Archive for category Industry

Nokia C5 Announced – Bringing Symbian to the Mid-Range

Mar 3

Posted by steverowlands in Handsets, Industry, Symbian | Comments



Yesterday saw Nokia unveil two new things.  Firstly, the Nokia C5 smartphone, and secondly, with it, the start of the C-Series range of devices.

The Nokia C5 is a T9 candybar smartphone sporting a 2.2 inch screen, and Symbian S60 3rd Edition FP2.  Whilst this is nothing new to the world of mobile devices, the fact that the device is running Symbian, and will retail for 135 Euros before any operator discounts marks a definitive stage in the Nokia product cycle of bringing a smartphone to market at a previous featurephone price point.

So let’s have a look at the specifications, after the jump.

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More Job Losses at Nokia’s Salo Factory

Feb 8

Posted by steverowlands in Industry | Comments



This morning brings news of yet more cost trimming by Nokia in the form of around 285 jobs at their manufacturing plant in Salo, Finland.  The reason for this is quoted in the PRESS RELEASE as a new operating mode.

The new operating mode essentially means the investment in new, faster, more efficient hardware and more automation, thus reducing the need for skilled workers on the job floor.


Now the press release doesn’t specifically define whether or not the new machines will be installed in the Salo factory, or another lower cost factory around the world, such as in Brazil or China.  It does seem to read that the hardware upgrade will be invested in Salo, but it is an open jury on that.

The current state of temporary rotational job losses at Salo are hoping to be brought to an end by June 2010.  Ultimately I would guess this means yet more redundancies at Nokia.

What do you think of this latest round of job losses at Nokia, especially considering the positive Q4 2009 financial results?  Let us know in the comments.

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Nokia Release the 6303i

Feb 4

Posted by steverowlands in Handsets, Industry | Comments



This morning Nokia announced a refresh to their very popular 6303, in the form of the 6303i.  This process of adding an ‘i’ to the name of a device has usually meant a general specification overhaul, and this one is no different.

The Nokia 6303i is running the S40 feature phone operating system, has a 3.2 Megapixel camera with dual LED flash, and HSPA 3G connectivity.

Priced initially at 105 Euros, expect this device to be free on most pay monthly contracts from operators very soon.


Other highlights include a fairly respectable battery life of 8 hours talk time, or potentially 3 weeks of sitting in standby powered by a 1050mAh battery, with both USB and the old style pin charging available.  A 3.5mm headphone jack, a 2.2inch QVGA screen, GPS and Bluetooth 2.1 all wrapped up in a package weighing just 96g.

Initially this device will be available in two colour options, either silver shown above, or khaki, and will go on sale sometime in Q1 2010.  So take that as sometime in the next month or so.

You can find the official Nokia data sheet HERE.

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Symbian Goes Completely Open Source

Feb 4

Posted by steverowlands in Events, Industry, Symbian | Comments



Today the Symbian Foundation announced that they have finally made their entire Symbian operating system source code available to everyone, completely free of charge, under the EPL (Eclipse  Public License).

This release has been a cornerstone of the Symbian Foundation’s business strategy, and comes four months ahead of schedule.

It is hoped that by moving to an open source model, developers will get involved, inspire a community, and the speed of innovation around the Symbian ecosystem will increase proportionately.


So what will this mean to me as a consumer?  Well essentially it means that any hardware manufacturer can download the code, and build a Symbian device.  Chances are that this scenario won’t really come to fruition in the short term as many of the large scale manufacturers who were interested have already joined the foundation.

What you should see though, is a quicker development of the OS to bring it up to speed with it’s competitiors, as in some areas Symbian has fallen behind somewhat.

This release is no small mean feat by any standards, and there is lots of extra reading if you are so inclined.  The announcement is HERE, the press release is HERE and the relevant post on the Symbian Blog is HERE.  Or, if you are feeling really brave, the code is available for download HERE.

What do hope to see come out of this announcement?  Are you a developer interested in taking up arms?  Let us know in the comments, or shoot me an email steve@thenokianetwork.com

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Nokia at Mobile World Congress

Jan 26

Posted by steverowlands in Events, Handsets, Industry, Maemo, Symbian | Comments



This year, Nokia are not going to be attending Mobile World Congress in Barcelona on the 15th – 18th February 2010.

Nokia fans out there need not worry however, because Nokia will still be in Barcelona on the 15th and 16th February.  They will be holding their very own event just down the road at Once, which is the home of the Spanish National Organization for the Blind.

This is quite obviously a cost saving exercise, because of the enormous price they would have to pay in order to get a similar setup inside MWC.

Nokia have now put up their mini MWC event website, which details their press conference which will be held on 15th February at 11.30am CET sharp.  Following the press conference, there will be breakout presentations, and the opportunity to have a chat with senior management personnel.

Are you going to be in Barcelona?  Do you think Nokia will announce new devices or services?  Let us know in the comments.  Alternatively, send me an email steve@thenokianetwork.com

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New Ovi Maps Installed on Nokia N86

Jan 21

Posted by steverowlands in Applications, Events, Industry, Symbian | Comments



Yes, you read the title correctly folks, I have the new version of Ovi Map, Version 3.03 installed on my Nokia N86 8MP.  After the press release and announcement event this morning, of the free navigation included with the new Ovi Maps, us N86 owners were left dejected after realising that our beloved devices had been left out in the cold by Nokia.

