Nokia will reportedly launch its first Android phone a few weeks from now. This phone could be an Android hybrid that does not use Google services but is instead powered by Microsoft and Nokia, according to VentureBeat.
On Monday, a report by the Wall Street Journal said the device is code named Normandy. This phone will be unveiled during the opening of the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona on February 24. The paper cited sources familiar with the matter. Even before Microsoft made an offer to buy the Finnish mobile business, Nokia had already been working on an Android phone, the report detailed.
According to Reticle Research principal analyst Ross Rubin, Nokia's new product might take the same path as Amazon's Kindle model. The kindle is powered by Android but has a different apps and services compared with other Android tablets and smartphones, the report stated.
Rubin also said the key feature that Microsoft and Nokia are banking on is that their non-Google services would be effective to lure in consumers that use other platforms. The Journal said those services include Nokia's Mix Radio, Here maps, and a Nokia app store that has Android apps. For now, since the merger is not yet completed, the services that Normandy would offer is also not yet clear, VentureBeat reported.
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