It was long rumored thyat Nokia has an Android smartphone in the pipeline. However, there was nothing concrete to support the claim and after Microsoft acquired Nokia, the rumor died down. However, now it appears that thet rumors could be true - Nokia, indeed, could be working on an Android smartphone, which has been dubbed, per reports, "Normandy."

Nokia has been previously manufacturing Symbian handsets and then switched over to the Windows Phone operating system. However, The Verge cites sources familiar with Nokia's plans and says that the company may use Android in its entry-level handsets.

"Codenamed Normandy, and known internally at Nokia under a number of other names, the handset is designed as the next step in low-end phones from the Finnish smartphone maker. We understand that Nokia has been testing "Normandy" with a special 'forked' variant of Android that's not aligned with Google's own version, akin to what Amazon does with its Kindle Fire line," reports The Verge.

Famous leakster @evleaks also posted an image on Twitter, which shows the Lumia-style device with no apparent capacitive buttons for navigation.

A real Asha. Or Lumia? The Nokia Normandy. pic.twitter.com/Q4jpPNte1l

— @evleaks (@evleaks) November 25, 2013

The Verge reports that Normandy supports popular Android apps such as Skype.

Nokia's entry-level smartphones such as Lumia 520 have received positive responses in emerging markets. Many smartphone enthusiasts will also be eager to lay their hands on an Android-powered entry-level Nokia smartphone if the company plans to release one.

The Verge reports that the Normandy is designed as an Asha-equivalent to increase the demand of its entry-level smartphones. The Verge also claims that Nokia employees working on Normandy have been informed that the company will launch the Android smartphone sometime in 2014.

The Microsoft-Nokia deal has been given thumbs up by the regulatory authorities and it is expected to finalize in the early part of 2014. When that happens, one can't help but wonder whether Microsoft would allow Nokia to make a smartphone running on rival operating system.