I bought an N-Gage the first week it was out - then returned it a week later. The design was seriously flawed and it went beyong the swapping card hassle. Nokia had the benefit of a provider infrastructure to subsidize purchases like they do with more traditional cell phones.

Nokia doesn't have that advantage with the 770. Yes, it is far more flexible and is designed better for its purpose than the N-Gage was. However, the launch problems are just the start of what could be a long battle for Nokia. I've said many times before that marketing the 770 properly will be the key to its success. It's going to take more than geekophile (yes, we all are in that category - participation here is proof enough of that) interest to make it a success.

The VOIP angle is interesting but more WiFi hotspot infrastructure is needed. Cell phone tech has advanced to the point where competition is fierce and prices are coming down for voice services while companies try to open new revenue streams in the data department. It would be awesome to one day use a device that can do both for some nominal fee but we're a long way from that. The 770 could very well have been a distant memory by then.

Again, though, I'm still buying one. Even if I give into what will surely be serious OQO lust when I see it next week, I'm still going to get a 770. :-)

Jeff