Can Nokia connect smartphones with people in the U.S.?

Thank you for your thoughts on this issue. When reading it I thought of my response to the Survey you all posted. At&t and T-Mobile I think are the only providers that Nokia is more willing to work with because of the GSM technology (this is when I wish verizon would just give up and convert from CDMA). Given the limited market and major control that the cellphone companies I think you are are right, that Nokia is just unwilling to give up what they are proud of making. The other problem I see is the free phone market of things has diminished the value of the products, people jump on the sidekicks and such that do not last that long, but gives companies like T-mobile and At&t an excuse to sell for the shortterm instead of Nokia and the long term of a reliable phone. It could be the market plan by the cellphone companies to be sure that phones will fall apart by two years or shorter to keep their customer base, since most nokia phones tend to live longer (based on my experience), then maybe that is where cellphone companies want nokia to step back. Just an idea of course, but again thank you for your opinions it certainly opened up different ideas I had not considered before.

The firmware updates definately come very very slow to devices here in the US, I had a nokia n95-3 and its still on version 20 i believe, whereas the latest one out is v31. I have since moved on to the e71, which i love btw, but this time I picked up the e71-1 model. Currently Im on tmobile, and would really really appreciate it if nokia…or any other smartphone makers added tmobiles 3G bands available in unlocked models.

I think that T-Mobile is their best bet. T-Mobile and Nokia are already well connected in Europe and with T-Mo trying to promote their growing 3G network they really could use a few more high-end phones. Best Buy is selling the E71 with T-Mobile service for $200. That is getting close to a competitive price range.

It will be very hard to get NOkia on ATT I talked to a guy it’s because they can use so many application for free on a Nokia and not use ATT services. As well people in America are very stupid with technology and using an S60 devices would probably make there brains oooze out of there head. It can be confusing if you don’t take the time to learn. Also Nokia will never really sell that well only to the few people because people will not pay 500 for a phone it needs to be subsidized by ATT tmobile it will not happen because there is no 3G network. Nokia needs to bend to ATT rules and will probably muck with the phones and turn them into a mess so that you can’t have certain application like VOIP or GPS with out using ATT apps on the phone. I want an Nokia S60 phone I”m so sick of my iPhone but i’m not shelling out 500 dollars when i don’t have that money if it was 199 with a 2 year agreement then I might do it.

I love Nokia phones. I buy them unlocked & wished like hell they would attacked the U.S. market. I have owned 9500 & e90 comunicators! Waiting for the n97. Glad to see your site.

If I have to buy through a third party to get the subsidy, I am totally fine with that. My first AT&T phone was the Nokia 6682 S60 through then a nokia link from NokiaUSA to Letstalk, I got the subsidy and an unlocked phone. Nokia please cut deals with third party people, I can still renew through them.

The Nokia E71 is $200 in Best Buy Mobile stores with a T-Mobile 2-year agreement.

I really wish Nokia would bring their devices to CDMA- I’d definitely have looked into an S60 device if there were any available on VZW, but there aren’t, so I got a Centro instead. (Ah, Palm OS…)

I mean, Nokia makes CDMA dumbphones, do they just think CDMA users aren’t interested in smartphones or something? Of course, there’s the carrier wall as well… Ah well, I really have no choice but Verizon but it’s really a shame about their phone selection.

One thing I feel obliged to comment on…

I find a strange issue with your article… as you mention that in the US, maybe people are reluctant to PAY, and prefer to stick with subsidised phones by the network.

Forgive me, but that’s the CONVERSE of what the real issue is…

In the sense that in the UK/Europe, this is ALWAYS how we have done things, and we in the UK are resolutely used to our new handsets coming with HEAVY network subsidisation – certainly not the other way round.

Where I think this DOES perhaps explain one potential reason, as far as the US of A is concerned, is that in real terms, the subsidies you speak of, are actually very LOW compared to the UK.

As a result, even high end phones, very high end phones, as pricey as they come, are actually very cheap to new users, or upgrading customers, in the UK, because of this high network subsidisation. And for those wanting the very best handsets, if the cost is not free on the particular tariff deal they want, then this is where the networks score, because it encourages the user to go for a more pricey monthly tariff, to offset/reduce the cost of the handset, down to zero (and we the customer actually do this in droves over here, as it’s almost like a form of interest free credit, as opposed to paying up-front for a SIM free phone)..

