Don't expect to see Nokia's 2020 flagship any time soon

It’s been a while since Nokia had a flagship hit and looks like we might have to wait longer to see one. Nokia licensee HMD Global was previously tipped to announce a device called the Nokia 9.1 in Q2 2020. However, a new rumor points to a possible name change and a delay in the flagship device’s launch timeline.

A reliable Twitter account for Nokia leaks, Nokia Anew, claims that the Nokia flagship is likely delayed until Autumn 2020 (September to November 2020). It mentions that the device is called the Nokia 9.2 and is apparently powered by the Snapdragon 865 chipset.

Previously, it was believed that the Nokia 9.1 would feature the Snapdragon 855 or 855 Plus chipset. However, the latest tip-off suggests that the company is switching out the older processor with the Snapdragon 865, causing the delay in launch.

For what it’s worth, the Twitter account had also correctly claimed that the Nokia 9 PureView would launch in 2019 instead of 2018.

Could Nokia 9.2 be a worthy 2020 flagship?

Last year’s Nokia 9 PureView came in bearing 2018’s Snapdragon 845 silicon. The device was largely disappointing because of its older SoC, and disappointing camera experience. Looks like HMD Global wants to avoid repeating that mistake.

With the latest SoC, the Nokia 9.2 should be a 5G smartphone out of the box. It will obviously take a performance leap over its predecessor thanks to the big processor upgrade.

You can also expect a possible upgrade to the Light-powered penta-camera system we saw on the Nokia 9 PureView. Still, the brand has its work cut out if it if it plans to compete with 2020 flagships coming from Samsung, Xiaomi, Huawei and others.

For now, not much else is known about the Nokia 9.2. Back in December, the company confirmed plans to launch a Snapdragon 765 phone but said nothing about a Snapdragon 865 device.

We’ll probably hear more about the company’s plans at MWC 2020.