Availability

Priced at $85 (Rs. 5500 approx), the Nokia 1 comes in Warm Red and Dark Blue colors options while the Xpress-on covers will be sold separately with the price tag of $7.99 in Azure, Grey, Pink and Yellow colors. The smartphone is expected to be made available from April 2018, globally.

While the Nokia 1 Android Oreo (Go Edition) is everything but a head-turner, the pricing seems to be on point for such a powerful package which comes with a convenience of running any application from the Google Play store.

On the other hand, while cost-cutting is easily visible, performance credentials of the Nokia 1 are good enough for what the device is aimed at. For basic social media use, calling and browsing, the phone should not pose an issue, however, you probably won’t use it for heavy games.