Nokia"s prior track record with design patents means the above image might be a glimpse of the future. The Finnish company"s designs have leaked prematurely through design patents in the past - last year the Lumia 920"s design hit the web under the "Phi" codename. This year... we have this.
There"s no codename for this design, just "Nokia Device Design US Patent D675587". Take a closer look at the finer details of the design, and you"ll notice it shares a few similarities with the Asha 205; a budget phone phone intended for emerging markets. The rear of the Asha 205 has a very similar design, squaring off the camera region.
If you"re getting a feeling of déjà vu looking at the design, that"s good. The design was one we saw all the way back in August 2011, before the Lumia 800 was even announced. It could be some incredible design foresight on Nokia"s part, or something else. The render in question:
There are some marginal differences with the render and the design patent, with the flash LED being on the same chrome strip instead of offset, but it is a reminder we"ve no idea where Nokia"s phone design is going. Wherever it goes, we"ll probably see another design patent first.
