Nearly 20 years ago, the Wachowski siblings wowed the world with The Matrix, the seminal science fiction film starring Keanu Reeves and, in a small yet critical role, the Nokia 8110. And now it's back at MWC 2018, as HMD announces a 4G update of the "banana" phone.
Released back in 1996, the 8110 was, of course, most famous for the spring-loaded slider-- it is the chief reason it was Neo's phone of choice, after all (that, and Nokia was the biggest phone maker at the time). The 2018 update retains the mechanism, as well as the bright yellow colour that garnered it the "banana" nickname. The black colour seen in The Matrix remains an option, though.
The 2018 version also has a similar curved design, making it feel quite comfortable in the hand. On the software side it runs on a forked version of the dead Firefox OS. HMD dubs it "Smart Feature OS," and it allows for what is essentially a feature phone with some smartphone niceties, such as 4G/LTE connectivity, email, Google Assistant and social media apps such as Facebook and Twitter.
Also included is the classic Nokia game, Snake, a 2.4-inch QVGA display, 512MB RAM, 4GB internal storage, 2MP rear-facing camera and battery standby clocking at an admittedly impressive 25 days.
But why would anyone want an update of a phone from 1996? The first reason is, of course, nostalgia. HMD also suggests it can find use as a "weekend phone," giving customers the “chance to switch off, have fun and relax in the knowledge that all your smartphone essentials are there when you need them.”
The Nokia 8110 is available in European markets from May 2018.