Nokia unveils new laptop

[Huckleberry Pie]

Source: Nokia Conversations

GLOBAL – Nokia has just whipped the dust sheet off the Nokia Booklet 3G. A brand new breed of portable device for Nokia, this mini laptop PC sees the company step foot on freshly cut turf, and we’re a little dumb-struck with excitement at the prospect of the experience that this bite-size Booklet promises to deliver when it arrives. Not to mention what it means bigger picture, and how this product could affect the entire mobile landscape for the better (we’ll save that for another story), but let’s not get ahead of ourselves just yet.

First, let’s get down off our tip-toes, take a deep breath, and soak up all the initial details on what the upcoming Nokia Booklet 3G mini laptop is set to deliver when it lands on laps. Read on for every shred of info currently available on this landmark new product, and get the first close-up look at the Nokia Booklet 3G mini laptop in our photo gallery.

The new Nokia Booklet 3G will be a Windows-based machine, supported by an efficient Intel Atom processor that promises the performance of a full-function PC. It’s efficiency credentials are boldly punctuated with battery life that stretches up to 12 hours (with normal daily use, of course – don’t expect a 12-hour Quake-fest off a single hit of juice).

Turning our attention to mini matters of a tape-measure nature, the Nokia Booklet 3G comes toting a glass 10.1-inch HD display (it has an HDMI port for HD video out). This lives within its smart aluminium shell which measures in at just 2cm thin and tips the scales at around a kilogram to ensure it’s extremely portable.

Connecting at speed is crucial with a product of this nature, so the Booklet 3G has been designed with fast downloading and uploading front of mind – it’s 3G/HSPA ready for rapid mobile broadband anywhere-access on the move. Wi-Fi has also been wedged into it’s slim body. Plus, it supports hot-swappable SIM card functionality.

It’s talents don’t end there, with Nokia’s mini laptop PC also featuring onboard assisted-GPS with Ovi Maps neatly sat in the passenger seat. There’s a single front-facing camera nestled above the 10.1-inch HD screen for video chat, with Bluetooth and a built-in SD card reader also making appearances.

You may be wondering why Nokia is adding to its range of products with an ultra portable laptop PC? Well, Nokia’s Executive Vice President for Devices, Kai Oistamo, summed it up simply as follows:

“A growing number of people want the computing power of a PC with the full benefits of mobility. We are in the business of connecting people and the Nokia Booklet 3G is a natural evolution for us. Nokia has a long and rich heritage in mobility and with the outstanding battery life, premium design and all day, always on connectivity, we will create something quite compelling. In doing so we will make the personal computer more social, more helpful and more personal.”

There’s already a lot of info to digest here, but there are still more details to come at Nokia World 09 on 2 September – expect official word on where the Nokia Booklet 3G will be available, news on how much it’ll cost, along with a detailed list of specs for the number-hungry among us.

Not actually a first for Nokia, since they did manufacture PCs and monitors in the past, but it is a bit of a surprise that a company now known for mostly dealing with cellphones decides to join the Eee bandwagon... Will it be a Macbook Air killer? And will our Hackintosh friends find a way to run Snow Leopard on this device? And the only thing that bugs me is the hefty $820 price tag and non-serviceable RAM. But yeah, they did a nice try at making a big comeback in the computer industry.

[Bulletproofboy]

looks ok

good booklet

and it looks good but ill stay with snoy vaio

[Chris]

Looks like a cross between those coloured Dell Inspirons and an old MacBook... meh.

[Alvas.]

It looks good but Nokia is not ready to enter the computer world, I think its better with mobiles.

[Huckleberry Pie]

It looks good but Nokia is not ready to enter the computer world, I think its better with mobiles.

Just like when Apple first released the iPhone, in which it lacked a bunch of features.

[WRX22B1998]

Hmm this netbook to me just looks like every other netbook.

What does it have that'll stand out? Ah i read, GPS, simcard reader...

But $800...idn about that, you can buy a proper GPS for like $200 here. simcard reader Im assuming is for the 3G/HSDPA so you can use your simcard for net? In which case people would just use the connection on their phone.