Epic Mobile News
- Orange (68)
- O2 (61)
- Three (22)
- Vodafone (92)
- Virgin (20)
- T-Mobile (44)
- Industry News (1097)
- iPhone (258)
- Google Phone (42)
- Microsoft Phone (24)
- Yahoo Mobile (5)
- Latest News
- Most Popular Articles
Nokia to launch iPhone killer in October
A mobile expected to be a rival to the iPhone is to be released by Nokia in the UK in October.
The Finnish manufacturer clearly has an eye on the lucrative Christmas market and will hope that the new N96 will prove to be as big a success as its predecessor the N95.
The N95's appeal rested on powerful internet access, Wi-Fi connectivity, and a five megapixel camera.
An impressive 16GB of internal memory, a 5MP camera and access to assisted GPS navigation through Nokia Maps will all be strong selling points for its sequel.
Unlike the iPhone though, it won't have a touchscreen meaning that rumours that such a Nokia device (nicknamed the Tube by imaginative bloggers) is in the pipeline will still persist.
Samsung, LG and HTC have all jumped on the touchscreen phone bandwagon with much publicity this summer and surely it is only a matter of time before market giant Nokia follows suit.
Until that day arrives, Nokia has confirmed that the N96 will be available to buy through 3, Carphone Warehouse, Phones4U, Orange, T-Mobile and Vodafone.
Nokia is fighting a sales war with the iPhone's maker Apple on several fronts. Earlier this month it fixed its guns on Apple's iTunes service by agreeing a deal with Warner (the company that has Madonna, James Blunt and REM on its roster) to offer unlimited music downloads.
Comes With Music is distinct from other services in that users can keep all the music they have downloaded during a 12-month free trial period.
Nokia has already snapped up big music players Universal and Sony BMG and such deals should ensure that smaller companies come on board soon.
The new deals make good business sense for the major record companies who are looking to prop up falling CD sales and will be wise to the fact that Nokia managed to flog 146 million music phones last year, providing a captive audience for Comes With Music.
Industry News posted on 01 August 2008
Comments
N96...great name
Do you really think a phone with the name "N96" is going to be an iPhone killer?
What? Have people been waiting for the N96 over the N91, N92, N93, etc?
I don't really think so...
Comment posted by Anonymous on 01/08/2008 14:27:39
+1
Absolutely right.
Comment posted by Anonymous on 02/08/2008 22:35:55
N96
It looks like the LG Chocolate. For Nokia's sake, be more creative!
Comment posted by Anonymous on 01/08/2008 23:40:02
What's in a name?
EVERYTHING!
At least call it the 'uPhone'.
Comment posted by Anonymous on 02/08/2008 02:34:43
Copyright
'uPhone', by the way, I thought of first.
cyd@dsl.pipex.com
Comment posted by Anonymous on 02/08/2008 02:38:54
A real phone with great features but...
Nokia have a habit of putting in some ace features that make the phone so much more desirable to use but their designs are so bland. Couple that together with the fact that the Symbian OS is sooooo sloooow, then those are your biggest compromises. Do you go for an iPhone, which looks ace, goes very quickly but doesn't have anything useful for your social productivity - video camera, editing suite, flash, etc, or do you go for a phone that's packed to the gills with gubbins, yet can't move fast enough to catch its own breath? The compromise, is yours...
Comment posted by Anonymous on 02/08/2008 03:45:46
No touchscreen
Would you rather use crude buttons or a swift touchscreen to navigate around? Come on Nokia, get with it.
Comment posted by Anonymous on 02/08/2008 09:52:57
iPhone killer?
iPhone? Even the latest, new iPhone was old-hat technology before it was released.
Nokia already have a iPhone killer and have done for nearly 18 months now... The N95!
Apple are just playing catch-up in the phone market, and very poorly at that, with a product that is using the name taken from a successful replacement to the old MP3 player and a lot of high intensity, in yer face advertising.
