Nokia previews pocket "Internet Tablet" with Linux, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth

- Gary Thayer, Editor

updated May 26, 2005 -- (MobileVillage) -- At the LinuxWorld Summit in New York today, Nokia introduced the Nokia 770 Internet Tablet. The 770 marks Nokia's first Linux device, as well as its first in the new Internet Tablet category.

According to Nokia, the 770 is a device "optimized for convenient Internet browsing and email communications in a pocketsize format." The 770 has a relatively high-resolution (800x480) widescreen display with zoom and on-screen keyboard. The device runs the Opera browser and so far, has no protections for digital rights management (DRM).

For connectivity, the 770 Internet Tablet features built-in 802.11b/g Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 1.2 technology. Users will need a Bluetooth mobile phone to use the latter.

Other features include a RSS news reader, image viewer, Adobe Acrobat viewer, built-in 3.5mm audio jack, Internet radio, and media players for selected types of media. Nokia claims a browsing time of up to 3 hours and standby time of up to 7 days from the 1500 mAh rechargeable battery of the 770.

Applications include a file manager, search, calculator, world clock, notes, sketch tool, and games. There is no hard disk; for storage the 770 uses the tiny RS-MMC format, with a 64MB card in the package.

The device runs on Nokia's new Internet Tablet 2005 software, which includes desktop Linux and Open Source technologies. Nokia says that its new maemo development platform (maemo.org) will provide Open Source developers and others with tools to collaborate with Nokia on future devices and OS releases. The device uses the ARM port of GNU Linux Debian 2.6, has a Gnome user interface, and runs a Texas Instruments 1710 processor.

"This is the first step in creating an Open Source product for broadband and Internet services," says Janne Jormalainen, Nokia's VP of Convergence Products, Multimedia. "We will be regularly launching updates of the software. The next software release planned for the first half of next year will support more presence based functionalities such as VoIP and Instant Messaging."

The 770 Internet Tablet will retail for about US $350 - less than similar PDAs and some of Nokia's own high-end smartphones. Nokia plans to begin shipments in the third quarter of 2005 in selected countries in the Americas and Europe.

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