A group of ex-Nokia employees plan to launch a brand new smartphone in the UK on the 
technology the mobile giant rejected back in 2011.
Powered by the open-source operating system Sailfish, the Jolla Phone (pronounced Yo-la) is compatible on more than 85,000 apps and can apparently run on most apps made for Google’s Android platform.
Though the phone is arguably fairly similar to Nokia’s Lumia range, unlike most smartphones it has an open source platform, which according to one of its four founders Marc Dillon gives it a unique, competitive edge.
“We are providing a world-class choice … that is an alternative for consumers (and) that can be very agile and powerful,” Dillon commented. “For our operating system business we have a huge opportunity because there is currently one choice really available to every global mobile manufacturer and that’s Android.”
The Jolla, not yet launched in the UK and currently looking for a UK operator, has a price tag of €399. Finnish telecoms company DNA began selling the product on Wednesday evening, and attracted hundreds of buyers lined outside the Jolla-DNA marquee in the city centre.
The platform, originally called MeeGo, was dumped by Nokia in favour of the Windows operating system. The phone has the usual characteristics owners would expect from a top of the range device, but also has other unique qualities such as multiple swipe features and a replaceable battery.
