Symbian still alive

The recent publicity surrounding Nokia's decision to adopt Windows Phone as its primary smartphone platform has stopped the company from pushing ahead with its latest Symbian flagship device, the E7 which goes on sale in Australia this week.

The E7 is similar to the last Nokia smartphone

The E7 is similar to the last Nokia smartphone, the N8, with the most notable difference being the addition of a slide-out QWERTY keyboard.

Running, Symbian^3, the E7 does what a lot of Android handsets do by integrating social network services and supports third-party apps through the Ovi app store. For developers Java and Qt are available.

Last month Nokia announced an alliance with Microsoft to ship Windows Phone OS as its primary smartphone platform. With the first handsets but to be released, Nokia's E7 continues the Symbian device roadmap.

The E7 as an ideal mix of business

Nokia is pitching the E7 as an ideal mix of business and pleasure with integrated Mail for Exchange, Quickoffice, VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) support and a location-based theft control feature.

Nokia Australia managing director, Chris Carr said the smartphone is however the primary business device for many Australians, however business users - like all consumers - don't just want functionality, they expect "flexibility, reliability and style".

"Nokia has always believed in creating a range of handsets that meet specific needs of different consumers - for the business user, the Nokia E7 gives new meaning to the mobile office," Carr said.

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