In the US, you talk of subsidies, but from my friend who now lives in the US (he was brought up there with dual citizenship actually), we have discussed at length the clear differences between the US, and the UK (he used to be a Branch Manager for the Carphone Warehouse, one of the biggest UK national mobile phone chains, when he lived in the UK, funnily enough).

And it is clear to me, subsidies are NOT great at all in the US – not when stacked up against the UK situation.

So in actual fact this means that there is maybe little mileage in Nokia releasing high end devices mainstream in the US, if in so doing, even on contract, the handset cost is going to be so prohibitively high, as to have little market for the device.

In the UK, when the then N95 original first launched, everyone and their dog wanted one. But because it was the then most costly handset available, it meant that the handset, even with high UK subsidisation, was still only FREE on higher value tariffs.

The end result however, was that a huge amount of people, for whom the then UK norm was a contract of around £30 per month, then agreed to move to £45 or so a month tariffs, in order to get the must have N95 for free.

As a result, the networks scored, as for the first time ever, they saw a change in customer tariff patterns, from the average £30 apu.

So converse to what you feel is the reason for it, but with the same end result nonetheless, one of the very real reasons for no wide penetration of high end Nokia devices in the US are actually specifically because of the LOW subsidisation values you have over there.

Oh, and on that note, one final thought… part of the reason for this low subsidisation in itself, is as you say, because in the US, the Networks really do reign supreme.

Never in a million billion years would the UK networks get away with anything remotely like what the US nets inflict/instil on their customers.

So much so that when the first iPhone reached our shores over here, the one and only (yuk) ‘Godphone’, O2 UK (one of our main networks) invested loads of money in securing the deal with Apple, on Apple’s terms, which cost O2 millions, made Apple the clear main player in the deal, and introduced a whole new ethos for UK customers, in terms of having to pay a fairly heavy contract price AND then pay a massive cost (for us used to free handsets) for the actual phone.

And guess what – despite what anyone tells you, it was a DISASTER for O2 AND APPLE, as sales were nothing like what they hoped, or claimed in the media.

So much so, and just to prove it, that when the new 3G iPhone came out, the whole idea of charging a heavy fee for the handset even on contract, just clean got thrown in the bin, and the 3G iPhone was available FOR FREE again, on most mid to higher value tariffs, just like all other UK phones always are.

You see, in the UK, it’s better all round, because NO-ONE is the clear ‘controller’ of things – not even Apple as a handset maker. It’s a much better balance all round, between the end user’s power (of the pocket and the pound), the network (competing for new customers far more vigorously than over there in the US), and the handset makers.

A more balanced system all round over here, means a much better deal for the user, than you have in the US, where the networks have waaaaaaaaaaaaay too much power.

Until the US networks become far more competitive, and offer the kind of things to customers that us in Europe expect and indeed demand of our Networks, then things are unlikely to change too much, methinks?

And just to prove my point entirely, a post up above by “Nathan” which seems to infer he has found a great deal on the E71, for $200 on a 2 year T-Mobile contract…

Just a quick, simple example of the UK – the E71 here in the UK, is available direct from the networks, T-Mobile UK for example, such as I am on, for ZERO cost, zilch, nada, zip, nought, nothing at all, on just an 18 month contract. And in some cases, even 12 month contracts.

Unless and until that kind of thing becomes more like the norm in the US of A, you are NEVER gonna see massive penetration of high end, more costly devices.

If I go to an independent dealer here in the UK (who fight even harder for your custom), the same E71 would likely be FREE, on a one year only deal, and maybe with some gift thrown in, such as an Nintendo Wii or a DS etc. We see loads of this kind of thing over here.

Here’s an example:

Brand new, Flagship of the fleet, N Series device, the Nokia N96

Here it is for FREE, on an 18 month only contract, and with £52.50 CASH BACK gift.

(http://www.best-mobile-contracts.co.uk/phones/NokiaN96.aspx)

Can’t see things like that reaching the US for a long long time.

