In Bangladesh, nothing is what it seems >> CASE # 1 >>

Nokia > Nokla > Noka > Nikia > Nsikia> ( ? )

Nokia is undoubtedly the most powerful mobile phone brand in the world. It’s mammoth presence in the hands of the mass made it the #1 selling brand all over Bangladesh as well. From a local fisherman to a CEO of a MNC, who doesn’t have one? With its sophisticated tools, great look and easy-to-use features it made itself the buddy of most of the mobile phone users. And all of these made some of our businessmen mad! They want to tap into the cloning business in order to make some quick cash providing buyers with poor, clone handsets which are in fact less expensive, but not stable.
Yesterday one of my aunts came to our home to show us her recently bought Nokla mobile set blended with 5 speakers, 2MP camera and some other cool features. She was very proud of her set which could produce more sound than my SonyEricsson K750i. She was also pleased with the price she bought her mobile phone with.
No doubt, within a few weeks she will call me and say, can you help me with my mobile phone? 3 of its speakers are not producing any sound, and the camera button is not working as required. Please take it to a technician who can restore it.
These mobile sets are grasping more and more share of the mobile phone market. This seems to happen to the people less educated and who are ignorant about the originality of a mobile phone set. Eastern Plaza, Motalib Plaza, Bashundhara City Shopping Complex, Stadium, … you name it, all of these markets are loaded with these poor and less expensive mobile phone sets. I have heard that these sets come from China. There are places in China where you can make a Nokia N95 clone by spending less than BD Taka 10,000! OMG! Can you imagine?
It has been like a deadly virus which is infecting most of the people without having an antidote to it. Whoever buys one ends in losing those money invested behind it. The authorities who legally market original Nokia phone sets in Bangladesh are always shouting “Buy Only – MADE BY NOKIA”. But who gives a damn?

One last word, it’s not only happening to Nokia alone. There are also SunyEricsson, SonyEricssun sets available in the market. So when you go to market in order to buy one, make sure you double check the originality of the phone set. Otherwise … you know, don’t you?