Nokia N900, the latest Maemo tablet - or is it a smartphone?

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Nokia N900, the latest Maemo tablet - or is it a smartphone?

By PETER WHITE

Published: 27 August, 2009

READ MORE: Nokia | Handset

Nokia doesn't hang about. No sooner have watchers finally worked out that the company is NOT dumping Symbian, but rather that it might actually launch a phone, rather than a tablet with its Linux Maemo on it, when Nokia actually goes and does it. It has launched the N900 Rover device ahead of Nokia World, where it can now show it off with impunity and gain maximum impact from the show.

Today, Nokia came out with the new N900 and said that it was taking its lead from desktop computing to deliver a PC-like experience on a handset-sized device. But is it a phone or a tablet?

Sure, it is a development from Nokia's previous generation tablets which were really some of the earliest Mobile Internet Devices (MIDs) and it is aimed at browsing the internet just as people would on their computer.

Nokia N900 We have said before that Nokia will introduce a stronger commitment to Maemo, optimized for devices that support the browser/cloud approach. But that's due next year when it will migrate to the Linux version being jointly developed with Intel. For now, the N900 is a what Nokia has promised as an interim step, with strong appeal to the enterprise and the difficult US market. The N900, code named Rover, doesn't look too different from an N97, with slide-out Qwerty keyboard, 3.5-inch 800 x 480 resistive touchscreen, and huge in-built storage.

The device runs the latest Maemo 5 software, and Nokia claims it is powerful enough to have dozens of application open at once but still has the oomph to take calls, drive the touch screen and take input from the Qwerty keyboard.

"With Linux software, Mozilla-based browser technology and now also with cellular connectivity, the Nokia N900 delivers a powerful mobile experience," says Anssi Vanjoki, Executive Vice President, Markets, Nokia. "The Nokia N900 shows where we are going with Maemo and we'll continue to work with the community to push the software forward."

The Nokia N900 uses an ARM Cortex-A8 processor, has up to 1GB of RAM, and supports OpenGL ES 2.0 graphics acceleration and it is this that Nokia says will give it PC-like multitasking. The device has a WVGA touch screen supports 10/2 HSPA and Wi-Fi. It looks like a new Mozilla based browser is installed so that websites look the same as they would on a PC. Video is supported by Adobe Flash 9.4.

Nokia boasts that only four touches are needed to set up email and the N900 can support up to 10 email accounts. The homescreen can also be fully personalized with shortcuts, widgets and apps.

The Nokia N900 comes with 32GB of storage, expandable to 48GB with a microSD card, a 5MP camera with Carl Zeiss optics and will be available in select markets from October 2009 priced at €500 excluding sales taxes and subsidies.