Nokia's First Touchscreen Device

[Janak Parekh]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.nokia.com/nokia/0,6771,47550,00.html' target='_blank'>http://www.nokia.com/nokia/0,6771,47550,00.html</a><br /><br /></div>Nokia yesterday announced the 7700, their first handheld with a touchscreen device. It's running Nokia's Series 90 touchscreen-enabled operating system, based on Symbian. Is this going to be the Pocket PC Phone Edition/Smartphone killer?<br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/parekh-20031029-Nokia7700.jpg" /><br /><br />After reading a number of sites and their opinions on the subject, here's one from a Pocket PC Phone user: I don't want it. Here's why. <!> <br /><br />First, as a phone: <a href="http://www.gizmodo.com/archives/009756.php#009756">Gizmodo confirms today</a> that you would have to hold the phone sideways to your ear, like the N-Gage. If you don't know what I mean, you should see <a href="http://www.sidetalkin.com/">Sidetalkin.com</a>, a humorous take on the subject. (From the news reports I've heard, the N-Gage is not flying off the shelves for a variety of reasons; I'd imagine the difficulty of using it as a phone must have an effect.) While it has Bluetooth and you can use Bluetooth headsets, there are always situations where you need to put the device up to your head. Handspring, Microsoft, and Sony Ericsson all realized this with their touchsensitive devices.<br /><br />Now, as a PDA: the unit does have a 640x320 screen, and that is its most attractive quality in my opinion. The gameable controls are also a nice plus. However, no other device out there has this screen configuration. As far as I can tell, this means I'd have to get Nokia 7700-customized "versions" of all my Symbian software. Second, and perhaps this is just because I haven't seen a shot of the device in a hand, I don't quite see how to hold this device in one hand effectively -- a property you really need to be able to use a stylus with another. To me, the device more closely resembles the "top half" of a handheld PC... but HPCs are useable with a keyboard, and this is not. The one application this configuration seems well-suited for is web-browsing, and perhaps that's how Nokia will position it... although tools like <a href="http://www.bitstream.com/wireless/">Thunderhawk</a> on the Pocket PC are capable of turning it landscape when appropriate.<br /><br />In conclusion, I'm not going to write off Symbian -- Nokia's Series 90 could be a huge hit. But not with this device. This feels like a second-generation N-Gage to me -- and maybe it will therefore be popular with one segment of the crowd -- but for a "phone-enabled organizer" device, give me my Pocket PC Phone (or, barring that, a Smartphone or a SE P900) anyday.

[Enderet]

8O :pukeface:
This is one ugly thing

[manywhere]

That Nokia Phone-PDA combo can also act as a TV. Apparently it can recieve DVB-H, digital TV specially formatted for handhelds, if an add-on pack is added to it. (OK, maybe America doesn't have DVB, yet, but I've heard that broadcasters are pushing for it over there... or :?:)
I would also like to get DVB-H for my Pocket PC. :cry:

As for it's looks, yeah, it doesn't look nice on the press pictures. It might look different in reality though... :roll:
The looks won't the sales pitch for it, but probably the Phone-PDA-TV combo features.

I would expect it to appear next year's 2nd Q and costing something 600-900 €/US$ (unsubsidised). What's your bet? :lol:

[kiwi]

heh heh - that website was really funny :lol: :lol: :lol:

b

[foldedspace]

I like it. It may not appeal to everyone, but it's nice to see a device maker putting something out that's unique. As far as the OS is concerned, my 3650 (Symbian 6) is easy to use and very stable. It won't matter if the Smartphone is slightly easier to hold if the OS can't stack up to what Symbian already has. But I'm looking forward to the competition...it can only mean cheaper prices and more features on smaller phones. I want it all on my phone! 8)

[guinness]

I like the 7200 better, Nokia's first clamshell and it has a bunch of features.

http://www.infosyncworld.com/news/n/4244.html

[T-Will]

LOL!!! :D ---> Sidetalkin.com

[Shraga18]

Not one pocket pc there :(. NOT ONE!!!!!

[carphead]

The best usenet post I've seen this year said "It's like holding a cheese sandwich to your ear!" :D

[David C]

I like the 7200 better, Nokia's first clamshell and it has a bunch of features.

intresting!

does that phone have like a furry cover? that's funny.

[Pat Logsdon]

Ok, I'm all for different designs, but that thing looks like a$$. It looks like the headrest to some kind of futuristic Goth Barbie car. Aggressive weirdness does not a good phone make.

[Sheynk]

I love the website :lol: :lol: :lol:

IMO that thing is just a little too big....ok just way too big.

