Nokia Ships Symbian 3-Powered C7 Handset

The Nokia C7 smartphone is now shipping to customers around the world, Nokia announced on 11 October – the same day Microsoft launched its Windows Phone 7 on five new handsets. Following the Nokia N8, the C7 is the second smartphone to run the Symbian 3 operating system and is one of four new phones with which Nokia, much like Microsoft, is looking to regain lost market share.

The slim glass-and-stainless-steel C7 measures 4.6 by 2.2 by 0.4 inches and features a 3.5-inch AMOLED capacitive touch display. It comes with free driving and walking navigation, thanks to Ovi Maps – which can additionally point out nearby restaurants and area landmarks – and support for a variety of email and messaging solutions. It has an 8-megapixel camera with HD video, an HTML browser with Flash Lite 4.0 support, 8GB of internal memory and an microSD card slot that can support up to 32GB more, and is integrated with social networks that update live to the C7’s three customisable home screens.

Touch display

A full-touch glass display allows users, with a single click, to launch email, networking apps, games or the Ovi Store, which features a new design that first shipped on the N8.

“Designed specifically with the style-conscious consumer in mind, the Nokia C7… brings excellent social networking abilities, making it perfect for people who want to check-in and stay up to date,” Jo Harlow, head of smartphones at Nokia, said in a statement.

Nokia, looking to additionally emphasise what a fit the C7 is for the networking-inclined, kicked off a contest, in its 11 October announcement, to find the most active Facebook user among its 1.4 million fans.

“Nokia will … pick five finalists who will each be provided with a Nokia C7 to organise a party using various social networks,” Nokia explained in the statement. “The fan who best captures their party through Facebook – generating the most coverage with updates and posts – will win a Nokia C7 for themselves and 20 of their friends.”

Not a bad haul, considering the C7 carries an estimated retail price of 335 euro (£293) – though Nokia says pricing will vary between regions and operators.

Sliding market share

Nokia introduced the C7 with the N8, C6 and E7 smartphones at its Nokia World 2010 conference in London on 14 September. Niklas Savander, Nokia’s executive vice president, said during the event’s kick-off address that the company wouldn’t apologise for not being “Apple or Google or Samsung or anybody else,” but that Nokia has gone through a challenging transition and is now ready to regain its leadership role.

While Nokia leads the worldwide market in unit shipments, in recent quarters it’s lost market share, particularly in the high-end smartphone space, to Android-running smartphones, as well as RIM BlackBerry handsets and the Apple iPhone.

“Today we shift into high gear in Nokia’s fight back in smartphone leadership,” Savander said.

The E7 slider phone, which will feature a 4-inch touch display, a four-row QWERTY keypad and business-grade security solutions, and the smaller and more consumer-geared C6, with its 3.2-inch full-touch display, have yet to begin shipping.