Nokia XR20: Hard as nails and hard on your pocket

Nokia has announced what it's calling its most durable phone ever - the Nokia XR20.

The thinking behind this tougher phone isn't about giving you a phone that's ready to be abused, it's about longevity. To reduce the need to replace your phone because you've broken it, Nokia is taking the protection to a higher standard.

That sees the XR20 meeting MIL-STD 810H for drop protection, IP68 water and dust protection, and Gorilla Glass Victus to keep the screen safe.

There are protections designed into the device, such as around the camera, a grippy back so you're less likely to have it slip from your hand, and corners that are a little more protective. Essentially, Nokia says you won't need a case for it, but it's designed to look a little more normal than some of the "tough" phones we've seen in the past.

To back all this up, there's a 1-year screen replacement guarantee and a 3-year warranty on the rest of the phone.

This isn't a flagship phone however: normally you'd expect to have some of those protections on flagship models, but the XR20 is really a tougher version of Nokia's existing X20 phone.

That sees a 6.67-inch, 2400 x 1080 pixel, 20:9 display with punch hole camera, and the Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 5G powering things, coming with a couple of configurations, 4/64GB or 6/128GB - with support for microSD for expansion.

There's a fingerprint scanner on the side of the phone and a programmable button on the top, meaning you can decide what it launches. There's also a Google Assistant button.

There are stereo speakers as well as a 3.5mm headphone socket, while everything is powered by a 4630mAh battery. There's 18W wired and 15W Qi wireless charging.

In line with wanting this phone to offer durability, Nokia is promising 3 years of Android OS updates and 4 years of security updates.

The camera sees a 48-megapixel main camera and 13-megapixel ultrawide, with an 8-megapixel camera on the front.

What's likely to strike people about this phone is the decision to use the Snapdragon 480. That's close to an entry-level platform and it will limit the appeal of this phone for some - although it's new hardware and out performs previous hardware at this level. It that matches the recently-announced Nokia X20, so in some sense, the price bump for all that protection might be worth it.

But priced at £399 in the UK, it's the same price or more than phones that are one or two steps up in terms of hardware power. Ultimately, while it might appeal to a segment of the market that doesn't care about gaming or anything too intensive - while wanting plenty of protection - it does look expensive at launch.

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