Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) is certainly making its case for being the anti-Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) – and by that we mean, being very busy with product unveilings during the June and September quarters, whereas Apple hasn’t had any new product announcements this year yet, and admitted in its earnings call Tuesday that it has no unveilings planned until the fall. So Nokia, really working to repair its image and once again become a major player in the mobile handset market, is continuing to roll out some new products.
Earlier this year, Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) unveiled the Lumia 928 handset that was designed exclusively for Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) customers And earlier this week, the company revealed a new Asha handset, called the 210, which is the first handset made to have a dedicated WhatsApp instant-messaging button. Now, the Finnish handset maker is moving back into its Lumia line for its latest unveiling, as it has sent out announcements for a Lumia “event” May 14 in London.
Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) CEO Stephen Elop has said very recently that the company was due to put out a range of devices during this calendar year, including a “hero” device. In the wake of the Samsung Galaxy S4 coming out with its “phablet”-sized 5-inch device, and Nokia just putting out its line of Lumia handsets in the last six months, this may be a little soon for another smartphone.
Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) did invite media members and others to attend the event and “see what’s next.” Could this be a Lumia “phablet” that runs on the Windows Phone 8 operating system by Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)?
(As an aside, we’re not big fans of the word “phablet” to describe these hybrid devices that are larger than smartphones but smaller than tablets – those in the 5- to 7-inch range. So we recommend calling these “megaphones.” Or if you wish, “megaPhones.” Just a thought.)
There were some rumors that Nokia was going to put out a larger smartphone device – one unconfirmed report had it as a mammoth 6-incher – and it seems that Nokia has covered as many of the price points that it could with its Lumia line of handsets without sacrificing the high-end quality that would come with running the Windows Phone 8 OS. And there has been talk that the behemoth 41-megapixel PureView camera that was placed on the Nokia 808 device was ripe to be included in a Lumia device at some point – so could this be the reincarnation of PureView? Of course Nokia isn’t saying more, so I guess we’ll have to wait for the leaks (which invariably float around) as well as the event itself to learn what is truly “next” for Nokia.
What do you think? Give us your thoughts about Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) and where you think the company is going, as well as the stock. Will this new device keep Nokia in the mobile conversation? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
DISCLOSURE: I own no positions in any stock mentioned.
