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The Ringtone tolls for Nokia Brother Number Two

Farewell, Anssi – and farewell S60

'We're so sorry. But anyway...'

I suspect this is a result of the media advice that the executives at Nokia get, which is to pay very close attention to fickle, zero-circulation blogs. If you do very much of this at all, though, it's no wonder the world starts to looks petty and peevish.

Savander said Nokia “hadn't been as competitive as we wanted to be” and Vanjoki began on the same theme, by saying many of the criticisms of Nokia have been justified.

“Nokia invented the smartphone, but we have made them with the highest functionality, beautifully designed, and for everyone.”

He seemed personally affronted by criticism that the all-new Symbian^3 UI looked just like the old one. He dwelled on this just a little too long. This is the sort of criticism a blogging bloke in a shed would make, and it should have bounced off Brother Number Two. It was sufficient to show off the product, as he did, playing HD video with 5:1 Dolby sound. When that works, it speaks for itself.

Vanjoki hovered at the end of the speech briefly, basking in the applause - a bit like footballers soaking up the appreciation at the final home game of the season, when they know they're off on a Bosman transfer in the summer. At least he didn't bring his children on stage – as I've seen footballers do, for a valedictory lap of honour.

Farewell then, Anssi – we all thought. And then we started making a book on which executives would be here for Nokia World 2011 next September. The Board is running things now – which means Jorma is really back in charge – and he seems to know what he wants. If you want to see my book, you'll first have to show me yours. ®

Bootnote

As a footnote I must also point out that the name "S60" never passed a speaker's lips once. For years, executives would never say the word "Symbian". Now "S60" has been airbrushed from history. Like N-Gage, it never existed at all.

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