Sadly, it’s not just missing out on the GSM standard you got wrong over there, or the fragmented services, frequencies etc, but the carrier/network control is all wrong too over there.

But I’m not gloating… I’m saying I hope you guys see changes soon, so all of you lot can get high end phones dirt cheap too over there real soon, for sure guys!

Oh, and paying to RECEIVE a text message…? what’s all that about?

Not a wonder it’s not nearly so wide-spread over there, than it is here, where 217 MILLION are sent in the UK alone, every single DAY (from a population of just 55 million people), or put another way, 0n average 6.5 billion text messages are sent per month in the little old UK.

Maybe you would use this unobtrusive, quick, and in the UK, reliable means of communication, much more, if you didn’t have to pay to RECEIVE over there?

Here’s wishing you guys good luck, and great things for the future.

EPS…to try and answer your question. I think the reason that Nokia doesn’t touch CDMA that much is twofolds, one verizon wants full control of the cellphone OS, usually they force their software on which is not going to S60. The S40 software is more restrictive friendly for verizon. I left verizon because of the restrictions they put on the devices. CDMA technology wise is old and only in the US, Brazil, Canada and China, but GSM is everywhere, again this is my speculative info from my experience with Verizon. Not sure if that helps

Hey all. I just want to start by saying that I am totally new to owning a Nokia. I have had a lot of cell phones and needless to say, not too many of them were reliable. My last phone, a Samsung Behold “smartphone” was the DUMBEST smartphone ever, terrible browser, horrible batter and touch screen just clearly isn’t for me. Before that, a Curve 8820 from T-mobile, my current provider. Can’t complain about BB, had two of them, love them but when you purchase a phone from a carrier it becomes so commercialized and dummied-down its almost no fun. Voila! I decide to purchase a new phone and come across the beautiful E71. I live in NYC so I went to the flagship store and a new world dawned upon me, phones that have connectivity galore, amazing cameras, great battery life and rock solid design, where were they my whole life. I purchased my e71 just about a week ago, and I absolutely LOVE it, it is by far the best cell phone (smart phone) that I’ve ever owned. I use tmobile as my carrier and this phone has boosted my service everywhere, especially inside buildings and my classrooms. Tmobile in NY is ROCK solid but has some difficulty, all of my problems have been solved. Thanks Nokia, and I think this a great site also…good job guys!

@Stephen: Verizon allowed Palm OS on the Centro with the whole host of applications, and allows WinMo on those phones… I mean, I’ve never heard of them converting a smartphone to a non-smartphone OS.

Meh, CDMA is very much superior to GSM (as in 2G), but 3G turned the tables around on the CDMA carriers- unfortunately at&t and T-Mobile have been slow in deploying, and in addition I have connections at Verizon, so I really can’t switch carriers… I suppose all I can really do is hope VZ’s implementation of LTE will bring GSM-like freedom to “the Network”.

I know during my first post I didn’t really answer the question/topic at hand. I’d like to say that with the way the cellular phone industry is in the US it shouldn’t be so hard for Nokia to make a dent. I say this because I think a lot of young people, a lot of business people and a lot of medical people need well put together, streamlined devices. In the US currently I can really only name 1 device that I personally find “pretty” and that is the new BB Curve coming to Tmo shortly. I will admit that I am picky and biased, but my E71 really does blow my old Curve out of the water 10 fold. Granted, it is unlocked and hasn’t been stripped of its endless capabilities, it still does more than my old Curve. Another point is that I think when a lot of people hear of the brand “Nokia” they think old, candybar style phones that are boring. I used to think that until I went online and to the NYC Flagship store, I’m now a user as well as a carrier, word of mouth is VERY big. Anyway, in order for Nokia to make it big in the USA they need to keep doing what they’re doing, a lot of people are buying unlocked now anyway and staying away from the hassle that is a new phone every year with a new provider.

The solution (although perhaps not the execution) seems simple: Nokia needs to get its high end devices on subsidized, on US carriers, with all of the primary features in tact. A couple of points to make: Yes, Best Buy Mobile is subsidizing the E71 and N95/96, but there is no 3G support which is ridiculous and on the N95-96 the price is still to high. I am not aware of any other smartphone on a US carrier that sells for over $300.00. The features must remain in tact to avoid a repeat of the E62 on at&t (f/k/a Cingular) which was neutered to lose of its best features and ended up being a disappointment.

