Nokia unveils N97 Mini, plus Netbook pricing
Nokia, the world's largest maker of cell phones, on Wednesday announced new phones loaded with more music features and better integration with Facebook, as well as pricing for its upcoming Netbook.
Nokia N97 Mini
(Credit: Nokia )The company announced the new phones and services at its Nokia World Conference in Stuttgart, Germany.
Tops on the list of new phones is the N97 Mini, a slightly smaller version of Nokia's existing flagship N97 smartphone. This new, smaller N97 has a shorter battery life than the earlier device and also less memory (8GB compared to 32GB), and a smaller touch-screen display. The device is expected to ship in October. Its list price at 450 euros, or about $639, is not much less than that of the full-fledged N97, which initially went on sale in the U.S. for $700.
The new N97 Mini also will have Nokia's Comes With Music service integrated. This service increases the cost of the device, but provides users with a free download music service. And the device will be the first Nokia phone to have tighter integration with the popular social networking site Facebook. Nokia has struck a deal with Facebook to let users update their location and status directly to the Web site through a Nokia Ovi account.
Nokia plans to offer the Facebook integration on other phones as well.
The handset maker also announced two new music phones: the X6 and the X3. The X6, which has a touch screen and 32GB of built-in memory, will be Nokia's new flagship music phone. The company expects to ship the new phone in the fourth quarter for a list price of 450 euros, or $639. As with the N97, users will also get the Comes With Music service bundled into the phone.
Nokia X6
(Credit: Nokia )Nokia is the world's leading cell phone maker with close to 40 percent worldwide market share. Recently it has been trying to diversify its business by offering its cell phone users online services, such as music downloads, games, and maps. The company created its Ovi service platform as a repository for all of these functions and hopes that one day all Nokia phone customers will use their Ovi accounts to access and manage their music, video, and photos.
But even though Nokia estimates that the global online market will reach 100 billion euros by 2010, the company must continue to feed its core device business with new phones. There's no question that Nokia is still the leader in the overall cell phone market. It has done especially well providing low-cost devices to the developing world, but it has been challenged to keep up with innovations in the smartphone category.
Even though Nokia is the No. 1 smartphone maker worldwide, it's losing market share to players such as Apple with the iPhone and Research In Motion with its BlackBerry. Nokia is particularly challenged in the U.S., where it is virtually non-existent and lacks key carrier relationships for its hottest devices.
Unfortunately, the new phones announced at the Nokia World are unlikely to slow its slide in the high end of the market. While the devices mark improvements for Nokia's overall product line, they are not revolutionary with respect to other products that they will compete with on the worldwide market.
Still, Nokia is not giving up. The phone maker announced last month a relationship with Microsoft to develop a version of Microsoft's Office software for Nokia handsets. And last week, it also announced its N900 smartphone, its first Linux-based phone, which is expected to compete more directly with the iPhone and a flood of Google Android phones due to hit the market later this year and early next year.
In yet another attempt to diversify, Nokia also plans to offer more sophisticated hardware, in the form of a mini-laptop or Netbook--last week it announced the new device, dubbed the Nokia Booklet 3G (watch a video here). At the event in Germany on Wednesday it announced that it will ship the mini laptop in the fourth quarter with a list price tag of 575 euros, or about $817.
What makes Nokia's Netbook different from others in the category is that the device will have GPS embedded to provide access to Nokia's Ovi Maps software and service.
Marguerite Reardon has been a CNET News reporter since 2004, covering cell phone services, broadband, citywide Wi-Fi, the Net neutrality debate, as well as the ongoing consolidation of the phone companies. E-mail Maggie. 
Let's see, smaller, crappier, but still just as expensive. Are they flippin' crazy? Who is going to spend that much for an 8GB smart phone?
Amen
Amen
Smaller means smaller battery, smaller screen and less area for memory. I would expect them to have a memory expansion slot anyway, so that's not a big deal. Since they don't mention how long the battery lasts on the old or new phones it's pretty hard to call them "Crappier" especially since neither one of you have tried one.
Let me guess, you both own iPhones right? The reason I'm assuming that is because Apple product owners seem to be the snobbiest bunch of people I have ever come across.
These days you cannot release a product that has a reduced battery life...this is the single biggest weakness for tech that has been highlighted by the iPhone because it gets used alot, with a battery that can barely cope.
Nokia have lost the plot...
I would recommend Nokia just skip the special relationships with US carriers for now and just offer the phones for sale in the US. Once consumers get wind of how nice some of these phones are demand will go up and the carriers will start carying them.
Nokia phones are available in Canada, which is odd considering new tech is usually is available in the US before it hits Canada.