Comment posted by Anonymous on 02/08/2008 10:55:54
N95 8GB kills iPhone, N96 will obliterate it
The iPhone does not have nearly as many features as the N95. Hell, my Sony Ericsson V630i has the same camera, 3G, phones other phones, texts, and can browse the internet, although it doesn't have a smudge screen.
I do, however, like the OS the iPhone runs, being a Mac user and all!
Nokia and Symbian is the way to go.
Comment posted by Anonymous on 02/08/2008 13:14:45
Now I love Apple, but...
... the thing is, Nokia seems to be the only big company in the world taking the threat of Apple seriously. They recognise that Windows is stalling and so have bought Symbian, they recognise that media has to be at the forefront of their business plan and thus the Nseries is made just for that, and perhaps most importantly: they acknowledge that attempting to imitate Apple can only lose them market share and so are holding back on touchscreen technology until they have something worthwhile advertising. Apple has nothing to fear in Microsoft, Samsung, LG or any of these imitators. Nokia is their opposition of the future, perhaps Sony too, if they get their act together.
Comment posted by Anonymous on 02/08/2008 14:30:55
Rubbish
Speaking as a current iPhone 3G owner and a former N95 owner, the phone won't even come close. The iPhone's appeal is its ability to integrate with so many other services and its sleek operating system. The clunky and unreliable Symbian OS and Nokia's insistence on proprietary services just will not cut the mustard.
Comment posted by Anonymous on 02/08/2008 16:28:17
Yup, pants name
iPhone users crave style over substance - N96 is hardly going to hit the spot.
Comment posted by Anonymous on 02/08/2008 16:32:04
HTC
I hope you're aware the HTC Touch came out before the original iPhone and the TouchFLO interface is at least equal to the Apple opposition.
Nokia is the biggest selling phone manufacturer in the world - don't pretend the name "N96" even matters.
Comment posted by Anonymous on 02/08/2008 18:22:39
The iPhone is overrated
Sure the iPhone looks good and the price has improved, but functionality-wise the N95 is amazing. All the iPhone has going for it is the internet, which I must say is good.
Comment posted by Anonymous on 02/08/2008 21:10:33
N96 is the best phone ever!
The Nokia N96 will live up to its name as the iPhone killer. Its features are mouthwatering!
Comment posted by Anonymous on 03/08/2008 00:53:28
N96 navigation
It's not going to be anywhere near as easy to use as an iPhone.
Comment posted by Anonymous on 03/08/2008 10:29:45
iPhone... so original
The only thing the iPhone has over ANY other phone is the nice interface!
It lacks with its features and availability on other networks.
Comment posted by Anonymous on 03/08/2008 11:50:22
Sounds good
I am pleased to see that Nokia have not been tempted like the other companies to make a shoddy iPhone-alike. It is refreshing to see them still pushing forward with their attractive, solid, adaptable phones. The iPhone is pants.
Comment posted by Anonymous on 03/08/2008 12:20:10
No iPhone
This is no iPhone killer, just an iterative improvement on the N95 (which I own). Fundamentally the screen is too small for web browsing, and the interface nowhere near as user friendly as the iPhone. At best I expect the Nokia 'Tube' to be a poor man's rip off of the iPhone. There can be only one market leader, and it sure ain't Nokia no more!
Comment posted by Anonymous on 03/08/2008 16:41:53
Not even close to an iPhone killer
At least until the release of the Tube, Nokia have nothing to rival the iPhone 3G. The Tube was featured in the new Batman movie if anyone has seen it.
Comment posted by Anonymous on 03/08/2008 17:53:47
Dream on
iPhone links with iTunes and is brilliantly designed, people will accept slightly lower spec camera and so on because the iPhone is such a joy to own. I can't see people queueing to own an N96... would you?
Comment posted by Anonymous on 03/08/2008 20:23:27
No multi-touch
How can you be an iPhone killer if you don't offer at least a decent multi-touch interface?
The race to features is still on but only Apple delivers the experience.
Comment posted by Anonymous on 04/08/2008 06:26:58
jajajaja
How many iPhone killers do you know? How many are successful? The same old story...
Comment posted by Anonymous on 04/08/2008 17:11:10
Have your say - Post a new Comment!