Elsewhere there’s HSDPA, WiFi and aGPS, along with 32GB of onboard storage and a 3.5mm headphone socket.  The Symbian^4 device is expected to be capable of 720p HD video recording, and has some nifty social networking status updates too – along the bottom of that sizeable display run a series of icons for Twitter, Facebook, calls and messages, with a number indicating how many are unread or unanswered.

Still, we’re a little sceptical since we’re not expecting Symbian^4 to arrive for another twelve months.  This could all be the handiwork of a Nokia-loving Photoshop artist, but even if that’s the case we’re hoping the Finns are watching closely; there are certainly elements to this smartphone that we’d like to see in real life.

Update: Yes, too good to be true – it’s apparently the handiwork of two artists putting it forward as a Nokia concept.  Listen and learn, Nokia!  Thanks Jul!

[via MobileMentalism]

That would make it the second Nokia device – after the X6 – to use the touchscreen technology, rather than the more common resistive panels.  The screen will apparently run at 800 x 480 resolution, while under the hood there’ll be “up to 16GB” of internal storage – we’re guessing they mean a microSD card slot – and a 600MHz CPU.  Like other Nokia handsets, the phone will have a slide-out section with multimedia keys.

Of course, it’s the optics that most N86 8MP addicts will be interested in, and the N87 12MP is tipped to have a Carl Zeiss lens and both Xenon and dual-LED flashes.  We’re very sceptical, we have to say; though it does make sense that Nokia would have a replacement for the N86 8MP in the works, we’re not convinced that this is it.

[via PhoneArena]

There’s also a 5-megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss optics, HSDPA/HSUPA and Facebook integration, together with Bluetooth, WiFi, A-GPS and a micro-USB port; the browser supports Flash Lite 3.0 for in-page video playback, just as we found on the Nokia N97 mini.  Pricing for the unsubsidized Nokia X6 is expected to be around €450 ($676) before taxes; it’s available to buy from the online Nokia store.

Video demo after the cut

If you have an old Nseries Nokia you fancy trading in, you can knock £10 off that contract price and still take the X6 away without spending a penny on the handset itself.  It’s also available to preorder SIM-free online, at Nokia’s UK store, for a somewhat extravagant £449 ($746), though at time of writing we couldn’t find any sign of it.

Other features include 3G, up to 35 hours battery life for music playback, the Ovi apps store and a TV output and support for video recording.  It also has a touch-enabled browser with Flash Lite 3.0 support, Bluetooth 2.0, WiFi, A-GPS and a micro-USB port.  Check out our hands-on video with the Nokia X6 and live gallery below.

Of the four new devices launched this week, they span much of Nokia’s core range from entry-level through media and topping out at smartphones. However, only one – the X6 – supports Comes With Music. According to Liz Schimel, VP of Nokia Music, the company is planning an “a la carte” music download service that will deliver DRM-free MP3 tracks in the same way that Amazon and iTunes offer; however she also confirmed that Comes With Music will continue to use DRM. The individual track download service should be in operation by the end of 2009.

As for the devices Comes With Music offered on, Schimel suggested that rather than making it an option for all handsets – or indeed an after-purchase add-on – Nokia intend to concentrate on “tightly integrating phone and service”. Meanwhile they are looking at both Booklet 3G and Mac OS X support, but have nothing to announce at present. Over one-third of downloaded tracks are being done OTA (over-the-air) rather than synchronised via a PC, and Nokia are working on polishing the on-device experience to support desktop client features like star ratings.

We also had an opportunity to discuss Nokia’s marketing with Timo Ihamuotila, the company’s Executive VP of Sales. Ihamuotila agreed that Nokia’s previous pattern of announcing devices well in advance of release had in some ways damaged their reception, in contrast to this week’s launches which are all expected to be in stores within the next few months. While stopping short of saying that this would be Nokia’s strategy for all new launches moving forward, Ihamuotila did say that in general there would be less of a wait between announcement and release.

As for the US market, Nokia now have a specific US development group and are focusing on just three carriers: AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile. Contrary to simply relaunching European devices with US radios, Ihamuotila said Nokia are now creating US-specific handsets; he also agreed that the company has “not been responsive enough [to market movement].” Instead, there is now a focus on explaining services and functionality to buyers and prospective-buyers, a system which both Nokia and the carriers have invested in. Ihamuotila described a store setup in one country where customers could design their ideal N97 menu and app layout, slotting big icons into a huge magnetic N97 board, at which point the customer services team would set up their new smartphone in exactly that way. While that exact system may not be repeated, Nokia are keen to make services both easy to discover and to use.

