Recent reports have lead us to believe Nokia has dropped the Android smartphone project, codenamed Normandy. Since Microsoft has started the acquisition, it would be unlikely the company wants their recently acquired company making a rival OS device.
This may not be true though and Microsoft may allow Nokia this one device, before becoming a branch in Microsoft’s ever expanding empire. It will not be a high-end device, but one of the Finnish mobile makers popular low-end smartphones, similar to the Lumia 520.
The new leak, from Evleaks, shows a rather similar design to the one we have become familiar with on Windows Phone, with the same vibrant colors, including light green, white, yellow, baby blue, red and black.
On the front, only one capacitive button is showing, a back button we expect, even though it looks in place where the home button would normally sit. That and the Nokia logo are the two features making the front stand out from a normal Android device.
On the back, Nokia has went just as basic, adding the Nokia logo and a small camera. We expect the camera to be either an 8MP or 13MP shooter, Nokia loves their megapixels, as we have seen with the Lumia 1020 and the Lumia 1520.
It is a little surprising this rumor keeps cropping up, considering Microsoft bought Nokia to keep it on Windows Phone. The expansion to Android seems like more of a way for Microsoft to show the acquisition was not only about Nokia staying loyal to Windows Phone.
Either way, more competition on the low-end is always a good thing. Motorola has just released the Moto G, the first real move to bring a powerful low-end phone to Android, perhaps Nokia will match this in price and functionality with their Normandy smartphone.
