Above: Nokia X: The company's first Android phone
Image Credit: Nokia
Nokia's first Android phone just got a lot more awkward for Microsoft.
The Nokia X is meant to serve as an Android-based Trojan Horse for Microsoft's apps and services — but that's not stopping hackers who want to open it up for Google's solutions.
In a posting on the XDA developers forum, Spanish developer Kasha Malaga describes how he managed to tweak the Nokia X to accept Google's apps and services in just five steps. His hack also replaces Nokia's custom skin with the Android Now launcher.
It's unclear if Nokia will lock down the devices further once they hit general consumers (Kashamalaga got it from Mobile World Congress), but it's certainly telling that the X was so easily hacked.
By default, the Nokia X supports Microsoft's services and doesn't have access to the official Google Play Store or apps like Gmail and Google Maps. It's a lot like how Amazon forked Android to highlight its own apps.
What's most interesting about this hack is that Nokia approves of it:
As I argued when the X was announced, Nokia could actually be doing Microsoft a big favor with its Android phone. It would give Microsoft a way to test the waters with Android, without wasting much time developing its own solution. And the fact that the Nokia X's interface looks a lot like Windows Phone doesn't hurt either.
Check out video of Kasha Malaga's Nokia X hack below:
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