I also wonder if S60 is any good. It is boring (charitable described as reliable).

Great topic. We seem to have two discussions here. One is the ‘why’ and the other is the ‘what to do about it.’

One ‘why’ that people seem to come back to is the fact that carriers want to control the device. But, with the exception of Verizon (who strips bluetooth file transfer and mp3 ringtones), perhaps this is overblown? The Nokia 6650 survived the transition to AT&T very well with minimal changes. It’s a great s60 phone that can be had for cheap.

Perhaps what’s really the issue is the ‘sole distributer’ business model. For example, the iPhone and Bold are only available on AT&T. The G1 only on T-mobile, etc. On top of that, none of those phones can be had ‘unlocked’. Maybe what is giving Nokia cold feet is that they don’t want to give up a decent unlocked market for a possible market on one carrier. Apparently, the E71 is the best selling qwerty phone in the world. Why give up the right to sell more of ‘em unlocked to the US just for the ‘privledge’ of selling them at discount to one carrier who is too busy pushing the latest BB? Maybe that’s why AT&T is getting the E71x with sp2 rather than the E71-2. Hopefully it’s a sign that a middle ground has been found.

As far as the USA getting the latest technology last, we had better get used to it. Emerging markets like India, Russia (where the 5800 launched first) and soon Africa will always get the latest stuff because they are the cheapest to launch in. Networkwise, they also are easier because you can start from scratch. That’s why Nokia is investing so heavily in Africa now. If we could post links, I would…

So basically, if you’re an Western Europe company like Nokia, you launch in East Europe and India first to get the bugs worked out and see if you have a hit. If it’s hot, you update the firmware and launch in Western Europe and North America six months later. The US is just too big of a market to risk bombing in. A few bad reviews after launch and you fail. Just think of how many people passed on the E71 because early reviews said it lacked BB support? We all know that feature is coming back, but those early reviews are still out there and those people have picked another phone. You can only hope to get them 2 years from now when they’re looking again…. (posted with an E71!)

If Americans pay for a phone, it’s typically the BB. The average user doesn’t need or is unaware of the integration capabilites. Regarding contracts: who isn’t looking to save a buck, especially in the current economy? Plus, didn’t Europe drop contracts altogether? How many Americans even realize the reason they HAVE a contract is because of phone subsidies? My favorite phone of all time? 6820, and that was 4 years ago! I really miss it. I just switched to Verizon, before I realized they weren’t GSM. Wish I hadn’t.

re: US getting things first.

Why should Nokia release products first in the US? Unless products are released everywhere at the same time, somewhere has to be first, and it doesn’t make any sense (to me) for that to be the US, especially in these tough times.

Which US companies release products in another country first? I can’t think of any…because in most cases it doesn’t make much sense to do that.

I think US people just don’t much like things that are made somewhere else. It’s their pride that’s the problem, in a lot of cases anyway (IMO).

The “why” part has been well-trod here; the How is going to get very interesting very quickly in 2009.

Many lessons from the iPhone, but a big one for handset makers: You can have the upper hand if you make people want the phone. I expect the Nokia will use the N97 in North America in this fashion. The lucky carrier will certainly be willing to release it with all its glory.

Another trend: like the glaciers breaking up (unfortunately), the American networks’ walls are tumbling down, too (fortunately). Brad mentioned the 6550 at AT&T – that’s a great example of the carrier changing it’s tune. AT&T (Cingular, then) really crippled the E62, compared to the unlocked 61 and 61i. Even a year ago, the networks wanted to force subscribers to pony up an extra $10 monthly for navigation, so no, they didn’t want operable and accessible GPS aboard. That 6550? It comes with GPS, FeaturePack1, etc. AT&T seems to have shifted to data bundling levels. So, with TMobile and AT&T and Sprint (irrelevant to our discussion here, but I’m drooling like Homer Simpson at the thought of the Pre), it’s kind of nice now. We’re at that odd juncture wherein if you pay attention, you can get a really reasonable service level for some absolutely gorgeous Nokias.

