Nokia 3310 hands-on: Revamped classic due out this month

Cast your eyes back to the turn of the century and you'll spot a familiar handset crammed in most pockets: Nokia's 3310. Having since achieved near-cult status as the indestructible phone (with memes galore), Nokia's 3310 was trusty, reliable, and incredibly resilient. 17 years later, the most beloved phone in history is making a comeback.

Nokia, which now operates under Finnish company HMD Global, has decided to launch an updated version of the Nokia 3310 for the modern age. That's all well and good for those with fond memories of Nokia's finest, but will the Nokia 3310 still hold a place among the Samsungs and Apples of 2017?

Design, key features and first impressions

Nokia's 3310 revival serves as an homage to that coveted handset of old. Known for its simplicity, Nokia hasn't deviated from that, with its design only slightly changed from the original - excluding a few key differences.

For starters, the Nokia 3310 mark 1 didn't have a camera of any sort but this 2017 resurgence features a 2 megapixel rear snapper, plonked just above the Nokia logo on the back.

That new camera would be for nought should that old monochrome 84 x 48 display of old make another appearance, but we're treated with a proper 2.4in colour display with the 3310 mark 2. Nokia also boasts 22 hours of talk time and 1 month of standby time on a single charge. That's a lot of games of Snake.

Sadly, faceplate customisation has been forgotten about no more garish Hello Kitty-ridden custom covers that you used to pick up at your local market. This time around you can only pick up your Nokia 3310 in either red/yellow or dark blue/grey.

Early noughties nostalgia came flooding back when we picked up that handset 17 years on. It's bare bones compared to its smartphone brethren, sure, but there's beauty in its simplicity. It's worth it for Snake alone

Release date

HMD has revealed its Nokia 3310 revamp will arrive on 24 May, costing around 50 for those who want a back-to-basics phone they won't be afraid to lose or break.

It's a significant saving on the original Nokia 3310's price tag of 129.99 and HMD is hoping that'll make it more attractive for businesses that want to roll out basic phones to their workforce, as well as people looking to take a cheap device with a substantial battery life to festivals.

The device will be available from a number of retailers including Carphone Warehouse, plus as a pay-as-you-go device, although only Vodafone and EE have announced they'll be stocking the "dumbphone" so far. O2 and Three told Techradar they don't currently have any plans to sell the handset.

After UK citizens take advantage of the phone's launch on May 24th, Germans will be able to get their hands on it from 26 May, with the Netherlands and Belgium getting it on 5 June.

Early verdict

Nokia's 3310 isn't a smartphone; it's more a 2017 re-do if anything. It's an interesting idea - pull at the heartstrings of nostalgia-ridden fans for the firm's big comeback and for the most part, I think it's worked. Nokia's 3310 resurgence has raised a lot of eyebrows, even if it is the strangest product to launch at this year's MWC.

Still, It's a decent upgrade from that 17-year-old handset nonetheless, while still packed with those games and the simplicity that made you fall in love with the handset in the first place. With a rear camera and a proper display you'll be able to read in sunlight, Nokia's 3310 is a wonderfully affordable nostalgia trip that's well worth the ticket.