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In February, we got our first glimpse at Symbian^3 but at that point, we could only imagine the revamped mobile OS with words and pictures. Now we can see it in action on an actual device.
On Tuesday, Nokia introduced the N8, the first smartphone to run on Symbian 3. Due to ship in select markets starting in Q3, the N8 features a 3.5-inch, 640×360 capacitive touch screen that lends itself well to some of the new changes to Symbian, such as the single-tap interaction model, addition of multiple home screens, and customization abilities. In addition, the display will have multitouch capabilities.
Multimedia also plays a huge role on the N8. The smartphone rocks a 12-megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss optics and a Xenon flash. It’s also capable of HD video recording and playback and has HDMI output and Dolby Digital Plus Surround Sound, so you can hook it up to your home theater system. For on the go, the N8 gives you access to Web TV from such channels as CNN, E, Paramount, and National Geographic. Did we mention that the smartphone has 16GB of built-in storage plus a microSD expansion slot?
With Symbian 3’s new 3D graphics acceleration, Nokia is also touting the N8 as a gaming device. Of course, as a Nokia phone, you’ll have access to the company’s Ovi services, including the Ovi app store and free turn-by-turn navigation via Ovi Maps.
The Nokia N8 will retail for around 370 Euros (around $490 U.S.), and U.S. availability is expected soon after the global launch. While Symbian and Nokia smartphones are quite popular overseas, they face an uphill climb here in North America given the lack of carrier support and high unlocked prices. Plus, the Symbian OS just pales in comparison to the Androids and iPhones of today. However, given the changes made in Symbian 3, does the N8 seem like an attractive option to you?
