With less than a Gameboy as Computer they reached the Moon in the 69. The old Nokias don't had Internet, but better sounds in calls and better coverage than current Smartphones. You also could send and receive message, this was enough for the normal use of a Phone. Now you have Internet for loose your time in Social networks and play Candy Crush, instead to use an Computer where this is much more confortable, instead of creating Smombies in the streets, depending on small screens without seeing where they go.

The 3310 was re-released around 2017. Battery life was ~2 weeks when I bought it. The original battery died a couple of years ago and I had to get a locally made one. This only lasts a few days.

And a phone like this with today's chips as well would last half a year

That's correct, but how do 90% of people use this "computer" that cost them as much as a desktop PC? Correct, chatting on Facebook, Whatsapp, taking selfies, some clips on TikTok, playing CandyCrushes and little else, which results that the power that these sneaks have is more a commercial argument than something really useful, all this can be done with the smartphone on sale for 80 bucks. Oh yes, you can also make calls, if the battery still has enough charge when you need it. They are spyware from large corporations that use it to track your every move and action that everyone willingly carries in their pockets, or has it in front of their faces while crossing the street.