Nokia to launch dual-core smartphones, new Symbian UI in 2011

By on Dec 14, 2010 at 1:38 PM
mobile December 14, 2010

Following word that the release of Nokia’s E7 smartphone has been delayed, some uplifting Nokia news comes from Beijing Tuesday morning. IDG reporter Mikael Ricknäs is in attendance at the 2010 International Mobile Internet Conference, and he has relayed some tasty tidbits from the show. First, Nokia apparently has some big things in store for the Symbian OS in 2011. The somewhat stale UI will be a primary focus, which is of course great news for Symbian users. Of course we’ve known that the Symbian UI would be overhauled in 2011 for quite some time now — Symbian^3 was intended to be a major behind-the-scenes update, while Symbian^4 and S^5 would address more user-facing issues. The only difference now is that the S^4 and S^5 monikers have wisely been dropped.

Getting into specifics, an update in Q1 2011 will include more than 50 enhancements, such as an overhauled Web browser UI. Second and third quarter updates will bring “a new look and feel for the user interface, a more flexible home screen, an updated HTML5 browser and an easier software update experience.” Nokia will also issue more powerful hardware next year as it reportedly prepares to release 1GHz and dual-core devices. Finally, Nokia is planning to release hardware with “true zoom camera” technology in late 2011 or early 2012. While Nokia did not clarify what this new camera technology is, it could very well bring optical zoom to Nokia’s smartphones.

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  • Blkrabb1t

    Nice. Now can nokia start making LTE phones for verizon?

  • http://www.google.com/profiles/flavio.ribeiro Flavio Ribeiro

    “Nokia will equip upcoming models with 1GHz processors and more graphics memory in the second or third quarter”

    If history is any guide, they’ll officially announce them for Q3 2011, and delay them until Q1 2012. By then, everyone else will already have dual-core smartphones.

    I have a Nokia 5800, and I don’t plan on upgrading to a N8 with its 640×360 display and 680 MHz processor. But I also don’t want to wait 9 months to *maybe* get a new Nokia device with a 1 GHz processor.

    • http://www.sadude.com SaDudE

      The 680mhz processor although sounding slow is quite fast…my brother uses a HD2 regularly and was amazed at how fast a non 1ghz phone.

      I honestly hate the delay myself but the issue is that when the E7 drops the firmware it has will also be made available to the N8, C7 and C6-01 so its more than 1 phone we are talking about.

      Nokia knows its behind the curve in NA but at this point release more garbage on time doesn’t help, release good software although late is better as it gives current users more confidence and future users reassurance that Nokia does in deed care.

  • http://schultzter.ca Schultzter

    Yeah, seriously. Every Nokia phone I’ve had has been rock-solid. But why are they falling so far behind!? The E7 looks like a great phone, but S^3 and how many months late?! Really?!

  • http://rmbo47.myopenid.com/ rmbo47

    Nokia has almost no presence in North America. They’re huge in Europe and Asia so they’re offerings are all GSM. No way they would commit to making CDMA handsets for what they consider a fringe market.

  • Anonymous

    Knowing Nokia, they’ll release 500 MHz dual core processors by 2013.

  • Eric

    Once again, any new battery technology will still lag behind bigger and faster processors. What I wouldn’t give for a breakthrough in battery technology in smartphones.

  • Scott

    I thought all the Nokia fans said Symbian didn’t need 1Ghz processor? It’s nice to see that Nokia is finally going to get some 2009 hardware for 2011.

  • Anonymous

    I had an E90 back when this new “iphone” came out. Had a 3.2mp cam when most barely supported vga or 1.3mp max. Had an 800×352 pixel at 16m colors back when most were barely pushing ~250 x 250 pixels. I could do sipcalls out the box, bluetooth everything, wifi, you name it, it did it. Had a dedicated GPU too. It was state of the art, cost me $950… laugh all you want, but remember, the iphone started out $600 on contract. Ive since horizontally-graded to the E71, and am eagerly awaiting the true successor, the E7. Sure it has flaws (dont all phones), but if my past experience with nokia is any indication, itll be a rock solid, feature rich, and doesnt have the dropped calls that all my ifriends blame att about.

  • Donny

    Why are there dumb phone stories on a tech blog? Nokia doesn’t make smartphones.

    • http://www.sadude.com SaDudE

      I guess the question as to why dumb idiots like yourself troll on tech blog even though you don’t understand a damn thing that is written needs to be asked as well

  • numetheus

    Nokia makes some amazing phones. I don’t know why they take so long to adopt new specifications for the phones they make. This phone should have come out late 2009 at the latest and now we are in to 2011. Symbian also hasn’t evolved very much to keep up with the current trends in smart phones. It’s almost like they don’t want to compete. Another company that is like this is RIM. The difference is that RIM has its niche in the corporate market.

  • Anonymous

    I still maintain that Nokia needs to outsource their software. This phone isn’t going to have MeeGo, and they apparently don’t want to use Android or WP7.

    Their hardware is always good, and their cameras are (arguably) the best in the business. Hell, maybe they should trade some of their camera know-how for software help. They need something, desperately. They’re absurdly far behind.

  • Anonymous

    the question is why

  • Jgoitom23

    i always loved nokia form factor but i love android more if they would put android on there phones i would buy nokia phones all the time. There phones rock in style,

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