ShortList is supported by you, our amazing readers. When you click through the links on our site and make a purchase we may earn a commission. Learn more

The Nokia 3310 is getting a relaunch (yes, really)

The return of the King

The Nokia 3310 is getting a relaunch (yes, really)
14 February 2017

You know what they say – if there’s ever a nuclear apocalypse, the only things left will be cockroaches and Nokia 3310s.

Also known as The World’s Greatest Mobile Phone, it was a staple in the pockets and hands of any mobile-user worth their salt at the turn of the millennium. It was first released in 2000, as a sequel (yes, phones can have sequels) to the Nokia 3210, which was also sick as all hell. But the 3310 was even better – it had an amazing list of features:

  • It was SMALLER than a 3210.
  • You could add custom covers (that Pop Idol one you had was phat).
  • You could write extra long text messages to your Mum; three times the size of a normal one. The text message, that is, not your Mum.
  • It contained the greatest video game of all time, Snake II.
  • It was completely resistant to the plague.
Greatest phone ever made?

It didn’t actually sell as many as the Nokia 3210 (126 million to the 3210’s 160 million), but for pure nostalgic value, it’s unbeaten. The fact that some drug dealers people still use them nowadays is testament to how resilient they are.

Now obviously, because everything that was once good must now be re-released in a different form, they’re bringing it back. Nokia have announced that they’ll be introducing a new version of the classic, which will go for about £50. They’ll be revealing what it looks like later this month at Mobile World Congress, which is a huge phone show in Barcelona, and also presumably, a pickpocketer’s dream. 

Interestingly, this isn’t the first time that they’ve brought the 3310 back. They actually created a short-lived model back in 2014, called the Nokia 3310 with PureView:

But ho ho ho, ha ha ha, it was all an April Fool’s joke. But this time it’s for real and we can’t wait to see it – think how handy it’ll be if you ever need a phone that will still work after you’ve accidentally dropped it into the centre of a live volcano.