Microsoft killing Nokia X Android smartphones after only four months

The Nokia X line is being phased out in favour of cheap Windows Phones as Microsoft announces deep cuts. Microsoft is terminating its Nokia X smartphone line that was first released in Barcelona in February, powered by Android.


The company inherited the Android-powered smartphones as part of its acquisition of Nokia’s handset division, which closed earlier this year following a regulatory delay.


"In the near term, we plan to drive Windows Phone volume by targeting the more affordable smartphone segments, which are the fastest-growing segments of the market, with Lumia,” said Stephen Elop, Microsoft’s head of mobile devices in an email to employees on Thursday.


'We expect to make this shift immediately'


"In addition to the portfolio already planned, we plan to deliver additional lower-cost Lumia devices by shifting select future Nokia X designs and products to Windows Phone devices,” said Elop. “We expect to make this shift immediately while continuing to sell and support existing Nokia X products.”


“This builds on our success in the affordable smartphone space and aligns with our focus on Windows Universal Apps,” Microsoft chief executive Satya Nadella added in a statement.


Short-lived feeder system


The launch of Nokia X Android devices was designed to bring the cost of Microsoft smartphones down in cost, aimed squarely at the developing world in markets like India. It used the open source parts of Android combined with Microsoft’s apps and services, instead of Google’s.


“We’re bringing all our expertise to bear to connect the next billion people to the internet. The Nokia X family will introduce the next billion people to Microsoft and act as a feeder system for our Lumia smartphones,” Elop, then Nokia chief executive said at the time.


Microsoft will also discontinue Nokia’s Asha brand of feature phones and Nokia’s MixRadio music service, will be spun off into a separate company