The announcement about new phones and services was made at the Nokia World Conference in Stuttgart, Germany.
N97 Mini tops the list of latest phones by the company. This phone is a somewhat smaller version of Nokia’s current flagship N97 smartphone.
This fresh and smaller N97 has less memory, i.e., 8 GB only, as compared to the earlier device which had a 32 GB memory. Also, the phone has a shorter battery life and a smaller touch-screen display.
Its list price stands at 450 euros, or about $639. This is not much less than that of the N97, which was initially sold in the U.S. for $700.
Features of N97 Mini include a stronger integration with Facebook
Music service will already be integrated in the new N97 Mini. Due to the addition of this service, the price of the device shoots up. But users will have the luxury of free download music service.
Not only this, the device will be the first Nokia phone to have closer integration with the very famous social networking site Facebook. Users of this phone will be able to update their location and status on Facebook via a Nokia Ovi account. Nokia plans to extend this service on its other phones too.
Two new music phones also launched
Two new music phones have also been revealed by Nokia. These new models are: the X6 and the X3.
The X6 features a touch screen and a built-in memory of 32GB. This phone will be Nokia’s new flagship music phone. The phone is expected to hit the market with a list price of 450 euros, or $639. This phone will also have the “Comes With Music service” integrated into it.
World market: Nokia needs to keep on reinventing itself
Nokia is the champion cell phone maker in the world market. It has a whopping 40 percent worldwide market share. Of late, the company is attempting to expand its business by providing its cell phone users with online services, such as music downloads, games, and maps.
In order to maintain its position in the global market, Nokia needs to keep on innovating in the smartphone category. It needs to provide people with low-cost devices that are stylish and loaded with latest features.
This is because it has tough competition from players like Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) and Research in Motion (NASDAQ:RIMM). Nokia specially needs to make its presence felt in the U.S. where it is not at all popular.
The new phones announced by Nokia might not do much to slow down its dipping popularity in the market. This is because these products are not revolutionary enough to compete in the world market.
Nokia’s expansion tactics
Nokia is trying various measures to maintain a strong foothold in the phone market. Last month, it announced a tie-up with Microsoft to build a version of Microsoft’s Office software for Nokia handsets.
Apart from this, it also announced its first Linux-based phone called N900 smartphone. This phone will directly battle it out with the iPhone and hordes of Google Android phones that will hit the market later this year and early next year.
Also, Nokia plans to put forward more sophisticated hardware, in the form of a mini-laptop or Netbook. The new device is called the Nokia Booklet 3G. The mini laptop will come with a list price tag of 575 euros, or about $817.
The Netbook has the advantage of being embedded with GPS. This will help in providing access to Nokia’s Ovi Maps software and service.
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