We also asked Ihamuotila about Nokia’s fledgling use of capacitive touchscreens in the X6, whether this was a sign of a change in overall strategy, and why the Nokia N900 still uses resistive. He described the nature of phone technology as “cyclical” – likely a reference to the long development time in producing new handset designs – but suggested that, like the circular zoom control in the N900′s browser, there was still a lot you could get out of a resistive panel. However there was also a suggestion that Nokia is moving toward greater use of capacitive touchscreens.

Turning to the Booklet 3G, something of a departure from Nokia’s existing line-up, Ihamuotila concurred with other executives we spoke to in describing it as the company injecting their core skills – anywhere-connectivity, long battery life – into a new market. According to John Hwang, general manager of Connected Computers at Nokia and key designer of the Booklet 3G, the netbook represents the company’s chosen balance between battery life, price and performance; for instance, when we asked why Nokia had not used NVIDIA’s Ion chipset to give the Booklet 3G more capable graphics, Hwang told us that battery life took priority – at least in this first-gen model. Consumer response, meanwhile, will shape the next generation of models.

In a similar way, Maemo will continue its push into the high-end, with Symbian progressing down the scale to the mainstream market.  We covered the Linux-based OS and Nokia’s plans for it earlier in the week, after meeting with Ari Jaaksi, the company’s VP of software. The N900, like the Booklet 3G, is being treated as a test bed for user opinion, and while not confirming any specific hardware plans Nokia did tell us that unlike the Internet Tablets – which generally hit the market one at a time – several newer Maemo devices could coexist in sales channels, better positioning Maemo 5 and then version 6 next year.

We’re glad to hear that, as we remain unconvinced with Symbian S60 in comparison to the latest smartphone platforms from rivals. Lined up against Android, webOS, OS X on the iPhone and others, especially on touchscreen devices, we’re not sure S60 can hold up its end of the battle; despite the pre-production status of the N900 devices we used at Nokia World, though, we’re tentatively more confident in the Maemo platform and its powerful underlying open-source building blocks.

Throw into the mixture Nokia’s Ovi SDK developments – which arguably incorporates (or at least will as the roadmap progresses) the best of on-device integration and the relative ease of webapp programming – and, as the range of compatible platforms broadens, they may have hit a sweet spot. What remains to be seen is how quickly they can roll out the rest of the APIs; Nokia may be saying that location-based services are what people are clamouring for first, but for their hybrid webapps to really take on native software and hold their own they’ll need further integration with the core phone systems. Right now you can trigger calls and the like from records in webapps, but there’s no true embedded contacts access, say, or imaging from the phone’s camera.

So much, then, depends on timing. Nokia president and CEO Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo repeatedly said during his opening keynote that the company was fighting, innovating and not reacting, and it’s certainly true that much of what was announced this week has potential. Maemo, the N900 redefining Nokia’s smartphone niche, the use of a capacitive display in the X6, the Booklet 3G and the new Ovi SDK, all are interesting beginnings to a new phase in the Finnish company’s strategy. If they can capitalise on those beginnings and deliver the second- and third-gen products smoothly and swiftly then it goes beyond potential and into standing a real chance of success. The question, then, is whether Nokia can do that before the rest of the mobile industry game accelerates ahead.

For the product highlights from this week, check out our Nokia N900 hands-on video and browser demo, Nokia X6 video, Nokia X3 video and Nokia N97 mini video; there’s also our live Booklet 3G gallery. You can find all of our show coverage via the Nokia World tag. SlashGear would like to thank the Nokia Social Media team for inviting us to Stuttgart and Nokia World, and for covering expenses; sites taking part in the trip were under no obligation with regards the tone, attitude or opinion of their coverage.

Hands-on video after the cut

There’s also a 5-megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss optics and a dual-LED flash, as well as a TV output and support for video recording.  It also has a touch-enabled browser with Flash Lite 3.0 support, plus access to Nokia’s Ovi suite of software downloads, messaging and other services.

Other connectivity includes Bluetooth 2.0, WiFi, A-GPS and a micro-USB port.  In the hand, we found the display felt little different to the excellent resistive panel of the N900, but the phone in general is pretty responsive.  For more, check out the video below.

There’ll also be Comes With Music media downloads on the X6, as well as 32GB of onboard storage to keep it all.  As for the Nokia X3, that will have a 3.2-megapixel camera and FM radio, together with a slide-out numeric keypad and integrated stereo speakers.

The Nokia N97 Mini is expected to be priced at €450 ($639) pre-subsidies when it lands in October 2009.  Meanwhile the Nokias X3 and X6 will land in Q4 2009, priced at €450 ($639) and €115 ($163) respectively.

