Exactly. But looking at the way things develop, it will merge a good part. And this battleground will become more and more important while the other one is becoming less important.

Little OT:
Nokia seems so slow to me. I know implications of large corporations, development cycles and all. Still. They literally let the others steal them the butter from the bread. Currently there is NO new Nokia I would get my wife. Imagine! No N97 mini and certainly no N900. She is happy with her E71. I would love to get her a new touchscreen device but I will not spare any more money on S60 5th (and yes, I preordered a N97 the first day it was possible, I know what I am talking about Was OK for me but would not for her).

BTT:
Walled gardens work very well in case the inhabitants are not very sure about the topic (technology in this case) and appreciate guidance. Most people ARE not too sure and geeks are a very minor fraction of the popolation So...

Have a nice day,
Corwin

By losing market share. They used to have 18%.

I disagree with you instead or "bad organized" transition I think that nokia is doing a "really good" organized transition.

They never said that "N900" was an smartphone for masses, rather, they said that N900 was a smartphone for linux lovers, I even did not see any anouncement on TV like with the "N97".

I think that a "bad organized" transition would be to sell "N900" as the "i-phone" alternative, and they never did so, even with "N97" or any other smartphone they never said that it was a phone to compete with "i-phone". The only smartphone that they are saying to be so is with N8, let's see what will happen.

I am very happy with my N900, may be just because I am a programmer and I can understand what is inside, I think that N900 beats i-phone already. For the masses I have no doubt that that when the process is complete (2011 by nokia's words) they will beat the i-phone and any other smartphone in any cathegory.

For the moment they are increasing their parcentage participation on smartphones market from 40% to 41%.

Do not forget that nokia is facing computer industry that have been leading by american enterprises: Apple, Microsoft, Google, etc. for many years. Even with that in mind I think that they will succed, because they are doing think as they should be done, little by little and they are always telling the truth they do not have any problem to say "we are having a hard competence on high-end smartphones", that is just dignificant in our days's society where lie is everyday everywhere.

What you say implies that you are not content with Nokias current lineup of devices and that you therefore expect people out there in the wild aren't, either.

My point of view in this discussion is different because my personal experience tells me that S60v3 is still the perfect smartphone OS for me. My brain is not wired to understand an Apple UI, I don't like the Android phones, I don't think Maemo is good as a smartphone platform. S60v5 may be acceptable but still not where v3 is.

So while of course everybody could always "do better", from my perspectiive there's no need to do (even) better for Nokia because they already have the best (for me). The rising market share is just a nice check that tells me quite a few people may see things this way.

Wiseguy.

It was more a rhetorical question anyway. But really-- not long ago they had zero.

Try going onto sites like this for Apple, Google, Android, WM, etc - some of the rants are very familiar...

No company can ever stay on top all the time - it's all about peaks and troughs because no-one can predict markets 100%.

As a handset manufacturer Nokia's record and performance is evident; they make more smartphones for a wider range of people on this planet than any other manufacturer. Symbian is still the most popular smartphone OS, so Nokia are still the 'milestone setter' you first perceived. Maemo/Meego and Symbian^3 will only build on that.

Your recent experience has not satisfied you as an individual. Whilst that is regrettable, I'm sure you understand that Nokia don't make devices just to suit you. You may not be alone in your complaints, but that is a drop in the ocean to a huge company like Nokia who operate in so many markets. It's not that they don't care, it's that they have to look to the big picture to stay in business.

I am not a 'power user', developer or industry insider - I'm just a guy who loves his phones. For me, Nokia are still showing the way: the quality, range and features available mean I'll keep looking at this brand first. I'm not blind to other mfrs, OS's, etc., I try them out and compare with friends, but I keep coming back for some reason...

For me, the N900 is where I want to be: a stable OS, good features (although I'm still missing some) and excellent build quality. Best of all I'm part of the next wave of smartphone/superphone technology that keeps getting better. PR 1.2 will come and now we hear that Meego will definately come. What more do YOU want?

Being at the frontier has allways been challenging - but ultimately more rewarding. Keep the Faith.

I am very tired of all this Nokia negativity from American press and blogs...

Steve Jobs talks and its everywhere in big headlines as Apple Magic.
Nokia sells 100 million devices in a single quarter and its a disaster..

I mean seriously now give me a break...

Some people will be quick to dismiss the markets as being overly influenced by negative americans.

IMHO though, this graph (change timespan to 3 or 6 months) is a good illustration of the impact of the N900 on Nokia's fate: there was some hope initially but in the end, their inability to realize the potential of this excellent piece of technology (by properly finishing off the OS) shows that they still haven't learnt that the bar has been drastically raised by the competition...

Yes, smartphone for linux lovers! Can you point me to the advertisements and commercials where they said that? I can't find them for some reason. That's not anything mentioned on the video on my N900, for example.

My wife's very independent (bloody stubborn, in fact) but this is one of the many reasons I love her:

She gave the kid in Carphone Warehouse hell 'cause he tried real hard to sell iphone - told him in a loud voice in a busy store that she wanted a phone she could customise, replace the batteries herself, have a decent camera with flash and a real keyboard. She tore that kid to shreds and embarrased him for being so apple-centric!

She pushed for N900 but really wanted N97Mini. She cleverly let them 'sell' her one and got the deal she wanted.

She's so impressed with her 1st Nokia that the last thing she said to me in bed last night was "put that silly thing back in your pyjamas and come to bed"

No, no, no, sorry:

"I should've had one of these Nokia's years ago"

Brought a tear to my eye...