Well, I have some good news for you, I have just downloaded and installed the E52 version of Ovi Maps, available from http://maps.nokia.com/explore-services/ovi-maps and I can confirm it is working fine so far.  You will need to download the actual SIS file, and not get the text message download or else it won’t work.

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Nokia to Announce Free GPS Navigation with Ovi Maps

Jan 21

Posted by steverowlands in Events, Handsets, Industry, Symbian, Updates | Comments



News has just filtered through this morning via Symbian-Guru and The Nokia Blog, that this morning’s Ovi announcement from Nokia will be them releasing a new version of their Ovi Maps software which now includes voice navigation for free in 74 countries around the world.

This is a potentially a big shot in the eye for Google, who currently, only have this kind of service available for American customers.

This is a very obvious announcement by Nokia to try and reassert themselves as the biggest player in the mobile market, instead of the popular choices of Apple and Google.

Also remember that the likes of TomTom and Garmin took a massive hit on the stock market when Google announced their version of free navigation a couple of months ago, so in theory, today should be an even worse day for them.

Crucially, how the markets react, will tell us if they think Nokia can still mix it up with the big boys, or is a wounded animal lashing out at it’s attackers.

As usual though, the announcement is not as simple as it could be. The way Nokia likes to do it.

Only 10 devices will have the new Ovi Maps available later today, the N97 Mini, E72, E52, E55, 5800, 5800NE, 6710Nav, 6730, 5230 and the new X6.

So where is the N97? Where is the N86? Both premium Nokia devices, but shunned from the nice shiny new goodies. The budget 5230 gets in on the action though, bizarrely.

Apparently, more devices will be added at a later date, but let’s hang fire on that, until it actually happens.

What do you think of this announcement?  Are you an N97 owner?

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Build Quality Problems with Nokia ‘Made in China’ Devices

Jan 19

Posted by steverowlands in Handsets, Industry, Video | Comments


Over the years there have been many discussions about the difference in quality of Nokia devices made in different factories around the world.

Specifically I remember back to the original Nokia N95, and how it was plagued with customer complaints of the wobbly slider, and general other build quality problems.  There were many trains of thought about the potential problems, but the general gist of things was the fact that if you managed to get one that was built in Finland then you were safe.  Anywhere else in the world, and you were likely to experience build quality problems.

This stigma has been attached to Nokia devices ever since.  Still people have this attitude.

Truth of the matter is that my old N95 was built in Finland, and had a wobbly slider, so, go figure.  I would say it is more down to poor industrial design, than the actual factory it was built in.

Another case in point is my Nokia N86 in white.  It’s built in China.  Enough to make some cringe with fear.  I must say though, that the build quality on it top notch.  The slide is perfect, all of the buttons feel great, and I’ve not encountered one single problem.

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Nokia 5230 and E52 Now Available from Vodafone UK

Jan 19

Posted by steverowlands in Handsets, Industry, Symbian | Comments



My weekly browse through the UK mobile operator websites has come up with a couple of little hidden gems, which aren’t overly apparent at first.

Top of the list is Vodafone. Recently, Vodafone’s line up of Nokia handsets has been ridiculously poor, however, things may be at a turning point.

First off I noticed the Nokia 5230 touchscreen smartphone powered by Symbian. This is a great entry level touchscreen device, with 3G capability, and 3.2 inch display and some great social media integration for the discerning teenager. Vodafone is currenty showing the 5230 as free on £15 per month contracts, and should move onto PAYG very soon.  You can find the 5230 data sheet HERE [PDF].

The real surprise for me was to see the Nokia E52 available in the business shop. The E52 was rumoured to be coming to Vodafone last summer, but word on the street has it, that the phone failed it’s very last round of tests before it started shipping, and never saw the light of day. Until now however.

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Great Nokia E72 Reviews – Versatile Computing Platform

Jan 14

Posted by steverowlands in Handsets, Industry, Symbian | Comments



The Nokia E72 is the latest in a great line up of Nokia’s business-centric QWERTY devices, to challenge the likes of the Blackberry on their core market.

One of the great things about the E72 over it’s predecessor is it’s inclusion of more mainstream ‘consumer’ features such as the 5MP camera and 3.5mm headphone jack to open it up to both personal and business use.  Strong evidence of this is present in the theme switching ability to have one software setup for business, and then change the layout and functionality for the weekends and evenings.

William Ward has written a great review over on his blog about the E72 which he has been trialling for the past few weeks.  He thinks it is more solid than a Blackberry Bold, and finds added functionality of USB charging over previous E-Series devices to be a welcome addition to the specification sheet [PDF].

If you are looking for a full run down on his time time with the E72 then make sure you head on over, and check out his blog.

As if that wasn’t enough, Clinton over at ZOMGITSCJ.com has also just published his review of the E72.  Clinton takes a very in depth look and both the hardware, and the generic software functionalities of the E72, and backs it up with lots of great photos, videos and screenshots of the device in use.  Clinton highly recommends the E72, so if you are considering purchasing it, definately head over and check out his review.

Speaking of purchasing the E72, it is available on only one operator here in the UK as a subsidised device at the moment.

Vodafone have got the E72 for free on contracts of at least £30 per month.

The E72 is currently retailing for £349 SIM Free from the Nokia online store, but don’t forget you can get 10% off that price if you buy before the end of January.

Have you got an E72?  What do you think of it?  Leave us a comment, or send me an email steve@thenokianetwork.com

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