What smartphone models does North Korea have?

The Android Police page cited news from North Korea's state media channels to help us know the phone models used in the country.

Arirang

This is North Korea's first smartphone, launched in 2013, five years after the launch of the 3G Koryolink network.

The AS1201 version is advertised as being made in North Korea. The exact specifications of the AS1201 are not yet known.

According to image comparisons, some sources believe that Arirang's first phone is actually the Chinese Uniscope U1201 model running Android 4 with average hardware.

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In 2016, Arirang 151 was released along with the low-cost version 152. In 2017, Arirang 161 was equipped with a fingerprint sensor for the first time (4 years later the iPhone 5s was released and seems to have been produced in its original form). However, the design of the device reminds many people of Samsung's design.

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The fifth Arirang model is Arirang 171 launched in 2018 with a 4.7-inch screen, 4GB RAM, 32GB internal memory and fingerprint sensor.

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Jindallae and Jindallae 3

In 2017, Jindallae 3 with domestically produced appearance, structure, circuit design and operating system was released.

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It seems that Jindallae 3 is a combination of both Samsung S7 and iPhone 6s (launched in 2016 and 2015 respectively).

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Jindallae 5 released in 2019. In 2020, Jindallae 6, 6+ and 7, were the first products with fingerprint, voice and facial recognition.

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Phurunhanul H1 and H2​

Phurunhanul H1 is advertised to have a battery capacity of up to 6,000mAh.

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Phurunhanul H2 is the next generation of H1 with a larger screen, more memory, and significantly improved camera. The H2 also has a weaker 4,300mAh battery.

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Pyongyang​

Pyongyang 1202​

It is a clamshell device, once posted on the Sogwang website (now collapsed) in 2019.

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Pyongyang 2423​

According to The Daily NK, Pyongyang 2423 seems to be a smartphone model that focuses on security as users cannot access folders on memory when connected to a computer, and the SD card can only be used for storage. data storage.

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What applications can North Korean smartphone users install?​

Smartphones sold in North Korea have a small number of applications installed and are probably designed to let the North Korean government monitor all activities of people in the country.

Not multi-functional but just enough

To date, North Korea has released about 60 smartphone models and will have more new models in the future. As the country rolls out full 4G mobile services, the number of smartphone users in the country is expected to increase.

Previous statistics show that North Korea has between 6.5 million and 7 million mobile subscribers. People here mainly use mobile phones for common purposes such as communication and entertainment.

If a North Korean smartphone is released to the global market, it will be difficult to compete with products from famous brands but is sufficient for the people of this country.

Kareem Winters

Update 04 July 2024