Nokia ‘very interested in tablets,’ says Nokia exec

At the unveiling of Nokia’s new flagship, the Lumia 925, one of its executives said that the Finnish firm is “very interested in tablets.” This is according to CNET.

Executive vice president of smart devices for Nokia, Jo Harlow, said, “We’re very interested in tablets and that’s an area we’re looking at.” Sadly, she wouldn’t go into the specifics.

She went on to say, “I don’t have any product news I can share.”

Currently, Nokia is the only major device manufacturer that hasn’t come up with its own tablet. Although this may seem strange to some, it’s understandable why Nokia is quite apprehensive when it comes to the tablet market.

True, there are many manufacturers that have tried to market their own tablet, but none have come close to challenging the dominant device in the tablet market, the iPad.

Word on the street is, Nokia is working on a tablet and has been trying out various form factors. If ever the Finnish firm does launch a tablet, we’re almost certain that they will launch a tablet running Microsoft’s Windows 8 or Windows RT, given their partnership with Microsoft.

It is rumoured, however, that Nokia is considering an Android-powered tablet, with Nokia CEO, Stephen Elop previously discussing the advantages of a 7-inch Android tablet.

Do you think Nokia is working on a tablet? Share your thoughts through a comment on our Facebook page.

Tags: Jo Harlow, Microsoft, Nokia, Tablet, Windows 8, Windows RT
Category Tablet News |

Report says Microsoft cooking up a smaller surface tablet

It looks like Microsoft is cooking up a smaller Surface tablet to rival smaller tablets the competition has to offer such as the Apple iPad mini or the Google Nexus 7, according to The Register.

The news site reports, “Microsoft has quietly changed its OEM certification guidelines for Windows 8 to allow devices with lower screen resolutions, a move that could mean smaller Windows tablets are on the way.

“ZDNet’s Ed Bott was first to spot the rule change made earlier this month, which lowers the minimum screen size for a device bearing the Windows 8 logo to a petite 1024-by-768 pixels.

“Previously, the lowest such devices could go was 1366-by-768, which has become the standard resolution for consumer PC laptops with screens in the 13.3-to-15.6 inch range.”

So is Microsoft planning to launch a smaller Windows 8-powered tablet? According to the site, “As El Reg reported in January, sales of such tablets – all of which have screens measuring 10 inches or larger – weren’t particularly strong over the 2012 holiday shopping season.

“Meanwhile, customers were snapping up devices with smaller screens, such as the Asus-built Google Nexus 7, Amazon’s Kindle line, and the iPad mini – and some analysts have predicted that the iPad mini will outsell its larger cousin this year.”

All Microsoft was willing to say was, “This doesn’t imply that we’re encouraging partners to regularly use a lower screen resolution. In fact, we see customers embracing the higher resolution screens that make a great Windows experience. We understand that partners exploring designs for certain markets could find greater design flexibility helpful.”

Of course, since Microsoft is yet to reveal plans of launching a smaller Surface tablet, take this with a pinch of salt.

Do you think Microsoft is planning to launch a smaller Surface tablet? Let us know what you think through a comment on our Facebook page.

Tags: display, low resolution, Microsoft, Microsoft Surface, Microsoft Surface Pro, Microsoft Surface RT, Microsoft Surface tablet, Windows 8, Windows RT
Category Hardware News |

Analysts say Nokia will not launch a Lumia tablet at Mobile World Congress

Almost every phone manufacturer has released a tablet. So, you may be expecting Nokia, makers of Windows Phone 8 devices such as the Lumia 920, to release a Lumia tablet powered by Windows 8. Unfortunately, analysts at Strategy Analytics do not agree.

On their website, the analysts say, “There has been intense speculation in the global media this week that Nokia will launch its first Lumia tablet with a Microsoft operating system at Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, Spain, between February 25th to 28th, 2013.

“Following extensive channel checks by our Tablet & Touchscreen Strategies (TTS) service, we understand Nokia will not unveil a tablet with a Microsoft operating system at this year’s Mobile World Congress (MWC).

“We believe Nokia’s strategy will be “smartphones first” for MWC this year.

“And rightly so. Nokia will want to expand its Lumia smartphone range and solidify its growing leadership of the global WP8 market.”

Will Nokia launch a Lumia tablet? If it does, when should we expect to see it? All the site was will to say was, “Tablet fans will need to be a little more patient!”

Do you agree with Strategy Analytics when it says Nokia will not launch a Lumia tablet at MWC, or do you think the Finnish firm will? Share your opinion through a comment on our Facebook page.

Tags: Lumia tablet, Microsoft, Nokia, Nokia Lumia tablet, Windows 8, Windows 8 tablet
Category Tablet News |