Nokia XR21 Rugged Smartphone With IP69K Rating Launched

Nokia's bet on rugged smartphones has gone a step further with a new offering. The Nokia XR21 is a MIL-STD 810H military-grade rated IP69K water and dust resistant smartphone. In fact, this goes a step further than most flagship smartphones with resistance to close-range, high-pressure and high-temperature water sprays.

However, the rest of the smartphone is pretty bare bones with entry-level hardware that may not impress the performance enthusiast. But for those needing to use a phone under harsh conditions, this makes perfect sense, and dare I say, this perhaps lives up to the Nokia name more than any other Nokia phones that launched since its rebirth as an Android propagandist. Here's what's on offer -

Nokia XR21 Features and Specifications

The Nokia XR21 features a 6.48-inch FHD+ LCD display with 120Hz refresh rate, protected with a Corning Gorilla Glass sheet that also works with gloves and wet hands. The smartphone is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 SoC, a mid-range chipset that is 5G enabled. This is paired with 6GB RAM and 128GB storage.

At the back, the Nokia XR21 features a 64MP f/1.8 primary camera along with an 8MP f/2.2 ultrawide camera. On the front is a 16MP f/2.5 unit for selfies.

The phone takes power from a 4500mAh battery with 33W fast charging support. It runs on Android 12 out of the box, however, which is quite unlike the Nokia we have come to know of late. Nevertheless, the company is promising three major Android OS upgrades and four years of monthly security updates.

Nokia XR21 Price and Availability

The Nokia XR21 is available in Midnight Black and Pine Green color variants, and starts at GBP 499 in the UK (roughly Rs 51,200). The rugged smartphone will be available starting early June. The company has not announced plans for India availability yet. However, the Nokia XR20 did launch in India, albeit at a steep price, so there's still hope.