The Nokia N1 has gone on sale in China, dubbed the “first Nokia-branded Android tablet,” bypassing the restrictions imposed by its deal with Microsoft.
Under the terms of the acquisition by Microsoft, the Finish firm can no longer use the Nokia brand on smartphones till Q4 2016, and on feature phones for 10 years- but the N1 is exempt from this.
After the Microsoft sale, Nokia was left with its core network equipment and services business plus its smaller Here mapping and navigation unit and Nokia Technologies, which manages the licensing of its portfolio of patents and develops new products such as the N1 and the Z Launcher.
The tablet will be launched in China in Q1 2015 with a brand-licensing agreement extending to an OEM partner (Foxconn) that will manufacture, distribute, and sell it.
The Nokia N1 will cost $249 (roughly Rs. 15,400) before taxes, and will be made available in other markets globally.
Nokia said it was not making the device itself, but had licensed its brand, design and software to a third-party.Taiwanese manufacture Foxconn is the licensee.
Nokia reported a third-quarter net profit of 747m euros ($935m; £597m) thanks to the work of its network equipment, mapping and software divisions, which had previously been weighed down by its loss-making hardware business.