We still have some time to sit, drumming our fingers, before the N8 arrives in the UK, but we may have already had a glimpse of Nokia's next super phone -- the N9.
Pictures were leaked from the Chinese website Baidu and picked up by Engadget which showed what looks like a prototype of the new Qwerty-keyboard sliding N9.
The device looks to be Nokia's flagship model once the N8 has had its time, with a suggested release date of December.
It's not entirely clear what OS the prototype is running on, but it could be Symbian 3, Symbian 4 or most likely, the fruits of Nokia's partnership with Intel -- MeeGo.
It has the look of a mini-MacBook with its keyboard and brushed aluminium casing, which is no bad thing style-wise.
The N9 would be part of a new wave of smart phones designed to take Nokia back to the top of the tree after a period of Android phones and Apple's iPhone dominating the high-end market.
Nokia is still fixed on using Symbian, which is due a refresh with Symbian 3 making its debut on the N8. But if the N9 is running MeeGo, that is a potentially significant move. The open-source OS was revealed at this year's Mobile World Congress, the result of a partnership between Nokia and Intel. It's designed for both phones and netbooks.
We had a glimpse of MeeGo in official screenshots and video, and felt it could be what Nokia uses to compete with the other Linux-based OS in Android on its smarter smart phones.
The N9 could well be the first. Are you excited about the potential of this device, and could Nokia be finally scrapping Symbian for its high-end phones? Let us know what you think.
Image credit: Baidu
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Comments 9
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billfred 20 August, 2010 10:41
awesome x awesome = awesome sqd
Anonymous 20 August, 2010 14:22
As a layman - can anyone explain to me whether as Meego & Android are based on Linux if their apps are cross compatible?
billfred 20 August, 2010 15:52
basically, no.
Anonymous 21 August, 2010 11:09
n8 great for the girls and boys n9 perfect for techno freaks....... cant wait for the n9 64gb???
Anonymous 21 August, 2010 22:56
weight 160gm
160g，全触å±
4.0英å‹ã€1677万色ã€WVGAã€TFT液晶å±
MeeGo1系统
QSD8250
512MB RAM
1GB NANDM
64GB机身大容é‡å˜å‚¨ï¼Œæ”¯æŒ32GBå˜å‚¨å¡æ‰©å±•
è“牙2.1ã€IEEE 802.11b/g/nã€HSPA+
500万åƒç´ å¡å°”蔡å¸è®¤è¯é•œå¤´ï¼ŒåŒLED补光ç¯ï¼Œæ”¯æž¶
720p@30fps动æ€å›¾åƒå½•åˆ¶
1500mAh电æ±
http://tieba.baidu.com/f?kz=741076930
Anonymous 21 August, 2010 22:57
160g 64gb on board check out
http://tieba.baidu.com/f?kz=741076930
Anonymous 21 September, 2010 11:35
After the N900 Nokia would have to PROVE to me, written in blood, that the phone is better than symbian as a phone and better than Maemo as a web device and:
Works with Ovi Suite
Works with Ovi Maps and can download them
At the same time they would have to make Ovi Suite into a reasonable software package instead of a bug ridden pile of junk which only supports a subset of phones and slows my, quite powerful, pc down to a crawl and takes great delight in crashing.
Nokia don't just have a style issue or a hardware issue or an operating system issue. They have a fundamental lack of customer service concept issue.
My N900 is destined to be a 32 gig media player with a flashy screen and very poor battery life.
I've used Nokia phones as a preference since 1993. Unless the conditions above are met the n900 will be my last. The n95 should have been my last but google didn't allow offline maps when I got it.
Anonymous 4 December, 2010 11:15
no micro sd slot??????
Anonymous 4 December, 2010 13:03
the n900 is such a powerful device for a techie! if you believe that the n900 is just a media player with a flashy screen then you have either not dug deep enough, or do not posess the knowlegde to unlock its full potential.... sure its not for the masses, i would not recommend it to your average joe but if you have a good knowledge of software and linux then this phone can do a lot more for you than anything else currently available on the market
sure the battery life isn't great (i always keep my charger with me) or a battery powered chager if i won't be able to get to a plug. But its basically a computer and my n900s processor is heavily overclocked so the battery last even less time than normal.
Also i have maps of europe loaded on my device all fine so i don't know what your problem is there.
anyway i am looking foward to the n9 and will probably pre-order as soon as it is available.