Cell phones are supposed to be small (sorry ppc phone users)

That is why the new Sendo X is my favorite smartphone....if only US carrier took their heads out of their A**es and gave us 1xEV-DO or at least the same GSM and GPRS (edge) capabilities as europe does

[Jonathon Watkins]

That website is funny - more links like that please! :way to go:

It's the odd screen resolution that will dent the appeal of this long term. Having used a psion Revo for a while -it was hard to get software for it as the screen was a differnt size to the other EPOC devices. Close enough would not cut it when all the command buttons used to be cut off the top of the screen. :?

There really is something to be said for standard screen sizes (like 320x240 or 640x480 :wink: ).

[Brad Adrian]

GAG!

[JustinGTP]

I like that colour combination. Devices are getting so intuitive these days :D

[Thinkingmandavid]

I like nokia products, I like the symbian os which is very stable. I really wish that nokia would put out a pda that was running the full symbian os and was very affordable,light, and close to a ppc size :wink:

[Thinkingmandavid]

Ijust checked it out at the website. it does a good amount of stuff, I just dont like the shape.
bt, word, exel, contacts, web browsing, planning, etc. everthing we do on our ppc :mrgreen:

[AhuhX]

You know what the styling of this reminds me off?

That old cheezy 80's flick TRON. Which the glowing strip highlights around each object to represent vectors etc.

I can even imagine this inplace of the frisby's they used to create their holographic bikes... :)

[Kati Compton]

You know what the styling of this reminds me off?

That old cheezy 80's flick TRON. Which the glowing strip highlights around each object to represent vectors etc.

I can even imagine this inplace of the frisby's they used to create their holographic bikes... :)
TRON RULES!

:) :Fade-color

[szamot]

I really like it, it looks refined and sophisticated. Now what is it and how do you use it?!

[davea]

I like nokia products, I like the symbian os which is very stable. I really wish that nokia would put out a pda that was running the full symbian os and was very affordable,light, and close to a ppc size :wink:

I'm also a big fan of Nokia products and specifically their 3650 with System 60. I've added 128 Meg of MMC (max 256 meg) and can use it for some similar tasks to our PPC's (playing Mp3's for instance. Playing streaming audio and video via GPRS for another The OS is elegantly simple, but
limited in it's flexibility. After 2+ years of PPC, Symbian/System 60
is interesting to explore.

[rbrome]

What I find most interesting about Series 90 and the 7700 is that it's really not that different from a Pocket PC or Palm PDA, but they're not selling it as a PDA at all. They're selling it as a multimedia device - something to compete more with a video iPod (if there were such a thing).

It has a touchscreen, and it seems that it can do everything a Pocket PC or Palm can do, but the focus is multimedia. A newer Pocket PC or Palm, meanwhile, can do all the multimedia stuff, but the focus is still on the office, organizer, and email stuff.

I wonder if this will spur any Pocket PC companies to make a "hip" Pocket PC marketed as a video/MP3/etc. multimedia device for youth. It wouldn't be that hard or different from current Pocket PCs - it's mostly just in the packaging and marketing, really.

[Janak Parekh]

What I find most interesting about Series 90 and the 7700 is that it's really not that different from a Pocket PC or Palm PDA, but they're not selling it as a PDA at all. They're selling it as a multimedia device - something to compete more with a video iPod (if there were such a thing).
I'd assume as much, seeing the ergonomics -- it's not really suited for PDA use in its current shape, at least by my initial impressions. It seems, as I said in my post, a sort of "next-generation N-Gage". Time will tell how good it will be at multimedia.

--janak

[Thinkingmandavid]

I would like to see the shape change that is for sure, but I am still curious as to the price.
series 90 would be a good choice for a pda, I am wondering why they havent entered the market with a 2215 size pda attached to a 1945 price :D
and of course all the goodies that NOkia is good at :wink:

[Prevost]

heh heh - that website was really funny :lol: :lol: :lol:

b
It shows us what's Nokia's approach to the converged device dilemma:

ANYTHING can be used as a phone! ANYTHING! :rotfl:

I feel like Nokia is losing its presence to SonyEricsson. Perhaps that's because their always present policy of fancy form above function. This thing is no exception. As the photos depict, this thing is more for entertainment. how seriously will someone be taken pulling out this from the pocket in a meeting??? 0X

[DavidAlanHart]

Problems that need to be solved:

1) For a converged device it can't play enough music files because it doesn't have a hard disk
2) It really requires the bluetooth handset to work efficiently yet you have to pay extra for it
3) No external keyboard available for it
4) It's putting the maximum external memory size at 128M?
5) Too much case in relationship to screen size. It begs to be slimed down.
6) For a messaging device from a communications company it doesn't have a thumb keyboard? A Treo 600 blows it away in terms of functionality.

[rmasinag]

IPAQ 6000 series where are YOOOOOUUUUUUUU!!!!!!!! :mecry:


Boy...that website is funny indeed :D