Remember when Nokia phones were the absolute best phones on the market? Oh, how the times have changed. The once revered brand is now merely another name in the smartphone game. However, it’s never too late to make a big comeback. New information is suggesting that the Nokia 8 and Nokia 9 processors may have been leaked.
Nokia Power User noticed some benchmarks on Geekbench with some code names that are eerily similar to recent Nokia releases. HMD Global is the company that is licensed to sell Nokia products and they have been working feverishly to get Nokia-branded products back in the hands of consumers. Unfortunately, for Nokia fans in some parts of the world, HMD Global seems to be focusing on the emerging marketing in India. In June, the Nokia 3, 5, and 6 were launched for the Indian market only. The devices are mid-range offerings aimed at appealing to budget-minded consumers.
The information that suggests the Nokia 8 and Nokia 9 processors leaked online raises some eyebrows. Both of these devices are noticeably more high end than the Nokia 3, 5, and 6 in terms of the power under the hood. If the information is correct, it seems that the Nokia 9 will be running a Snapdragon 835 and the Nokia 8 will be powered by a Snapdragon 660. The Snapdragon 835 that is allegedly going into the Nokia 9 is the same processor that’s been rumored to be used in the new Samsung Galaxy Note 8. That puts the Nokia 9 processor on par with one of the biggest flagship smartphone launches of the year. That definitely doesn’t scream “budget smartphone.” Could the Nokia 8 and Nokia 9 be destined for markets other than just India?
People who have been following the saga of the Nokia 8 and Nokia 9 are probably itching to see something concrete at this point. The smartphones have been rumored to launch since as far back as February. Now that we’re into the summer, Nokia fans could be losing their patience.
So, now that the Nokia 8 and Nokia 9 processors leaked; what else can we expect from HMD Global as they aim to take back the smartphone market? Well, we do know that HMD Global has partnered with Zeiss to bring their world-class optics to the Nokia 8 and Nokia 9. Clearly they aren’t trying to cut any corners when it comes to photo-taking ability.
It also appears that Nokia doesn’t plan on skimping when it comes to powering their new flagship devices. Some rumors have suggested that the Nokia 9 could be packing up to 8GB of RAM. If true, the Nokia 9 would be one of the first smartphones to hit the market with 8GB of RAM onboard. It’s more likely we see 4GB or 6GB of RAM, but 8GB isn’t completely unbelievable.
Some leaked marketing materials recently also gave a hint at the design of the Nokia 8 and Nokia 9. The screen appears to be curved with no bezels to speak of along the sides. There are also suggestions that the devices could feature an iris scanner as well as USB-C and a 3.5mm headphone port. All of these features are enough to get some Android fans drooling but without an official confirmation, rumors can only go so far.
With the Nokia 8 and Nokia 9 processors leaked, how long can we expect until there’s an official announcement? It’s really hard to say. It would be hard to believe that HMD Global wants to kick the can too much further down the road. There are several highly anticipated smartphones coming this fall including the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 and the iPhone 8. Back in the good old days of flip phones and T9 text messaging, a Nokia launch would have dominated tech news. These days, however, a Nokia launch at the same time as a Samsung or Apple launch will just get lost in the noise.
We would imagine that HMD Global wants to get these flagship Nokia devices into retail stores before the holiday shopping season. With that said, the Nokia 8 and Nokia 9 have been rumored to be launching since as far back as February, 2017. If HMD Global doesn’t get the ball rolling soon they could lose what little hype is left for anything with a Nokia logo on it. Until we hear something new, all we have is leaks.