Press Release:

Nokia seizes social internet and amplifies music experience
September 02, 2009

Stuttgart, Germany – Today, at Nokia World, the annual destination for people with passion for mobility, Nokia unveiled a combo that can change how people connect with each other and offer new and exciting ways to give everyone, everywhere, the power to make the most of every moment. With today’s news, together with Nokia’s recent announcements – Nokia Money, the Nokia N900, Nokia Booklet 3G, Nokia 5230 and Nokia 5800 Navigation Edition – Nokia expands in new directions for changing the ways people go about their lives.

Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo, CEO, Nokia, commented: “Nokia aims at reaching the many, not the few, with our rich portfolio of services. We are doing this through an increasing number of open partnerships with world leaders in many fields. We are proud to lead the charge in smartphones and beyond as manifested in the Nokia N900 and Nokia Booklet 3G, two great examples of how the world is changing and Nokia is driving this change.”

Opening up the next innovative chapter of personal and location-aware internet, Nokia announced lifecasting with Ovi, a partnership with the world’s largest social network, Facebook. Lifecasting with Ovi is the first application to let people publish their location and status updates directly to their Facebook account from the home screen of a mobile device. Lifecasting goes beyond just publishing your status – it is about building deeper and closer connections between people. It triggers new kinds of communication patterns, such as sending messages or status updates or even navigating to a friend or a place.

Lifecasting will premiere on the new Nokia N97 mini, companion to the successful Nokia N97. Designed with a social and style-conscious consumer in mind, the Nokia N97 mini is a smaller mobile computer with stylish stainless steel cues, featuring a tilting 3.2″ touch display, QWERTY keyboard and fully customizable homescreen that makes each Nokia N97 mini as unique as a fingerprint. The Nokia N97 mini delivers a truly personal internet experience in a compact handset based on the iconic design of the Nokia N97.

Jonas Geust, Vice President of Nokia Nseries, commented: “People want to bring their physical and online worlds together via the internet. The Nokia N97 mini is designed for this new social internet and to help navigate people and places. With lifecasting, the Nokia N97 mini and Ovi usher in the next chapter of personal and location-aware internet.”

Lifecasting with Ovi will be available for both the Nokia N97 and Nokia N97 mini via Nokia Beta Labs. The Nokia N97 mini features new software which will be released in October as a free update for the Nokia N97. The new software brings compelling new experiences to both devices, including new homescreen widgets and additional usability improvements including flick scrolling.

The Nokia N97 mini is powered by a new Ovi Maps experience which makes searching, finding and navigating even easier. In addition to global pedestrian navigation, people can access premium content from Lonely Planet, Michelin and Wcities, turning the Nokia N97 mini into the world’s smallest travel companion.

Users can personalise the homescreen of their device even further with thousands of different applications and services available from the Ovi Store. From games, videos and podcasts to productivity tools and web services, Ovi Store is the easiest way to fill the Nokia N97 mini’s homescreen with applications that reflect individual tastes. The Nokia N97 mini is expected to begin shipping in October 2009 for an estimated retail price of EUR 450 before taxes and subsidies.

The Comes With Music story continues with the Nokia X6
Pioneering new ways for the world to experience music, Nokia today announced the launch of the new Nokia X6. Capable of playing up to 35 hours of music, the Nokia X6 is a powerful entertainment device, combining 32GB of on-board memory with a slick 3.2″ finger touch interface.

The ultimate device for music lovers and social butterflies, the Nokia X6 has a 16:9 widescreen optimised for photos, videos and browsing. With direct access to Ovi Store, the Nokia X6 is a hive of activity that brings 20 friends and virtual communities, like Facebook, to your homescreen.

Jo Harlow, Vice President, Nokia, commented: “The Nokia X6 and Comes With Music is a powerful combination, enabling music fans to download all the music they could ever want – quickly, easily and for free. We’re giving people convenient access to and ownership of a vast music library and an exciting new touchscreen device to play their music on.”

The new Nokia X3 also joins Nokia’s music portfolio. The Nokia X3 is designed for music lovers and is the first Series 40 Ovi Store-enabled device. The Nokia X3 is a sleek and compact music device that comes with stereo speakers, built-in FM radio, and a 3.2 megapixel camera.

To make the most of the entertainment experience, Nokia introduced the Nokia Mini Speaker MD-9, a pocket-size speaker for big sound, and the Nokia Bluetooth Stereo Headset BH-505, an ergonomic and lightweight neckband headset for great music and call audio quality also in noisy environments.

The Nokia X6 has an estimated retail price of EUR 450, with the Nokia X3 retailing for an estimated EUR 115. Prices are before taxes and subsidies, and both devices will ship during the fourth quarter of 2009.