Nokia Launches Flip Phones
Nokia phones have traditionally offered the “candy bar” design style where the phone does not fold, and has buttons and the screen on the front. A competing design style, the “clamshell” or “flip” phone was espoused to a greater extent by Motorola and Asian handset vendors, more so in Korea than Japan. The flip feature protects both the screen and the keypad when the phone is not in use, and also reduced length. Over time, the clamshell format has entered more into favor with customers, but Nokia has lacked any handsets with this design. Now, Nokia has jumped into clamshell designs with both feet, launching five new models in Singapore this week just prior to the Communicasia show. With the phones, Nokia has also also filled out their lineup, bolstering their sparse mid-market offerings. The linked article has loads of numeric market data for those interested. Note: I’ll be at the Communicasia show in Singapore this week, and hope to post some stories from the show.
