Tech company Nokia has unveiled a new tablet in Helsinki overnight, making a surprise return to consumer electronics.

The Nokia N1 will be released in China on February 19, in time for Chinese New Year, and bears a striking resemblance to Apple’s iPad mini.

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Unlike Nokia’s first tablet, the Lumia 2520, the N1 will be powered by an Android operating system, instead of Microsoft Windows.

The 7.9-inch tablet has the same screen size as the iPad mini, and boasts an 8-megapixel rear camera and 5-megapixel front camera.

The telecom company sold its mobile phone division to Microsoft in April for $US7.52 billion.

Nokia had been teasing the release on social media with the hashtag #thinkingahead.

Unveiling the N1 at the Slush technology fair, Nokia’s head of products Sebastian Nystroem said the tablet was “a great product for Nokia fans and everyone who has not found the right Android tablet yet”.

Guess what? We’re up to something. http://t.co/AFq4dUFI9S #thinkingahead #Slush14 pic.twitter.com/sqERYpz0Vc

— Nokia (@nokia) November 17, 2014