That said, my fellow Americans do remain in a cattle-like awareness as to what incredible features and experiences can be had. The 80-percent majority basically percieve there are 3 devices – cell phones, BlackBerrys and now iPhones. This will be changing, but as with the Brits, subscription (tariff) mind-sets have to be broken. Several folks here have mentioned the T-Mobile/E71 combo, and that’s a really good example of more balanced change. People are loving those E71s, including my daughter, a previous WinMo / HTC / Sprint girl. Her college friends are stunned by the trippy video ringtones – STANDARD on the device, mind you.

There was a time here in the US when everybody drove Chevy and I had to explain that my battered little BMW 2002 (the model, not the year) was, no, not a VW. I couldn’t find anybody who had ever heard of BMWs. Now look at these Americans, a generation later. All clued in to MBs and Acuras, and all over BMWs. So, with wireless devices, they’ll get there. They’re starting to notice. Once they really drive an N95 or the likes, that’s it.

Go Nokia!!

And this, BTW, is a great site, Nokia Experts.

I think you are spot on with your line of thinking on this. I think Nokia has seriously dropped the ball in the US. They used to have a Flagship store here in Atlanta and closed it’s doors. Sad. I have no resourse to get my n93i repaired without going through the expense of sending it somewhere as there is no support here anymore. Repair shops here don’t want to tuch it or don’t know how to repair it! I want a n95 or maybe an n96 or n97 Don’t know which would be best either. And with the info you gave here it wont matter since I use T-Mobile. Also do note I have read that Verizon has bought AllTell which is a GSM carrier in this area I believe. This would position them for a possible switch or dual devices. It also alows them to enter the global arena for their customers. They have agreements with O2 or possibly Vodaphone in Europe I believe for their customers. So it may be that like you said GSM is the future.

Don’t be surprised to see some Nokia devices this year exclusive to the United States. Nokia is in business to make money, and they are missing a very large segment of the market share here. It makes no sense for them to continue with their current business model by not providing US carriers with phones.

Rogers must love Nokia then, they will sell me an E71 for $99.99 on a 3 year contract and also offer customers the N810 for a cool $499.95. So, is Canadian love for Nokia more then the US?

@ Dean…

No, no, no, and a few more no’s lol

That’s exactly the problem though… in the US, you just don’t realise how different things really are, over here in the UK/Europe, where mobiles are concerned.

PAYG (pay as you go/pre pay) is getting bigger here, for sure. Surprisingly, it’s not even completely true to say, it’s entirely at the expense of Contract though.

As far as I know, even Contract uptake is on the up over here.

But “done away with contracts”…. couldn’t be further from the correct position lol

Hope this re-clarification of my original post, helps.

I personally do not care that Nokia does not have a large foothold into the North American market as I will only buy unlocked, unbranded phones. I will pay the unsubsidized price to get a Nokia phone that is free of network bloatware and disabled hardware. My current phone is the N95-3 and my next anticipated purchase will be the N97.

To answer the question “What do you think Nokia can do to sell more phones in the U.S.?” In my opinion Nokia needs to fully develop their Ovi site for the U.S. as they have in other parts of the world. Once they have that set in place and a revenue stream has been established they need to approach the North American network providers with a revenue sharing plan for Nokia phones on those networks. This would be very similar to the Apple iphone and AT&T agreement. Networks want to sell more than phones and calling plans, they want to increase revenue with data plans and data services. Nokia with Ovi would accomplish that in the same manner the Apple iphone and itunes does. With Nokia its all about building innovative phones that offer a great end user experience. With the North American network providers its all about greed and how can we drive up that ARPU today. Good luck Nokia dealing with these folks, you will need it.

$200 and 2 years contract for E71 it’s still quite expensive I think

I think this is all about marketing. I have been using s60 devices for the last several years (currently using an E71) and when people I work with actually USE it, they are blown away with the ease of use, the amount of software available and the numerous things s60 can do well, especially on the E71. But no one has heard of these phones. They all say “is it as good as an Iphone?” After five minutes of using the e71 with profimail, mobipocket, a little 3g web browsing and a few other programs and they all want one. Nokia just doesn’t seem to care about the US. We’re all about hype.

