RSSNetbooks aren't a fad, but the U.S. still won't embrace Nokia Booklet 3G
By Tim Conneally | Published September 2, 2009, 12:12 PM
For as popular as Nokia has been worldwide, it is just not a brand that Americans particularly care about. Even though it has consistently been the most prolific shipper of mobile devices worldwide, Nokia has only an 8% market share in the United States according to IDC, and even that is slipping.
So when Nokia unveiled its first netbook -- the Nokia Booklet 3G -- which has mobile consumers elsewhere in the world taking note, all American consumers seem to do is laugh. Even though DisplaySearch rankings for last quarter showed that we are eating up netbooks almost twice as fast as we are consuming full-sized notebooks, to us, Nokia still doesn't click.
But why? Here are the specs that were released today:
- Intel Atom Z530, 1.6 GHz
- Intel US15W fanless chipset (formerly "Poulsbo")
- 1 GB DDR2 533 Mhz RAM
- 120 GB, 8 MB cache, 4200 RPM SATA HDD
- Windows 7 Starter Edition, Home Premium or Professional
- Built-in 3G/HSPA modem, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1, A-GPS
- 10.1" glass display (1280?-720)
-$817 retail (€575)
Aside from the heavy pricetag, it looks like a solid mobile device which could offer some serious competition to HP's Mini-Note and the Acer Aspire One if it was subsidized by a mobile carrier. But it's immediately hindered because it's a Nokia device.
For starters, it's still meant to be a companion to a user's Nokia mobile phone, so they're already limiting themselves to 8% of the U.S. market. This companionship is achieved through an integration with Nokia's Ovi suite of tools. The Booklet will include the Ovi Suite 2.0 for photo, music, calendar and contact syncing, Nokia Music for PC, and Ovi Maps.
This stuff is just not happening in the United States. Forrester Research analyst Mark Mulligan told Forbes that Nokia is having success in emerging markets, but in developed markets, it is falling way below expectations. And this is not only its handsets, but its services too. Because of this, Nokia has already put its Comes With Music unlimited download service on hold several times in North America.
As blogger Robert Scoble Tweeted this morning: "As far as I can tell Nokia still has a sucky user experience. Until they fix that [the Booklet 3G] will be off the rails."
Whether Nokia's insignificance in the American market is due to its refusal to play ball with wireless carriers that control the way phones are packaged and sold, or if it's due to a fundamental incompatibility with the yen of the American buyer, the Booklet 3G has a lot of wasted potential because of its integration with Nokia's unpopular services.
I've wanted to buy a netbook for about 6 months now. Now that I've actually tried to type on several of them in stores, I've come to the conclusion I will not be buying one. I'm a very good touch typist and I have relatively small hands for a guy, and I just can't get used to the tiny keyboards.
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|That's not too bad a spec although the price is a bit hefty. I'd personally like to see the specs scaled back so it was cheaper. For that much money I could buy a much better laptop instead.
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|Umm....other netbooks have the same specs...but less than half the price. This is why Nokia fails. Same w/ their upcoming smartphones that cost $750. You can only get them this way, not subsidized. So who in their right mind would spend $750 for a phone when you can get an Iphone 3G for $99 or Palm Pre for $199. Or even Iphone 3GS for $299
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|none of those phones are that cheap, you have to deal with a contract and over time in most countries thats thousands of dollars, buy outright and its still expensive as hell, probably 600+$ most places
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|When you can buy a beautiful refurbished Dell Mini for $200 (an offer that comes up every few weeks) -- then you know why Nokia better stick to markets that don't have the ability to do that. And it's gotta do with extremely efficient and cheap shipping services in the States, customer-one-step-from-direct-to-manufacturer purchasing power of Amazon/Dell/HP, and of course years of years of experience with making PC hardware (that Nokia doesn't have)... Really, a non-story.
I personally ban for TEN YEARS any company that screwed me with a PREMIUM-PAID ("high end") gizmo that broke less than 2 years from purchase date. I've banned Nokia and Sony so far. Paid a premium -- didn't get premium quality. It makes future purchasing decisions so much easier... ;)
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|I find some things weird when i read about US, i live in Brazil and i had aways bought my cellphones with no service, but some time ago i bought my N95-8Gb i got it with a contract, but just because it was free at the time. And i made everything i wanted from it, like turn it into a hotspot, or configure it to use SIP. When i first heard that US carriers don't allow these things (atleast the block it when they want) i wondered why the US customers allow it to happens.
Maybe Nokia failure in US is not due a mistake from nokia, but because the weirdness of the US market, just like in Japan.
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|The RAM is hard-wired, so there is no easy expansion. This, the odd user experience, and the high price will limit its appeal anywhere--not just in the U.S.A.
I've seen elsewhere that the 3G support was Wide CDMA a.k.a. UMTS, not HS*PA. It was also stated that the machine starts as a solid piece of aluminium, like most of Apple's machines. While the price is Apple-like, even with a mobile company's subsidy, I think people will be hard-pressed to afford it and a service subscription...and enjoy it.
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|"But it's immediately hindered because it's a Nokia device." Umm...NOOO...
It's immediately hindered because it costs $800!!!!! There...fixed it. If it cost something like $300, $400 tops, and then subsidized on top of that, it would have a chance.
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|-$817 retail (€575)?
That is why it will not sell in America. Most other netbooks at comparable specs are half that price or less!
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|There are two reasons why I quit buying Nokia products:
1) They're poorly made - I bought the first Nokia flip phone (no idea what the name was) a few years ago and went through 4 of those suckers in less than a year. The plastic casing was so cheap it kept cracking and breaking in my pocket.
2) Poor customer service (I'm sure this is the reason why most Americans dislike the brand) - I could never get Nokia to repair the phone I mentioned above. My cell phone carrier would send it to Nokia for repair, it'd take a month, they'd finally give up and just give me a new one.
Nokia has also been slow to adopt new technology. They didn't even have a flip phone until everyone had already bought a Razr, they didn't have a touch screen phone until everyone bought an iPhone (and even then, theirs was priced so high no one would buy it). Their offerings have always been mediocre at best when compared to the competition.
Those factors plus the U.S. and "the rest of the world" never have the same market leaders in specific segments.
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|some netbooks are a step backwards, this is the case with Nokia and its netbook specs...
who am i kidding really? lol all netbooks are a step backwards, selling us old tech in a smaller form factor (not alot of innovation went into this) for $600, thats a joke
i guess if you have money to throw away, get a netbook... now if most of them were around the $189 price point, i'd snap one up but even still, $400 for one in my country, too much and we shouldn't be asked to pay anywhere near $400-600 for these devices, esp not having a solid state drive at least (though the reliability of those over time is debatable)
i'm aware the states has them slightly cheaper than many other countries and it is technology in a miniature form factor, but still you get my point
i'd like to get one but... can't justify any of the prices yet, i'm not sure the type of folks attracted to netbooks... lol, not me yet thats all i know, ill just lug around the extra pound of hardware for awhile longer ;P
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|All netbooks are a step backwards. Agreed. We have been getting ultraportables, with longer battery life, much, much faster processors, more memory, much better displays for 6+ years and they are worth the extra $$$. The resale value is great also. They last longer, they aren't bogged down by a flash app or HD stream, and they get the job done.
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|Netbooks are getting dirt cheap. I've seen aspire ones anywhere from $200 to $300 depending on specs. Who is Nokia kidding! $800?! Even if it will be subsidized an $800 starting price is ridiculous! Especially when you can get a full featured notebook easily for $500 or less!
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