Nokia has this “Design by Community” thing going on that’s basically a hook to lure people to the Nokia Conversations blog and tell the company what they really want in future devices. Think of it as a focus group, except no one gets paid, and the sample size is huge.
Problem is the people who usually fill out online surveys relating to anything in the technology industry are fanbois for lack of a better word. So what did these foaming from the mouth technology addicts decide they want? A mobile phone with a 4 inch screen, 8 megapixel camera with Xenon flash, as well as a dual LED for use when recording HD video, an aluminum soft touch body, HDMI out, and all your typical wireless standards. Basically a Sprint EVO 4G, or a Motrola Droid X, or a Samsung Galaxy S, but with a Nokia label on the front, running an operating system no one really wants.
Now that this “Design by Community” gimmick is coming to an end the company is now sharing 3 sketches that they’d like you to vote on. Whichever one gets the most votes may or may not turn into a production device. In other words, Nokia has the guts of a new mobile phone in place, now they just need help picking a body. Design by Committee indeed.
Check out the two other sketches after the jump. If you’re wondering which one I like the best, well I’d like to quote a friend of mine who said this to me a few years ago: “Nokia makes some fantastic looking hardware, but then you turn their devices on and you want to throw them against the wall.”
Sad, but an accurate depiction of the current state of affairs. Remember when Nokia design was innovative, and they actually built phones that didn’t have problems? I want those days back, and clicking on a check box and leaving a comment saying “OMG THX 4 LSTNG 2 ME!” on a blog post written by someone from the marketing department isn’t to help those memories return any sooner.