Why aren’t more Nokia devices sold in the US? Most likely it is because they can sell the same phones everywhere in the world… except the North American market and a few other countries. Americans got hosed by mobile phone companies blithering insistence on using different frequencies and different technology, essentially going at it alone. So no wonder handsets come late and aren’t well-supported from Nokia – it takes extra work and thus decreased profit to sell in NAM. That goes double if operators are demanding that phone providers disable certain features for the NAM; as far as I know that is never done elsewhere except for China (WiFi and 3G are usually disabled, I think). Again, if companies like Nokia have to hack away at their phones just so they can sell them in the NAM, then there is going to be a lot of resistance to do so. They’re a publically-traded company; they’re not (necessarily) stupid and most certainly not going to throw away profitable sales. Therefore, if they aren’t selling, it’s because it isn’t profitable to do so.

I personally think the other reason is that with GSM take-up being fairly slow and thus limited, the appeal of a “smartphone” will be lessened from both the end-user and provider’s POV. GSM smartphones will end up being on EDGE most of the time outside of major cities …which is a vast amount of the US. The providers would have to build up their networks (costly) along with the usual partial subsidies of the smartphones, only to hear from the end-users that as soon as they go home to suburbia hell that they’ve dropped from 3G to EDGE and “you guys said that…”.

Mobile phone use, in general, is lower in the US because you’re paying for both incoming and outgoing calls and tend to go “roaming” after a fairly insignificant amount of travel. Here in Europe (a geographical location, not a country as the author mistakenly referred to) we pay for outgoing calls only and only roam once we leave our home country.

I will concede one point, however: phones are often seen as status items, though it isn’t clear to me that much distinction is made between the various non-smartphone models. Smartphones obviously appear higher-end and thus are cooed over but I don’t think many people actually care much who made it. People here in Poland tend to be firmly in one of two camps: “I don’t care who makes it as long as it is free” or “I will only buy Nokia.” Literally. There is no “I will only buy [LG/Samsung/Sony/HTC]“.

The solution to all of this is to cough up the $300 or whatever (which isn’t THAT much) and thank the gods that at least AT&T and T-Mobile support GSM. The phone companies won’t drop CDMA until something better is demanded and nothing grabs attention quite like lost sales. Your money where your mouth is, that sort of thing.

Where diid you get the price of $199.00 for an E71 at best buy? I checked their web site and only saw a price of $400.00. I’m currently with t-mobile, and eligible for an updated phone. Would like to take advantage of this offer. Thanks.

The question here isn’t only what Nokia (or any other manufacturer) can do as a company, it is as well what can we, as consumers, can do! I’ve been looking for an upgrade to my LG CU500 phone for nearly 2 months now.

Having researched ALL of the carriers, and nearly all of the Manufacturers, I’m STILL not happy with any of the offerings, from either the carriers or the manufacturers themselves. The carriers will not, for whatever reason, carry a full featured touch screen smartphone (gps, wifi, FULL touch screen, office doc EDITING capability, A2DP bluetooth, etc..) There always seems to be something missing.

At the other side of the coin, I find the phones I want on a manufacturers or aftermarket suppliers page. Phones like HTC’s Touch HD, Samsungs Omnia HD, Nokias N97.. one little problem though, they don’t support USA 3G frequencies. I have probably read a thousand webpages about consumer complaints on the carriers. Limited or no 3G coverage, ATT’s current band switching stunt (swapping 3G to 850 and Edge to 1900, and then throttling the available bandwidth on the Edge networks to provide more bandwidth to their limited area 3G network customers). We all know VZW has a good network, even here in Southern AZ, which has NO 3G and crappy edge connections, VZW works. No CDMA (un-neutered) phones available though. And, the cost for all of those VZW services! The answer?

Manufacturers should do more research on the US market. Bulletin boards like this are their answer. In addition to consumer research, the manufacturers need to stop buckling to the US carriers. Make your phone transceivers TRULY USA capable. Stop leaving out the 850 and 1700 band functionality. A consumer is willing to pay for your unlocked phone, why not let them buy something useful! So what if the carriers won’t carry it! So what if the carriers scream and cry about customers using unlocked phones! End users are limited to the carriers plans.. they are the only game in town, for the plans only.. not the phones used on those plans!

