Behind the scenes on the Nokia E7 hardware design
By The Prodigal Fool, published on 3 February 2011
As you know, we have serious doubts about Nokia’s software strategy and we’re particularly worried about how sloppy Symbian now feels. With frequent crashes, poor usability and just plain dodgy aesthetics, it seems like there is very little attention to detail on the part of Nokia’s software people. That’s odd because it’s the exact opposite from the hardware team. The Finnish firm may be losing the plot when it comes to software but their hardware is still second to none. Indeed, when we reported from Nokia World on the E7 earlier this year, we told you that
It has a gorgeous, mostly metal, body; it inherits the funky flip-up screen mechanism from the N97; and it has a proper hardware keyboard that is really impossible to fault. This thing is a master class in industrial design. It looks and feels stunning.
Perhaps our friends at Espoo are aware of their strength because, in the run up to the E7′s oft delayed commercial launch, they’re putting their focus on the hardware design in a new marketing video. We love the hardware of the E7 and so are pleased to share the video with you. Now we just hope the software doesn’t let the E7 down. Too much.
Behind the scenes on the Nokia E7 hardware design
As you know, we have serious doubts about Nokia’s software strategy and we’re particularly worried about how sloppy Symbian now feels. With frequent crashes, poor usability and just plain dodgy aesthetics, it seems like there is very little attention to detail on the part of Nokia’s software people. That’s odd because it’s the exact opposite [...]
6 Responses to “Behind the scenes on the Nokia E7 hardware design”
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Ivan Y
3 February 2011
From what I’ve read on tech blogs, all Nokia insiders/ex-employees claim that software has been an afterthought as hardware department runs the show.
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Jeff
11 February 2011
Nokia was on top of the pile in the late 19990s… I’ll never forget my very first cellphone, the ubiquitous Nokia 51xx candy bar whose monochrome LCD display actually featured clean text complete with proper kerning. A small detail, yes, but one that really stuck out to me – text was beautiful and easy to read on such a simple display. The entire interface of the phone was elegant and functional.
Down the road I picked up a Nokia Symbian phone… the color display was garish, but the handling of e-mail accounts was simple and straightforward, the browser was advanced for the time, there were plenty of aftermarket apps out there… then it all sort of stopped there.
Windows Mobile became mildly palletable, then Apple jumped into the fray, then recently Google more or less gave HTC reason for being. Since then, Nokia’s all but left the US market… and in their place left a vacuum. If the overall design and build of the E7 strikes you, the HTC Desire Z (sold in the US as the G2) is worth a look… and the recent Android OS is both elegant and surprisingly solid.
It’s a shame to see a heavyweight like Nokia fall behind, but I’ve been steadily impressed watching HTC march to the head of the pack with their materials and assembly quality and overall specs, yet still remain relatively quiet, content to let carriers rebrand them.
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Jeff
11 February 2011
oh, and then there’s WebOS… so beautiful, and so underloved…. if only Nokia hardware could run that…
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Ivan Y
11 February 2011
Jeff — if Nokia were smart, they’d been the ones to buy Palm instead of HP. This way, they’d had their own OS they so desperately want instead of getting in bed with MS now (not that they have much choice now – it’s either WP7 or Android).
But back when HP acquired Palm, Nokia was still so full of themselves, I don’t even recall any serious rumors of Nokia making a play for Palm. As it stands right now, I’m skeptical HP can leverage WebOS on their own… And just like when Pre was announced, new WebOS devices won’t show up until this “summer”. By that time, we will have iPad 2, Android 3.0 tablets, BB’s PlayBook, and iPhone 5.
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I agree. I think WebOS is perhaps the best mobile platform available.
If only Nokia had bought Palm when it had the chance.
Imagine Nokia’s world-beating hardware coupled with Palm’s incredible software.
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JFH
3 February 2011
With frequent crashes: No
Poor usability: Somehwat
Plain dodgy aesthetics: Yes