Symbian may live to fight another day on another Nokia N-Series handset

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Mixed messages coming out of camp Nokia this week. Just a few days ago Doug Dawson was saying that top-end smartphones from the Finnish phone giants would be ditching the flailing Symbian software that has dominated their range for the last few years. “Going forward, N-series devices will be based on MeeGo,” he said.

Nokia’s Anssi Vanjoki has other ideas, if a post on his blog is anything to go by.

“Symbian and MeeGo are the best software for our smartest devices. As such, we have no plans to use any other software,” he said. MeeGo AND Symbian you say?

“The Nokia N8 will be our only Nseries device on Symbian^3. Of course, we ‘never comment on future products’, but a Symbian^4 Nseries device is a strong possibility. A very strong possibility.”

Now you’re just being a tease, Anssi. Still, you have to wonder why Nokia would bother sticking with Symbian for their top-flight phones at all, revamped or otherwise. It’s never been the most popular of platforms.

Oh and that rumour about Nokia and Android becoming new bedfellows? Well that at least has been put to rest by Vanjoki. “Despite rumours to the contrary, there are no plans to introduce an Android device from Nokia,” he said.

What do you think? A wise idea to keep Symbian in reserve if MeeGo proves unpopular, or is it just time for Nokia to let go and move on? Time perhaps to give Google’s OS a spin too at least, if not instead of their own OS? Let us know.

Gerald Lynch
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