Finnish company HMD, also known as makers of Nokia phones, has already released its first phones, the Pulse family, which have an interesting selling point besides their low price: repairability.
While HMD isn’t going to enter the flagship market for obvious reasons, we expected the handset manufacturer to come up with some unique models that would make its devices stand out.
Unfortunately, the latest HMD announcement proves the opposite. HMD has just introduced its first rugged 5G smartphone, the XR21 (image above). The issue is that this is not really a new phone, but a rebranded Nokia XR21 (image below).
Nokia XR21
Design and specifications are the same, which is rather disappointing considering the Nokia XR21 was launched one year ago. What’s even worse is that the newly announced HMD XR21 still comes with Android 13 out of the box instead of Android 14.
As far as price goes, customers can get the HMD XR21 for no less than €600 in Europe, which is rather strange considering that Nokia XR21 is €200 cheaper and has the same specs.
As a reminder, the HMD/Nokia XR21 is a 5G rugged phone that sports a 6.49-inch IPS FHD+ display with 120Hz refresh rate and Corning Gorilla Glass Victus coating.
On the inside, the phone features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 5G processor, 6GB RAM, and 128GB internal storage. The rugged handset packs a dual camera (64MP + 8MP), a 16-megapixel selfie snapper, as well as a 4800 mAh battery.
Follow us on social media to catch the latest trending stories, watch exclusive videos, and join the conversation with our vibrant community!
Cosmin, a tech journalist with a career spanning over a decade, brings a wealth of experience to PhoneArena. His expertise lies in brands like Samsung and Nokia, and he has a keen interest in innovative technologies. After a brief stint in PR, Cosmin returned to tech journalism in 2016, committed to delivering clear and objective news. When he's not writing or appearing as a guest on TV and radio shows, Cosmin enjoys playing RPGs, watching Netflix, and nurturing his passion for history and travel.
Recommended Stories
Loading Comments...
COMMENT
All comments need to comply with our
Community Guidelines
Phonearena comments rules
A discussion is a place, where people can voice their opinion, no matter if it
is positive, neutral or negative. However, when posting, one must stay true to the topic, and not just share some
random thoughts, which are not directly related to the matter.
Things that are NOT allowed:
Off-topic talk - you must stick to the subject of discussion
Offensive, hate speech - if you want to say something, say it politely
Spam/Advertisements - these posts are deleted
Multiple accounts - one person can have only one account
Impersonations and offensive nicknames - these accounts get banned
Moderation is done by humans. We try to be as objective as possible and moderate with zero bias. If you think a
post should be moderated - please, report it.
Have a question about the rules or why you have been moderated/limited/banned? Please,
contact us.
Things that are NOT allowed: