| As somebear has said, the N9 is being heavily promoted in Australia at the moment. On my way to university every morning, I see about 2 or 3 bilboards or bus paintjobs advertising the N9. The ad is just a white background, a big blue Nokia logo, a stack of different-coloured N9s, and the text "beautifully simple." It's pretty obvious they're trying to break the perception (here, at least) of Nokia only offering cheap phones. I currently own an N900, so (a) I know what it's like being on an unsupported and unpopular platform (it sucks hard), and (b) I would buy an N9 in a heartbeat if Nokia had decided to stick with Meego. I'm a Linux user and use no Microsoft online services, so Windows Phones aren't attractive for me at all. By dropping Meego/Maemo (hacker types) and moving to WP, Nokia is dumping its last remaining fanbase. It's starting from zero, on an OS that's also starting from zero. My next phone will almost certainly be the Galaxy Nexus. WP will probably earn itself a small niche in the no-man's-land of smartphones between iOS' simplicity and Android's customisability and personalisation (WRT phone choice), but lacking the universality of both. I can't see it achieving wider adoption. Nokia will claim a slice of this small niche, but that's all it will have. WP can't survive on off-the-side interest from HTC and Samsung. Microsoft needs Nokia for WP to survive, so I fully expect Microsoft to purchase Nokia within the next five years. I think Nokia would've been able to survive on its own had it gone with Android (earning a smaller slice of the Android pie, but still much larger overall). I think most technical-oriented people recognise that Nokia's expertise is in hardware - a quality that the Android ecosystem is still lacking. Samsung is getting there, but the N9's build quality is generations ahead of any of the Galaxy phones. Nokia would always be my first choice in choosing an Android phone. It's a real pity. I think there's a strong point to be made that Elop's biases towards Microsoft have impacted Nokia for the worse. |