HMD Global’s presence at MWC 2018 was quite significant, as the company announced quite a few Nokia-branded devices, and based on a tweet by the company’s Chief Product Officer, Juho Sarvikas, HMD Global will push hard during MWC 2019 as well. The Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona will kick off at the end of next month, and Mr. Sarvikas shared a throwback video to MWC 2018 on his official Twitter channel, along with sharing his excitement about MWC 2019, could that indicate that the Nokia 9 PureView will finally launch, and that its launch will occur at MWC 2019? Well, it’s possible.
The Nokia 9 PureView has been delayed quite a few times thus far, if reports are to be believed, as the phone was originally supposed to arrive back in September, a year after the Nokia 8’s launch. Well, that did not happen, and in the meantime, HMD Global acquired rights to acquire rights to use PureView technology from Microsoft, after which rumors started that the Nokia 9 may ship with such tech, hence the name “Nokia 9 PureView”. Several reports followed, claiming that the device is not there yet, and that its camera needs to be improved before launch.
The very last report that arrived said that the Nokia 9 PureView will make its debut at the end of January, which is possible, but Mr. Sarvikas tweet indicates that it may launch during MWC 2019. Mr. Sarvikas is actually a person responsible for the Nokia 9 PureView delays, at least if reports are to be believed, as those reports stated that he was not happy with the final product, and the device’s camera which needed to be improved before the phone gets announced. That move actually managed to anger some of HMD Global’s employees, as they thought that the company is missing its momentum, missing a chance to compete with other OEMs, which is true, but if the phone was not ready, there’s no point in releasing it, right?
One of the latest rumors claimed that HMD Global actually plans to release two Nokia 9 PureView smartphones, one fueled by the Snapdragon 845, and the other with the Snapdragon 855. The Snapdragon 845 variant was rumored to launch by the end of January, while the Snapdragon 855-powered unit to arrive at a later date. That rumor even hinted that the Snapdragon 855-powered Nokia 9 PureView may ship with 5G support, and that both variants of the device will look the same.
A recently-leaked promo video shared some of the phone’s specifications and features, hinting that it will be fueled by the Snapdragon 845, which may not be the best idea, as the Snapdragon 855 is already here, and releasing a flagship-grade device fueled by a processor that is no longer flagship-grade doesn’t seem right, unless HMD Global truly aims to release both variants of the device, in which case it may be bearable. HMD Global actually did something similar last year when the company announced the Nokia 8 Sirocco flagship with a processor that was no longer flagship-grade, and by doing that it basically doomed the phone, as the device did not sell nearly as well as the company had hoped.