Nokia 3310
Indestructible early 2000s Nokia phone turned durability joke.
Meaning
The Nokia 3310 is a GSM phone with 126 million units sold. It denotes anything unusually tough and keeps an affectionate, joking tone. Users are often millennials and tech meme pages.
Origin
Nokia announced the 3310 on 1 September 2000 and released it in the fourth quarter of 2000. It replaced the Nokia 3210 and was built in Finland and Hungary. The durability reputation grew into an internet meme about an unbreakable phone. The exact first meme post is unknown.
How it's used
People post it after drop tests, hammer jokes, or comparisons with fragile smartphones. It works as a noun and as an adjective in phrases like 3310-grade. It does not inflect beyond plural 3310s.
Example
I dropped my smartphone and thought, I should have kept my Nokia 3310.
Variants & related
Variants include Nokia 3315, 3320, 3330, 3350, 3360, 3390 and 3395. Spellings shorten to 3310 or Nokia brick. Related memes name Chuck Norris comparisons, hydraulic press tests, and Snake game nostalgia.
Common misunderstandings
Outsiders treat it as a current flagship model, which it is not. Some confuse the original 2000 model with later revivals. The tone is ironic praise, not a technical claim of indestructibility.