Nokia has just released a simple phone that I would gladly use as my backup device.
Nokia's $32 dumb phone is the 40-day device I didn’t realize I needed
I’m not particularly eager to swap my smartphone for a dumb phone as part of the digital detox trend. However, having one tucked away in my backpack, beyond just a backup, seems quite smart to me. The new Nokia 300 Charge is almost tailor-made for that purpose.
HMD has outfitted this feature phone with a removable 3,700mAh battery, the largest ever in a Nokia feature phone, promising over 40 days of standby and up to 37.9 hours of talk time. Even better, this large battery can also charge other devices.
The most exciting feature of the new dumb phone is the Powerbank Mode. HMD permits the Nokia 300 Charge to reverse-charge compatible smartphones, headphones, and other USB devices at up to 10W. The phone itself charges at 10W via USB-C, and HMD claims its multi-connector cable is compatible with USB-C, Micro USB, and USB-A devices.
Additionally, there’s a dedicated LED flashlight on top, which HMD asserts is up to four times brighter than the flashlight on the Nokia 105 (2023). This combination of extended standby time, a replaceable battery, reverse charging capabilities, and a proper torch makes far more sense to me than marketing another feature phone primarily around “digital detox.”
The remaining specifications are fairly basic. You receive a 2.4-inch QVGA display, a QVGA rear camera, 4MB of RAM, 4MB of internal storage, support for microSD cards up to 32GB, a 3.5mm headphone jack, dual SIM slots, and HMD’s S30+ operating system. Weighing in at 138 grams, it’s lightweight in more ways than one.
However, there’s a significant drawback.
Regrettably, the Nokia 300 Charge only supports 2G GSM on the 900MHz and 1800MHz bands. HMD’s specifications do not indicate 4G connectivity. This greatly diminishes its practicality as a secondary phone in regions where 2G networks have already been phased out, including the US. HMD already offers newer Nokia feature phones with 4G capabilities, so I'd be keen to see this concept upgraded to support LTE for broader markets.
Vikhyaat Vivek is a tech journalist and reviewer with seven years of experience focusing on consumer hardware.
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Nokia has just released a simple phone that I would gladly use as my backup device.
The Nokia 300 Charge offers over 40 days of standby time, featuring a removable 3,700mAh battery, reverse charging capabilities, USB-C connectivity, and a robust built-in flashlight.