Nokia N8 first to showcase Symbian^3

News
By Tom Brewster
published

The new Nokia N8 smartphone will feature the first OS from Symbian since its switch to open source, named Symbian^3.

Nokia N8

Nokia has become the first smartphone manufacturer to adopt the next version of the Symbian OS - Symbian^3 (S^3), as they're calling it - for its new device, the N8.

The Symbian platform, acquired by Nokia in 2008, was moved fully open source in February and S^3 is the first OS release since this transition.

However, those eager to get their hands on the N8 will have to wait until the third quarter of 2010 when the smartphone will hit the market at an estimated price of 370 (320).

The new OS offers Nokia N8 users HDMI support, allowing them to plug their phone into a TV and watch high-definition video content at 1080p resolution. The homescreen, meanwhile, supports numerous pages of widgets, which users can switch between with a simple flick gesture.

For improved efficiency with memory management, a Writeable Data Paging feature enables applications to run simultaneously for improved multi-tasking abilities.

Tom Brewster
Tom Brewster

Tom Brewster is currently an associate editor at Forbes and an award-winning journalist who covers cyber security, surveillance, and privacy. Starting his career at ITPro as a staff writer and working up to a senior staff writer role, Tom has been covering the tech industry for more than ten years and is considered one of the leading journalists in his specialism.

He is a proud alum of the University of Sheffield where he secured an undergraduate degree in English Literature before undertaking a certification from General Assembly in web development.