By The tech blogosphere takes pride in its canny ability to leak information about upcoming devices and announcements before the company themselves make the information “officially official”. But execs at Nokia say their countdown clock (which runs out soon) is counting down to a huge announcement that nobody on the internet has yet predicted, leaked or anything else.
You can be pretty confident it isn’t the Nokia touchscreen XpressMusic phone because that has been leaked on more times than a portipot at Preakness. Apple and Android have their sight set on taking over the mobile industry and Nokia, whose Symbian OS is currently the market leader, doesn’t want to let that happen. So what will they announce?
For all the supposed “bragging” that Nokia execs are doing, it better be something good. We can be pretty sure it isn’t an Android based phone since Nokia owns Symbian, which competes directly with Android’s Linux based OS. But if somehow, some way it WERE an Android Phone… what are the chances it would be made available on Verizon Wireless? There you have it… the LEAST likely scenario… Nokia announces an Android Phone on Verizon Wireless.
But in all seriousness, most phandroids out there are also just mobile and tech enthusiasts in general and we’re curious to hear your predictions… what does Nokia have prepared to announce?
Will it be a phone or other hardware? Will it be about developments in the Symbian platform? Will it be a contest announcement and SDK of some sorts like the Android Developer’s Challenge? Or will it be something else altogether?
[Via Mobile Roar]
Symbian is NOT linux-based!
“since Nokia owns Symbian, a Linux based OS that directly competes with Android.”
Symbian isn’t based on Linux…
Huh? Don’t you know it’s a touchscreen flagship N-series device?
the nokia morph:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IX-gTobCJHs
That’s what happens when you try to rush out an article! Thanks to the collective community editors who caught the slip up!. I’ve edited the article to reflect what it SHOULD have said initially:
“We can be pretty sure it isn’t an Android based phone since Nokia owns Symbian, which competes directly with Android’s Linux based OS.”
perhaps nokia will be open sourcing symbian :)
@robisaks: that would be AWESOME awesome AWESOME if its what Nokia had planned. I remember seeing this back when it came out… but I don’t think they could POSSIBLY bring this to market so quickly. And even if they could, it wouldn’t be affordable.
I hope they prove me wrong, as comments above already prove I’m capable of making errors, but I think the Morph is a SUPER long shot.
That Nokia Concept will come out the same year BMW launches this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTYiEkQYhWY
hehe pretty cool right? thanks for posting that Morph link though… good thinking! I hope you’re right!
UPDATE: just saw your comment on “open sourcing” symbian. They’ve already said they are bringing it open source. I think you’re on the right track though… I think it will be about the Symbian OS and perhaps not tied to a single handset.
With Sony Ericsson and Motorola both getting out of Symbian (and Motorola very publically stating it would be going to WinMo and Android) I think the writing is on the wall.
Symbian isn’t Nokia’s Linux OS. Maemo is Nokia’s Linux OS (what they run on the 770, N800, N810, and N810-WME).
A few months ago they said that their next, 5th generation Maemo device (fan-labled “N900”), would have HSPA built in (the previous ones were Wifi only), and a few other enhancements. So, I see a few likely possibilities here:
1) They’re going to announce the N900
2) They’re going to announce a phone based on Maemo (not as likely, unfortunately)
3) They’re going to announce an N or E series version of the Tube (the touch screen “Xpress Music” device)
I think #3 is most likely, #1 is 2nd most likely, and #2 is least likely. Though, #2 is what I’d like to see the most, extended to cover a few different hanset formats. One like the E90, one like the E71, one like the E66, and one like the N810 (side slide qwerty, they have one of those about to come out, but I don’t like its design much).
I doubt Nokia will ever have an Android device (phone nor tablet). It’s much more likely that they’ll have a Maemo device of some sort that has Dalvik on it.
Looks like it will be hardware afterall:
“There’s going to be some interesting hardware,” said Udo Szabo, a senior manager for Nokia’s service business, in a speech at a Mobile Monday industry networking event.
From Reuters: http://www.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUSTRE4B103K20081202?feedType=RSS&feedName=technologyNews
i hope they release a monochrome nokia with a toe nail clipper add on.
that would be wicked sweet.
@robisaks, (ref: Morph) and @Rob Jackson, (ref: BMW) although those videos are quite nearly orgasmic, (Oh to think of the possibilities with either, its freakin’ Pwsome!) I agree with Rob Jackson, those probably wont be out within our lifetimes. First and foremost is the problem with the rogue whiskers that are still baffling top scientists to date. Second, there is yet to be a market for such items as the general populous couldn’t even come close to touching the price tag on that. And finally, who are we kidding, is there something I don’t know about yet that lets us construct things to microscopic levels? I mean, we’re good, but not that good… yet.