Nokia’s new N900 smartphone may look like an N97 on the outside, but, powered by the Linux-based Maemo OS, what place will it really have in the market?
At least for now, hacker-developers are the target. Nokia (NYSE: NOK) launched a competition dubbed Push at the recent onedotzero film festival, showcasing what tinkerers have been able to do with the upcoming open-source handset (video)…
The showcase concepts include a reengineered Speak ‘n Spell that sends SMS, controlling the handset’s address book via a Rolodex and capturing 3D images using an old Viewfinder.
But Nokia is also inviting further submissions, with winning inventions appearing inside Nokia stores.
There’s a healthy degree of marketing about this. But, while Nokia continues to eschew Android’s variety of open-source developer friendliness, it’s at least courting creative Arduino types and tinkerers.
Nokia blog: “It