[kylec]

True, but it's not as though Microsoft bought Nokia. As crazy as that sounds, though, that would have been less crazy than Google's buying Motorola and how now they've suddenly become a mass-market hardware manufacturer. I really fear that things that Google has historically been bad at (support, etc) will come back to bite them hard.

[rbanffy]

> True, but it's not as though Microsoft bought Nokia.

At least not yet. But it seems Elop is doing his best to make it easy. Or, at least, cheap.

[recoiledsnake]

How so? I see this bandied about as truth, especially by Linux fans and the anti-MS folk, but he was given charge of a sinking ship and is trying to do the best for the company.

http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/11_24/b42320567...

[rbanffy]

> trying to do the best for the company.

By adopting the mobile OS nobody wants? By burying the one that was actually good (and whose kernel could power an Android device easily)?

[recoiledsnake]

>By adopting the mobile OS nobody wants

You're dissing an OS that's not even out for a full year, and has MORE customer satisfaction than Android phones.

http://www.zdnet.com/blog/hardware/wp7-ahead-of-android-and-...

How is that something that nobody wants?

>By burying the one that was actually good (and whose kernel could power an Android device easily)

Did you even read the article I linked?

Meego/Maemo was not ready on time. Even though the N9 may look okay, there's a lot of things missing that will make it very hard for Nokia to push the OS to devs etc. and have it on enough devices to make a difference in Eurasia.

And what advantage will having a kernel that could power an Android device do? It's not as if Android's kernel sucks or something. It's Linux underneath too. I don't get your point. Also, Google told them to take a hike during Nokia's discussions about switching to Android.

Anyway what happened to WebOS? It's a decent OS built on Linux but there's no uptake because of lack of a ecosystem and people wondering if it will be around in a few years.

[rbanffy]

> and has MORE customer satisfaction than Android phones.

Something which is yet to translate into phones sold.

> Did you even read the article I linked?

Sure. There is only a handful of WP7 devices out there and they are all very high-end. Android phones cover a much broader spectrum - there are low-end Android phones - and the number of disappointed users is going to be much higher.

From TFA: "The data might be skewed because of the limited number of Windows Phone 7 users out there"

> Meego/Maemo was not ready on time.

And we can see the difference now that Nokia is selling devices running WP7.

> And what advantage will having a kernel that could power an Android device do?

It means it's mostly ready - all hardware is supported by the Linux kernel and the effort to make it run Android is almost nothing. The N9 could have launched with Android.

> Anyway what happened to WebOS?

It's a fine OS that lacks a significant developer ecosystem. There is a finite number of phone developers and now they are all very busy writing software for iOS and Android. Only a few developers have chosen to target WebOS, which has a smaller user base but very little competition.

[recoiledsnake]

I meant the Businessweek article, not the ZDNet one.

>Something which is yet to translate into phones sold.

That doesn't still warrant the 'phone OS that no one wants'.

>And we can see the difference now that Nokia is selling devices running WP7.

They announced the deal in Feb and they're going to release devices in Sep/Oct, is that not fast enough for a huge company like Nokia and with phone hardware that takes years to make?

>It means it's mostly ready - all hardware is supported by the Linux kernel and the effort to make it run Android is almost nothing. The N9 could have launched with Android.

And the N9 would now play second fiddle thanks to competition from Google itself.

>It's a fine OS that lacks a significant developer ecosystem. There is a finite number of phone developers and now they are all very busy writing software for iOS and Android. Only a few developers have chosen to target WebOS, which has a smaller user base but very little competition.

That's EXACTLY my point. Meego/Maemo risked ended up being like WebOS, thanks to competition from Android/iOS/WP7,especially if the OS and multiple phones weren't ready. Getting an dev friendly ecosystem ready is not a joke. RIM's platform sucks for devs even after

And Meego wasn't, that's why the board fired the previous CEO and hired Elop. You think you know more than them and that they're all fools? Nokia is Finland's biggest company. If you think MS can 'install' a trojan horse just like that resulting in thousands of needless layoffs, then you're either deluded or paranoid. You should really read that Businessweek article.

[nextparadigms]

After Google's move, I think Microsoft is much more likely to buy Nokia, too. But I think they'll wait to see how Nokia's first WP7 phones go.

[dennisgorelik]

Oh, that's why NOK is +13% today (while GOOG is -2%).