Nokia N9

Nokia just announced the Nokia N9 and I’m really intrigued by it. The hardware looks great and is as unique as it gets for a touchscreen phone. The user experience they’ve developed feels very well thought out. Navigation buttons have been eliminated and they have instead instituted system wide gestures (swiping from the edges) for navigating the OS. The idea that the home screen, notifications (they call it Events) and open apps are just a swipe away is quite interesting. I’m very curious as to how well it will work with actual usage. Based on the hands-on video it does seem to be very responsive, but I can only judge when I get to experience it first-hand.

On another note, it has become confusing as to what platform Nokia really want developers to invest their time in. The N9 is a MeeGo device. However, earlier this year they have announced that Windows Phone is their primary smartphone platform. Maybe they’re pushing MeeGo for the European and Asia Pacific markets, Windows Phone for the U. S. market.