14 DAY TRIAL // Today, Microsoft Mobile (aka Nokia’s former devices division) has made official a new handset running under Android, in the form of Nokia X2, the successor of the already highly popular Nokia X smartphone that made a debut at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in February this year.
The new device arrives on the market with a nice range of enhancements over the predecessor, including a larger, 4.3-inch screen, a faster processor, a better camera and the like, but also with an enhanced design and with a series of new software features.
Jussi Nevanlinna, vice president, product marketing, Mobile Phones at Microsoft, explains that the company built the Nokia X2 based on what Nokia X had to offer, while also adding exciting new features and services to it, so as to appeal to even more users.
The outer design of the handset was improved with a secondary layering effect, though it kept the basics of the first-generation Nokia X phones, so as to offer continuity.
“In design alone, we’ve built on the beautiful first generation devices, and have injected something a little different and new, as you can see by the second layering effect. It just glows,” Jussi Nevanlinna says, a recent post on Nokia Conversations explains.
However, this was not the only thing that got a bit redesigned in the new handset, as the Nokia X platform also received its own share of improvements and new functionality, especially with the addition of a home button to it.
“The home screen experience has really evolved with extra room for additional tiles. There’s also the new home button; you can long-press the back button for easier multitasking; the new apps list view; and Fastlane has gotten richer too, with more app detail exposed,” Jussi explains.
The same as previous phones in the series, the new Nokia X2 lacks Google services, yet it replaces them with Microsoft’s own products, including Outlook, OneDrive, Skype, and OneNote, along with the Nokia Store, for access to a great deal of other applications.
In fact, Microsoft notes that it is focused on ensuring that the app portal can deliver a great experience to its users, and that apps are moderated and tested to deliver high quality.
Developers have great opportunities when it comes to Nokia X devices as well, as they can tap into one of the largest operator billing networks in the world, while also taking advantage of developer programs such as DVLUP, which is available in over 190 countries.
“Developers are hugely important and we’re out there working side by side, holding developer events, challenges and competitions to create great apps,” Jussi says. At the same time, he notes that the Lumia series of devices remains the company’s primary smartphone strategy.
