'Microsoft Lumia' Will Replace the Nokia Brand

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'Microsoft Lumia' Will Replace the Nokia Brand

Posted by timothy on Tuesday October 21, 2014 @03:35AM from the not-many-years-from-dominance dept.

jones_supa writes The last emblems of Nokia are being removed from Microsoft products. "Microsoft Lumia" is the new brand name that takes their place. The name change follows a slow transition from Nokia.com over to Microsoft's new mobile site, and Nokia France will be the first of many countries that adopt "Microsoft Lumia" for its Facebook, Twitter, and other social media accounts. Microsoft has confirmed to The Verge that other countries will follow the rebranding steps in the coming weeks. Nokia itself continues as a reborn company focusing on mapping and network infrastructure services.

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Versus Oracle and Java... by TWX · 2014-10-21 03:37 · Score: 0, Offtopic

...where we look at Oracle's rebranding of Java and think, "you're not fooling anyone," and, "And we thought it was bad under Sun's stewardship..."

--
Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
1. Re:Versus Oracle and Java... by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 03:55 · Score: 0
  
  Yes Oracle's move to redub Java 'Douche' was indeed a bad move.
  Oracle Douche just doesn't have the same ring to it. Although it effects the company better as a whole, which is probably what they were going for.
  "Hey look I just wrote a GUI in DoucheFX! Lets sue google AND apple!"
Not a very exciting name by whereiswaldo · 2014-10-21 03:38 · Score: -1, Offtopic

"Lum" in Lumia rhymes with "gloom". No hard sounds like "T" or "K". I'm not a naming expert, but I don't care for it.
1. Re:Not a very exciting name by lbmouse · 2014-10-21 03:57 · Score: 1
  
  Guess it is better than Zune 2.0.
2. Re:Not a very exciting name by CRCulver · 2014-10-21 04:00 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  In a number of European languages, "lumi-" has resonances of "light, brightness". Perhaps the name won over a then-Finnish company for its association with snow (Finnish lumi), another bright, pure thing. You can always find something in a product name to critique, and I don't think that one guy saying "Well, it rhyhmes with gloom" (a word rarely used outside of native-speaker English anyway) would have been much dissuasion.
3. Re:Not a very exciting name by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 04:13 · Score: 4, Interesting
  
  In Spanish "lumia" is an old word for prostitute. It is not of common use but it shows like that in the dictionary: http://lema.rae.es/drae/?val=lumia
4. Re:Not a very exciting name by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 05:08 · Score: 1
  
  Remember the Mitsubishi Pajero debacle? Perhaps it really doesn't matter which word you choose as it is always another word for 'wanker' or 'prostitute', etc., in Spanish.
5. Re:Not a very exciting name by ShanghaiBill · 2014-10-21 05:21 · Score: 2
  
  You can always find something in a product name to critique
  There is marketing research that shows that people remember words with hard consonants better. So a word like "Nokia" or "Kodak", is in some ways a measurably better brand than a word like "Lumia". Of course, the name wasn't enough to keep Kodak from going bankrupt.
6. Re:Not a very exciting name by hweimer · 2014-10-21 05:32 · Score: 1
  
  There is marketing research that shows that people remember words with hard consonants better. So a word like "Nokia" or "Kodak", is in some ways a measurably better brand than a word like "Lumia".
  If you only care about people rembering your brand name (and not about the associations that come with it), then "Ebola" would be even better.
  
  --
  OS Reviews: Free and Open Source Software
7. Re:Not a very exciting name by davester666 · 2014-10-21 05:35 · Score: 1
  
  at least they didn't also include "with Windows Phone"...or make it ship only in brown...
  
  --
  Sleep your way to a whiter smile...date a dentist!
8. Re:Not a very exciting name by Pax681 · 2014-10-21 05:39 · Score: 1
  
  Remember the Mitsubishi Pajero debacle? Perhaps it really doesn't matter which word you choose as it is always another word for 'wanker' or 'prostitute', etc., in Spanish.
  Yup just like the Sega consoles were marketed in Italy as Genesis as sega means wank in Italian ;)
9. Re:Not a very exciting name by flaming+error · 2014-10-21 05:40 · Score: 1
  
  For some of us die-hard old bigots, "Ebola" actually conjures an image that positively rivals "Microsoft".
10. Re: Not a very exciting name by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 06:01 · Score: 0
  
  Yeah, Bill's Boyz really should have gone wjith Anasazi 2.0.
11. Re:Not a very exciting name by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 06:02 · Score: 1
  
  Yeah and the "Ap" in Apple rhymes with crap and rap. iPad sounds like a feminine hygiene product. Linux sounds like a liar's OS (lie-nucks). Android rhymes with hemorrhoid.
12. Re:Not a very exciting name by marcello_dl · 2014-10-21 06:17 · Score: 1
  
  And for the funny part:
  Being a "sega" is slang for being inept in Italy, so when the arcade machines displayed a full screen "Sega" some time after game was over, it was an insult to the guy who just lost the game, and was taunted by his fellows with that word.
  Having said that, they market everything under the Sega name and people don't care much anymore.
  
