For HMD Global, Nokia smartphones remain an important growth driver in the entry-level segment. According to the company, it closed its first full year with an operating profit in 2021 – not least thanks to its cheap smartphones. Overall, HMD Global has achieved 41 percent growth in the market for entry-level smartphones, the company announced during the MWC in Barcelona, without giving exact sales figures.
It goes without saying that the Finns also had a new entry-level device in their luggage for the MWC: the Nokia C21 Plus for 129 euros. Nokia equips the C21 Plus with the slimmed down Android 11 Go – not with Android 12 Go. It is unusual that the manufacturer promises an update for a device in this price range. With two years of security patches and no function upgrades to new Android versions, this is not exactly lavish.
Obsolete micro USB socket
Inside is a Unisoc SC9863A with 2 GB of main memory. With this equipment, the C21 Plus is suitable for basic things such as telephoning, sending messages or reading news – but not for more. The rear camera uses a 13-megapixel sensor, the 2-megapixel depth sensor cannot be controlled. A 5-megapixel snap for video calls is available on the front. The battery has a capacity of 4000 mAh.
The smartphone displays content on a 6.5-inch LCD panel that displays 1600 × 720 pixels. Nokia did not provide any information on the maximum brightness. The 32 GB internal memory can be expanded by a maximum of 256 GB. There is also space for two nano SIM cards. Unlike many other manufacturers, Nokia has not saved the jack socket.
However, given the price of 129 euros, it is annoying that Nokia 2022 uses an almost antique micro-USB socket. The connectivity of the device is also not up to date: It uses LTE Cat. 4, WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 4.2. The C21 Plus will be available from the second quarter for 129 euros, and a version without the Plus option has also been announced – for 10 euros less. The latter comes with a slimmed-down camera, among other things.
(rbr)