Nokia's upcoming phablet: a round up

Name the company: a previous powerhouse ultimately reduced to almost complete ruin. Two names are sure to pop up: Nokia and BlackBerry (formerly known as RIM). And while Waterloo-based BlackBerry may be facing some really tough, potentially fatal times, Nokia seems to be getting closer and closer to a renaissance. The Finnish manufacturer has been steadily gaining ground, spearheading the Windows Phone effort, in a big part thanks to an increasingly compelling portfolio of products, the shortcomings of the aforementioned OS notwithstanding.

If you're not a regular around here, a clarification may be in order: we've been getting wind of an upcoming Nokia phablet and a tablet for quite a while now. These are both expected to come by the end of the year – a commendable increase in Nokia's pace. Both have seen a rather modest amount of leaks and general intel, but it is Nokia's phablet that we'll be spotlighting for you today.

To start off, it only makes sense that we lead with availability. As is the nature with all things rumor, the information is, at best, unreliable. On the count of Nokia's phablet, it's that and conflicting. Namely, we've been hearing about various possible launch dates, ranging from mid to late September, all the way to November. In fact, the only specific date that we know of is an alleged Nokia event set to take place in New York on September 26th-27th 2013. Those keeping tabs on the manufacturer probably know that it has reserved NYC for its major US launches, and a phablet will definitely fit that bill. Of course, the event may very well see the unveiling of the rumored Nokia tablet instead, but we're fairly sure that it's one or the other, due to a dropped remark by Nokia CEO Elop during the Lumia 1020 launch event, hinting a “major launch” is imminent.

A release date in the fourth quarter is not completely random, though. For a successful foray into the phablet market, Nokia needs to come out packing the big guns. Said otherwise, both a phablet and a tablet are, objectively, a no-go until at least Windows Phone 8 GDR3 has been released to manufacturers sometime next month. Said update will allow for quad-core processor and 1080p display support, both of which are hinted to come with Nokia's phablet. While we've seen conflicting information on the exact diagonal, we're inclined to think that the 5.5- to 6-inch ballpark is what we can expect. Speaking of hardware, sources for NokiaPowerUser claim that the Finnish company may be testing a version of the phablet sporting the Lumia 1020's 41MP shooter. While a salty approach to this particular news (and as a whole, actually) is advised, we can't help but wish that this particular tidbit would materialize into reality.

Needless to say, and to wrap this up, a device of this caliber is sure to make a splash, perhaps even prove a worthy competition to the upcoming Galaxy Note III. All signs thus far indicate that a renaissance of sorts may very well be taking place over at Nokia, and we certainly are itching to get some more conclusive and specific evidence that we can share with you. In the meantime we'll make the best of it by imagining what it could be; to that end we've curated a small gallery for you to join in on the fun.

source: Neowin, NokiaPowerUser

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