Is the Nokia Communicator form factor outmoded?

Link: Nokia World Blog

In a Q&A session with OPK (check out Stephen’s earlier post if you’re not hip to that TLA), the unsurpressable Ewan MacLeod of SMS Text News brought some much-needed levity when he asked the Nokia CEO what his first handset was (a five-kilo monster in 1984 that stretched the limits of what could be a “mobile” phone), and what he’s currently carrying. It was hardly surprising to seem him pull out a Nokia E61, which seems to be the business phone du jour, at least for the Northern European set, knocking off the venerable Communicator.

The E61 is a pretty fantastic device, but its popularity raises another question: what next for the Communicator series? If mobile-phone sites and forums were to be believed, another Communicator was expected to be announced here. But with the success of a device like the E61, is the Communicator form factor outmoded and outdated? There’s not much that can be done on a Communicator that can’t be done on an E61 (camera aside, of course), and the Series 80 software platform’s been absorbed into S60, and the QWERTY thumboard is a more than capable sub for the bigger keyboard on the Communicator.

I’m in two minds about the Communicator. It’s a bit bulky for your suit, compared to an E61. I’d like to see the next generation though — if they can get it slim enough, it might be worth a look. Otherwise, I’m sticking with the E61 form factor.