OCTOBER 3, 2008 Nokia Corp. unveiled its long-awaited touch-screen phone Thursday, a challenge by the world's biggest mobile-phone maker to Apple Inc.'s trail-blazing iPhone. Though the iPhone claims just a fraction of the sales of Nokia's high-end devices, it has developed a following with its slick design and access to iTunes music downloads. The iPhone's success has prompted competitors such as South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co., Sony Ericsson and Taiwan's HTC Corp. to push out rival offerings. Finland-based Nokia has waited more than a year to respond with its answer to the iPhone, the 5800 XpressMusic smart phone. The device's hardware and services -- pitched to have mass-market appeal -- include eight gigabytes of memory, a 3.2-inch screen and access to Nokia's Ovi Internet-service portal. Nokia The 5800 is Nokia's first touch-screen phone, an answer to rival Apple's iPhone. The 5800 will cost â¬279 ($391) before taxes and subsidies when released in the fourth quarter, which includes the key holiday shopping season. That is nearly half the â¬499 price charged by some European operators for an unlocked eight-gigabyte iPhone. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122296563691798711.html? http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article4869808.ece Nokia said at an analyst and media event in London it would start selling the phone shortly, pricing it at 279 euros ($395) excluding subsidies and taxes, which it said was roughly half the price of the other main touch-screen phones on the market. "The price and positioning of the product may result in substantial demand and will undoubtedly put some pressure on Apple," said Ben Wood, research head at CCS Insight. The price means consumers in large markets will get the phone for free from operators when agreeing to sign a contract. The company also will be able to make a dent in emerging markets. "We expect it to be listed with most of the (mobile phone) operators," Jo Harlow, head of music phones, told Reuters in an interview. Nokia said all major music labels and most independent labels will offer their tracks as part of Nokia's 'free' music bundle "Comes with Music," raising the total number of tracks to around 5 million. "Apple's days of dominant digital music retailer outside the United States are numbered, if they don't do anything radical," said Rob Wells, head of Universal's digital music business. http://www.forbes.com/reuters/feeds...44Z_01_L2531875_RTRIDST_0_NOKIA-UPDATE-3.html
it looks alot smaller than the iphone from the vids i've seen, that could be a good thing as i think the iphone is too big to be a phone even tho it is a phone