They needed sequel that's not only worse but not really smaller either
Great work Nokia , nice to the creative juices flowing over there.
Hint to Nokia : it's that outdated S60 software stupid
Either switch to Android or speed up that MAEMO O.S already
Or it's gonna be easy pickings for everyone else
Now Nokia releases a bit smaller N97, with less memory and shorter battery life. Sounds like a winner to me!
As an aside I went over to the Dark Side and could not be happier.
And they're set...
Their N97 series is the most crappiest device that I have ever laid my hands on...i was on a national congress last week and a long lost friend of mine attended too...we chatted and she galantly displayed her N97, and for some reason i got curious and started tinkering around with it, she gladly let me anyway...
horror of my horrors! a smatphone without a WIFI? OMG! nowadays wifi is a must...then i tried browsing? OMG does not move very slow connection with the carrier...not to mention a very cumbersome commands to move from one app to another...EWWWW I screamed inside...No GPS? EWWW!!! no maps where you are ? EWWWWW!!!, music players so very crappy EWWWW!!
I said, how can they call this a smartphone? whatever happened to NOKIA they seem to be moving backwards nowadays while everyone is dashing ahead forward say Samsung Omnia and the rest...
Then I show her my IPhone 3GS wow! I showed her how very easy it is to operate with wifi access, was able to browse and check my mail using a wifi no charge to my carrier, cover flows for my albums, GPS coordinates to name a few...she was blown away with the comparison ...now she regret why she bought that stupid phone which cost almost as expensive as my Iphone 3GS i told her why on earth did you choose that stupid brick havent you been reading about advances in smartphone tech nowadays?
now this mini N97? with smaller screen, lesser battery powers and the likes? how stupid can NOKIA be nowadays...
NOKIA you sucked bigtime on yor smartphones now I can say its just a matter of time Nokia will close shop soon....rest in peace Nokia...go back to you finnish country and plant more trees instead of churning out stupid lame bricks which in your dialect you called a smartphones ....LOL!
While I am no longer a crazy Nokia fan, your ignorant rant gives me a chuckle.
From an Iphone user....
The N900 looks a decent bit of kit and maybe Nokia should be focusing on the Maemo OS for their smartphones and ditch the S60 dog...it will be interesting to see the sales data for the N900 vs the N97.
Iphone -- Still lacks practical phone features and accessories (Yes you get them but at a cost). Then i am stuck with ~90$ a month bill for which i do not have the usage requirement. Add a family plan and you are closing your monthly bill around 110$ - Is this the appropriate payment for a phone+web use per month ?
Nokia - Yes a brick, probably very ugly - But unlocked so i can use internationally without getting screwed, works very well in Europe and Asia where you can easily find Nokia accessories, and i think there are lot of useful and practical phone-like features. Even with whatever browsing i need and a second line my monthly bill is around 60$
I tend to favor a phone which gives me return back in the form of practical use and not as a style factor.
My 50% vote for blackberry, 50% for Nokia, rest for Apple. I love Apple.
problem with nokia is that they upgrade one app in their phone and voila new model....another app ugrade a year later and voila another model..which they often do every year which forces people to upgrade...until Iphone came along and destroyed this nokia racket...by releasing a wonderful phone that is so esy to use and fast...
iphone 3GS simply rocks bigtime!!! and thrust Nokia to shame...
Poor people please! note this is an N97 opinion forum and not the Iphone.
I PRAY THAT U BECOME RICH ENOUGH SO THAT U CAN AFFORD TO BUY ANY PHONE U WANT so that u will not go about wasting ur time on this site talking trash about Nokia. Please N97 or Nokia user opinion only!!! pOOR guys
I have all the 3 major smartphones till date...From some review detail here, one can easily tell that some guys here are very pOOR and they cant , and will never be able to afford good phones for the rest of their poor lives on earth.. I have got the Iphone, the Omina HD and the N97 and they are all very good smartphones.
The only reason i don't like my Iphone much is the limited bluetooth usage including no file transfer, no external SD card for safe keeping of data incase my Iphone dies, its poorest camera of the 3 phones, and no flash for nite pictures as well as no radio or fm transmitter ...These are the downsides of my Iphone 3Gs
The upside of my iphone is that it is very fast and it owns the best of the three touch interface with its capacitive touchscreen. I love my 3 smartphones,,,but My Vertu Signature IS MY SHOWOFF PHONE.
- by vak1994 September 12, 2009 8:12 AM PDT
- @bjdollar
- Like this Reply to this comment
-
(25 Comments)u r d best reviewer............