If HTC had made the Touch HD in a US capable version, their sales would have skyrocketed over what they did sell with no USA 3G functionality. The same with Samsungs Omnia, and shortly, the Omnia HD. People buy these phones because they are sick of Apple and ATT’s facist practices, and VZW’s practice of neutering the equipment that is availble through them! The BlackBerry Storm for example.. Are you kidding me? No WiFi even built into the platform, per VZW’s build specs! Nokia has a winner with the N97, if they provide FULL functionality, including the capability to operate on ATT AND TMo frequencies. Consumers will also win, if the manufacturers began building their phones this way, as the consumer now can use a month to month plan with no committment, retaining the ability to switch to the carrier with better service. This would prompt the carriers to better their networks, instead of relying on contracts to force customer retention. Food for thought..

I would order the 5800 if it were subsidized with my AT&T plan and available right now with no debate. I hate the freeking iPhone. It is not a business or power user phone. It’s a toy. I am not the only U.S. consumer who can’t see paying $400 for an unlocked phone when there are subsidized phones available for much much less. The E71x ix a great phone… probably my next phone. But It doesn’t seem right that there are far more superior and up-to-date phones available in Europe.

Where I live, it is a free market, meaning the carriers don’t sell the phones, but only their services. You buy the phone full price unlocked. I disagree Europeans walk around touting there phones as accessories as claimed in the article. They are a necessity as meeting friends in a city, amongst the thousands of people, needs communication. And most of us live in cities. However, we are proud of our phones since we pay full price on them and don’t have them for a 20$ special. And American consumers may hold weight, but they aren’t persuasive to others. I would say the iphone craze is example. It is a terrible phone in practicle sense. Bluetooth never sync’s with any phones here. No music uploads onto the phone unless it is itunes. Many other problems with messaging. Yet this is a revolution? I think iphone could get a sponsor from Dead-Bolt locks. Blackberries are nice, America’s second favorite. Nokia is amazing and I do wish they had better showing in America, but America isn’t the primary market. I believe the carriers are at fault as they are the ones in America who select and buy the phones. Nokia has to make special phones for them due to signal differences and vender specifications. I wish others could enjoy Nokia. Mine plays Sega Genesis games, Nintendo games with an emulator. I play excite bike again! It is very fun. I always keep in touch with my friends via ICQ which I always keep online for a cost of a few pennies a day. I guess the best way is to vote with your money and buy unlocked Nokias. I have heard of Nokia pushing their unlocked phones in USA and that is going to be their campaign for America so hopefully everyone there will soon have more luck in their phone offerings. My time in America was great, but when I shopped for phone it was very discouraging.

I think the new iphone 3GS will finally be a refined device, but will it be open device? Or everything through the apple gates? I don’t know. I prefer freedom with Nokia.

@Harry The manufacturers like the carriers because they actually sell more phones than the unlocked phones sell on their own. So the carriers are a big part of their profits. As for free markets with unlocked phones, the beautiful phones aren’t the money makers, but the mid-tier phones like 4 years ago, Sony Ericsson’s K750i is a perfect example. That phone was the come back kid for the Sony Ericsson team. And the “do it all phone” is quite ellusive as N97 has proven. It tries to do too much and its qwerty is quite restrained with the navipad added likely for game support, but not bad. And finally, I think what mucked the US market up started when the FCC was allowing the competition between Motorola and AT&T. There were never a real standard set in digital. Meanwhile, the rest of the world pretty much set the GSM standard. I think that’s what makes it difficult for other companies to make a profit and carriers are lodged into the American market like a tick. Hearing phrases such as Tim’s eligible for an update is upsetting coming from a country that champions freedom. The only good thing about the carrier market is cheap phones that usually cost 250$-1000$ in the unlocked market. The rest, well, I’ve felt your pain. I would recommend just saving for unlocked phones. It gives freedom to choose services.

I like and prefer Nokia Mobile phone, as its have all good functionality, usuability, durability, userfriendly. Its battery backup is good. Recently i bought Noikia n96 and get a ipod free with the mobile phone from http://www.nextgenmobileshop.co.uk/phones-Nokia-N96