BARCELONA, Spain – Another Nokia World is over and I have to say it’s been by far the most exciting one yet. One of the most impressive devices (the most impressive device) ever to come out of Espoo was revealed and the reaction has been utterly stunning.
In case you’ve been hiding under a momentous rock this week, we’ve rounded up the key stories from the event – click through for the highlights.
Story of the week is of course the N97. Revealed on Tuesday morning by Anssi, the never-seen-before device (I think the N95 was the last big one that was kept truly secret pre-announcement) was unveiled to what was (and still is) a very warm welcome. I had the chance to play with it during the week and it’s simply stunning. I just can’t wait for it to go on sale.
N97 launch story
N97 first impressions video
Interview with the N97 designer
The big services story of the week was Nokia Maps 3.0 and Maps on Ovi. Again I got a chance to play with these and can stay they are utterly stunning. I wasn’t expecting maps to go in the direction it has and now it has, the whole Ovi strategy is really starting to gather momentum. 3D maps, landmarks in 3D and terrain mapping all add to the experience. Also the way maps are tied into the device and Ovi and how they all work together gives it a real point of difference. Well worth checking out if you haven’t already.
Ngage is set for some interesting developments as well next year. With the introduction of the N97, new technologies are suddenly available for games developers which can significantly enhance the gaming experience. Touch screen games are already on the way, but the transition to widescreen is set to happen also as the N97 is the first widescreen Ngage device. We’ll also see location-based gaming happen next year along with a range of contextual based gaming experiences. We caught up with the head of Ngage, check out his interviews below.
The future of Ngage
Ngage and the N97
The final big story for us was the introduction of Nokia Messaging. Although still in beta, it’s due for final release sometime early in the new year. Along with the introduction of a solid email client, Messaging is a multipurpose app which will pull together your email and IM accounts in one place, enabling you to send messages through a variety of means, all in one place. We caught up with the messaging at Nokia World, check out his video below.
Messaging goes social
So there you have it. Another Nokia World over, and we’re now counting down to next year´s event. Before that happens though, I reckon a lot of things will have changed. 2009 is an exciting year for Nokia products and services. I, personally, can’t wait. How about you?