Legendary Nokia 3310 is coming back

The more things change, the more they remain the same.

Whoever said this probably had the Kenyan politician in mind because that is one species that shows no sign of becoming extinct.

But to be fair, the Kenyan politician is not the only ‘entity’ that always wants to forge behind or fast forward to the past.

Nokia, the Finnish mobile phone company that had sworn in its pay-off line that it was all about “Connecting People”, is fast catching up with its past.

Some 17 years ago, Nokia launched the Nokia 3310, which was so loved for its ruggedness that even those who could afford the Nokia 9000 Communicator (which by then was a smart phone) opted for it.

There was gloom in the mobile telephony industry when production of the Nokia 3310 was discontinued after the company was bought by Microsoft.

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Now, the good news is that the sturdy phone is set for a re-launch.

According to The Independent, Nokia will “re-launch the 3310, perhaps the best-loved and most resilient phone in history””

The phone, originally released in 2000 and in many ways beginning the modern age of mobiles, will be sold as a way of getting “lots of battery life in a nearly indestructible body”.

PIN CONVERSATIONS

If you thought you were way past “pin ndogo/ pin kubwa” conversations when you were looking for the 3310 charger, brace yourself — the beloved phone might just hit the market before the end of this month, and your “pin conversations” might just resume.

In an era of smart phones and not-so-smart users, and the 4G network that some wags contend is just a marketing gimmick but never a reality, the 3310 might be just what the world needs.

According to Venturebeat.com, HMD Global Oy, the Finnish manufacturer with exclusive rights to market phones under the Nokia brand, is planning to announce Nokia 3, 5 and 6 at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona later this month.

“But perhaps the most interesting of these devices, at least from the perspective of mobile enthusiasts, is not a smartphone at all, but a modern version of a classic workhorse of a feature phone, the Nokia 3310,” says venturebeat.com.

“Known primarily for its plentiful battery life and nearly indestructible build, the 3310 was released at the turn of the millennium as a replacement to the also-popular 3210.”

The website adds that at just €59 (around Sh6,500), this reincarnation seems priced competitively enough to win over nostalgic former owners for use as a second phone.

In case you had forgotten about the features that made you love it so much, the Nokia 3310 had predictive text input, smart messaging, calculator, voice dial, mobile chat mode for SMS, a currency converter, clock, alarm clock, stopwatch and only four games (Snake II, Pairs II, Space Impact, and Bantumi).

It did not have a loudspeaker, Bluetooth, radio, GPS, USB, memory card slot or camera.