The Nokia G22 is one of the three smartphones that HMD Global has brought to the Mobile World Congress 2023. And the most interesting, since it is the first of a new line of phones designed from conception to be repairable and have a long service life.
Until now, the right to reparation was impossible to fulfill no matter how many “rights” were proclaimed. This is so because of the way in which the current industry works and the planned technological obsolescence which is practiced in a general way and which obliges accumulate more and more gadgets increasing technological garbage when its lifespan could be increased very easily. The European Parliament approved a rule that will force manufacturers to create products that last longer and can be easily recycled or repaired, also by third parties.
The new law prescribes eco-design for laptops, phones, and tablets and will establish certain technical standards regarding repairable and replaceable parts. In general terms, the rule wants to restrict single-use products, address “early obsolescence” and prohibit the destruction of unsold durable goods, so that sustainable products become the norm. Simply, the current consumption model is unsustainable.
Nokia G22, a breakthrough for the right to repair
HMD Global is committed to sustainability with this new Nokia G22, made with a recycled plastic casing and designed to be repaired by its owners. To do this, it has partnered with the specialist iFixit to produce repair guides and sell the tools and parts necessary to change the battery, the charging port or the screen. Nokia promises to produce and maintain repair parts for the next five years. It also ensures that carrying out a repair according to the guide and parts, even by the user, will count as an authorized repair, so it will not void the terminal’s warranty.
Adam Ferguson, the product manager of HMD (the Finnish company that owns the rights to the Nokia brand) disassembled and changed the battery of a Nokia G22 in less than five minutes during his presentation and assured that replacing the screen would not take more than 20 minutes and could be done by any user. Not bad at a time when component integration and a lack of replacement parts make these repairs nearly impossible to perform.
For the rest, say that it is a typical HMD model for the mid-range. Has a 6.52 inch LCD screenwith a refresh rate of 90 Hz. Its engine is a Unisoc T606 SoC with two A75 cores and six A55 cores, 4 GB of RAM and the option between 64 GB or 128 GB of storage.
Its camera system has a triple sensor, a 50 MP main flanked by a 2 MP macro lens and a 2 MP depth sensor, while the selfie camera is 16 megapixels and is housed on the front in a notch in teardrop shape There is also a jack as an audio connector and a 5,050 mAh battery (three days according to the manufacturer) with 20 W fast charging. The Nokia G22 will be available soon with Android 12 (upgradable), gray or blue color finishes and a price of 179 euro.
HMD has also announced two other phones at the Barcelona congress, which, although they do not have the degree of repairability mentioned, will be quite cheap since the Nokia C32 and Nokia C22 they are intended for the entry-level of the Android platform. The Finnish group has also announced plans to start manufacturing part of its devices in Europe this year.
