No shit, not everyone can shell out money for an iPhone or your typical flagship Android phone, even in the US.
I myself use Google’s Quick Share for this. Falling that, the Send Anywhere app can also work - it’s not the fastest compared to Quick Share, but pretty reliable long as you have decent internet.
Looking back at HMD’s models after 2020 I think this is pretty plausible, with how all their smartphones during this period are likely ODM model - you can tell with how they all use the same Unisoc or MediaTek SoCs.
I mean, only smartphones that are outsourced to Chinese ODMs would ever use these chips, you’ll see this with other brands too.
Perhaps zombie brand mode would also be a suitable term, if not for the recent Skyline and Fusion which feels like genuine efforts from HMD.