Nokia Normandy makes surprise appearance at Vietnamese retailer, Google Play support in tow?

By Adrian Diaconescu on January 27, 2014 6:38 pm


  • Comments: 1


Vietnam’s biggest online retailer looks to have jumped the gun a bit, listing the unannounced Nokia Normandy as a “new launch” and detailing its unexpected Google Play, Google Search, Google Now, Maps, Gmail and YouTube support.
One month. Less than a month, actually. That’s Nokia Normandy’s deadline, which, if not met, could lead to a painful stillbirth. Based on the word of every tipster around (and basic common sense), either the Finns debut their first ever Android-running handheld at February’s Mobile World Congress, or Microsoft hijacks the release for good.
So the schedule is tight, there’s quite a lot at stake, and it’s no wonder the pressure is starting to get to people. For instance, The Giodidong in Vietnam has the highly anticipated entry-level smartphone live on its website in spite of no one being sure it’s to see daylight in the end.
Might the Asians know something the rest of the world doesn’t? Sounds highly unlikely, yet you can’t really accuse the seller of desperation for free publicity. For crying out loud, they’re the largest name in the local business, ranking number 62 in overall domestic online traffic, according to Alexa.

Still, what makes this whole thing smell particularly fishy is The Giodidong feels no reluctance in laying out the entire list of features for the “Nokia X”, including support for Google’s full range of services. You know, Google Play, Search, Now, Gmail, the works.
But is that in the least possible with all the tweaks Nokia plans for Android? It’s definitely a long shot, but never say never. After all, it may be wiser for the Lumia and Asha makers to give the devil his due rather than, say, build an app store from scratch.
As for the rest of the features, they’re very much in line with existing speculation: Android 4.4 KitKat, 4-inch FWVGA (854 x 480 pixels resolution) screen, dual-core 1 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 CPU, 512 MB RAM, 4 GB built-in storage, microSD card slot, 5 MP rear-facing camera, dual SIM support.
Huh, it’s as if they copy-pasted the info and then added the basics of any Android device. Wait a minute…
Sources: WM Power User, The Giodidong