Nokia finally prepared to take touchscreen mainstream

Nokia promises portfolio of touch-screen devices to cover all sections of the market. Image: Nokia Corp.

With the recent subsidised re-emergence of Apple’s iPhone leading the iconic and trendy smartphone into the realms of widespread mainstream popularity, Finnish mobile phone giant Nokia Corp. looks set to relent on holding back touchscreen technology as something limited to being an upper-tier handset attribute.
More pointedly, Espoo-based Nokia, the world’s leading manufacturer of mobile phones, relayed to the press late last week that it intends to grace its sprawling customer base with a “complete portfolio” of touch-sensitive devices, which will include product lines directed specifically at the lower end of the market.

Nokia claims that it “remains fully committed to bringing to market a complete portfolio of touch products,” which it says will be directed towards prospective buyers positioned across the “mass-market, the high-end, and even at the low-end” of the company’s demographic appeal.

In terms of Nokia’s initial offering as it looks to drive the market accessibility of its touchscreen devices, the mobile phone maker has yet to issue concrete details, choosing instead to comment that:

“…our first touch device will be aimed solidly at the ‘mid-range’ or ‘volume’ part of the market. This device will be competitively spec-ed -- especially considering the price point.”

Nokia expects to be in a position to officially announce its first mainstream touchscreen phone in the next few months.

While currently remaining well within the realms of industry speculation, initial rumblings following Nokia’s outline suggest that the company’s first handset out-of-the-mainstream-gate will be the 5800 Tube.

Looking not unlike a certain trend-defining phone created by Cupertino-based Apple Inc., and already tentatively referred to as something of an “iPhone killer,” the 5800 Tube is expected to hit the market by the close of summer 2008.

Specifications for the 5800 Tube include a 3.2-inch touch-screen display (16:9 widescreen ration and 16 million colours), a 3.2 mega-pixel camera (with auto-focus), quad-band (850/900/1800/1900Mhz) GSM/EDGE radio, 3G UMTS/HSDPA, Bluetooth 2.0, Wi-Fi, GPS, TV-out, 140MB of onboard storage, and the S60 operating system.

source : http://www.thetechherald.com/