The Nokia 3310 is an iconic basic phone, but it is not the best-selling mobile phone of all time.
As HMD Global, the manufacturer of current Nokia-branded phones, prepares to announce phones under its own brand, and the wildest rumors have already predicted the end of the Nokia phone story, it's a good time to take a look back at the history of the mobile phone market, where the original and true Nokia once left a lasting mark.
Android Authority has highlighted the best-selling mobile phone of all time. It too has strong Finnish roots, although the device was designed in Nokia's California office.
The best-selling mobile phone of all time is the Nokia 1100, introduced in 2003 and manufactured until 2009.
The affordable Nokia 1100, primarily designed for emerging markets, sold over 250 million units.
Its successor, the Nokia 1110, nearly reached the same sales figures. Together, these two models and their variations sold approximately half a billion units.
The Nokia 1100 was a simple device at the time. It featured a 96×96 pixel monochrome LCD, monophonic ringtones, a flashlight, and two games.
What made the Nokia 1100 particularly interesting was its popularity in criminal circles around 2009. Functional devices could fetch up to 25,000 euros ($27.000).
Phones manufactured in a specific batch at the Bochum factory in Germany were especially sought after. Allegedly, due to a firmware flaw, the phone could intercept text messages sent to other numbers, allowing, for example, the capture of confirmation messages used in online banking authentication.
Over the years, the Apple iPhone 6 and 6 Plus have also reached the sales milestone of over 200 million units. These first larger iPhones sold over 220 million units combined.
