As I already said it before, after using the Nokia E71 for two weeks, I fell in love with it. The full QWERTY keyboard and the overall look and feel are two key factors why I think it’s the single best Symbian S60 smartphone released to date. However, something’s always missing and it’s a result of Nokia’s (and any handset maker’s for that matter) product differentiation. What is missing is the better multimedia experience, primarily a better camera.
That being said “I have a dream” of a perfect Nokia smartphone, which will merge all the features of N and E series. An NSeries device with full keyboard, or an ESeries device with powerful camera with Carl-Zeiss optics. A new device that will blend differences between the two Nokia series of devices. A touchscreen is a plus, but not a must as far as I’m concerned. That would be a single device everyone would want. The price may be steep, but after buying it, one wouldn’t have to buy another smartphone for quite some time. Alternatively, Nokia could create a whole series of such devices, each having a different form factor. Naturally, I would expect a larger screen on a slider or clamshell-shaped (Communicator-like) phone, than on a candybar. And all this goes in line with my previous “I need the E61i with VGA screen” post. The device I talked about previously could be one of these. Not that I wouldn’t be interested to buy the E61i even without an NSeries-like camera, it’s yet another compromise I’m unfortunately willing to accept as part of the mentioned handset maker’s product differentiation scheme.
Now comes the part where I try to predict the future. I do believe such a device will appear during next year. The introduction of the Apple iPhone and Google’s Android platform pushed consumers’ expectations through the roof. This is not to say the product differentiation will die. Quite the contrary, there will be more options than ever before. However, at the very high end of the spectrum, my belief is that we’ll see not one but few devices that match the criteria mentioned above — to combine great multimedia capabilities with ready-for-business functionality. Question is whether Nokia will release such device(s), or some of their competitors. We know Samsung is very familiar with Symbian OS and I wouldn’t be surprised to see them releasing such a device before Nokia. After all, it was Samsung not Nokia which made the first 8 megapixel S60 smartphone (INNOV8) and the first S60 smartphone with 5 megapixel camera and optical zoom (G810).
There’s another company that also has a compelling offering. It’s HTC which Touch Pro and T-Mobile G1, as well as the Sony Ericsson with its Xperia X1 smartphone (also made by HTC) look very promising. All these handsets lack is a better camera, but it’s something that looks easily upgradable in future models.
Back to Nokia and you? Have any comments? Do you love/hate their E/N series product differentiation? Don’t hesitate to drop your two cents in the comments form. We (and I hope Nokia, as well) are listening…
P.S. Now I remembered. I want a built-in FM transmitter, too! 🙂