  --
  ---- MISSING MISCELLANEOUS DATA SEGMENT --- [sigdash] trolololol
13. Re:Not a very exciting name by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 06:19 · Score: 0
  
  inept? ma fatti una sega..
14. Re:Not a very exciting name by shoor · 2014-10-21 06:45 · Score: 1
  
  There's an urban legend that the Chevy Nova didn't sell well in Spanish speaking countries because 'no va' means 'no go'. At least, the wikipedia says it's only an urban legend.
  
  --
  In theory, theory and practice are the same; in practice they're different. (Yogi Berra & A. Einstein)
15. Re:Not a very exciting name by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 06:58 · Score: 0
  
  Or the Ford Pendejo. I imagine the marketing guys behind that one are holding cardboard signs at the side of the road somewhere saying "Will sell cars for food," or something equally heart-wrenching.
16. Re:Not a very exciting name by Pax681 · 2014-10-21 07:29 · Score: 1
  
  inept? ma fatti una sega..
  indeed AC.. marcello_dl can go argue with the people of Tuscany.. particularly Lucca and the surrounding area where my family is from ;)
17. Re:Not a very exciting name by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 09:10 · Score: 0
  
  Fucking mods - "offtopic" yet the title of the article is exactly about the name change. Get a clue.
18. Re:Not a very exciting name by occasional_dabbler · 2014-10-21 09:40 · Score: 1
  
  In Spanish most words in femenine form can mean prostitute. This isn't considered sexist by Spanish girls, because they all have bigger cojones than the men anyway.
  
  --
  "Our opponent is an alien starship packed with atomic bombs," I said. "we have a protractor"
19. Re:Not a very exciting name by 0100010001010011 · 2014-10-21 13:09 · Score: 1
  
  Because "No Va" and "Nova" are different like "Notable" and "No Table".
  If something was advertised as being 'notable' I wouldn't think that it had no table.
20. Re:Not a very exciting name by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 15:02 · Score: 0
  
  It's off topic because OP's link between the first half of the name "Lumia" rhyming with "gloom" is a tenuous connection at best. Nobody who isn't trying to be a troll associates the two.
  
  I will agree that the mods were wrong in marking it "offtopic". It should have been marked "flamebait" or "troll".
21. Re:Not a very exciting name by marcello_dl · 2014-10-22 00:23 · Score: 1
  
  Nothing to argue about, see
  item n. 7 or ask google.
  If Lucchesi practice the other meaning too much is not really my business.
  
  --
  ---- MISSING MISCELLANEOUS DATA SEGMENT --- [sigdash] trolololol
I hereby claim by stonedead · 2014-10-21 03:38 · Score: -1

First post on this story.
1. Re: I hereby claim by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 04:05 · Score: 1
  
  You just failed more than Microsoft in the phone market
2. Re: I hereby claim by jcdr · 2014-10-21 04:51 · Score: 1
  
  Elope trying to make a first post ?
3. Re: I hereby claim by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-22 01:01 · Score: 0
  
  Or even more than Apple in the desktop market.
Recognition by msobkow · 2014-10-21 03:39 · Score: 4, Insightful

Nokia has more brand name recognition, so of course we won't use that.
Idjits.

--
I do not fail; I succeed at finding out what does not work.
1. Re:Recognition by sunderland56 · 2014-10-21 03:47 · Score: 5, Funny
  
  It's not exactly the name recognition, it's the name's reputation.
  Nokia: well recognized, well liked brand with positive reception everywhere.
  Microsoft: well recognized, universally hated brand, regular finalist in "most hated company" competitions.
  Marketing 101 says: they chose the wrong name.
2. Re:Recognition by Rhywden · 2014-10-21 03:51 · Score: 1
  
  Right, because they had a choice...
  As part of the acquisition of Nokia's mobile business, they also got the naming rights for a limited time only (two years, if I recall correctly).
3. Re:Recognition by binarylarry · 2014-10-21 03:52 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  Does this make anyone feel bad for Steve Ballmer?
  The whole time I've assumed he was the reason Microsoft seemed to be run by idiots.
  But with this and their other recent moves, Microsoft seems to be run by a gaggle of idiots. A flock even.
  
  --
  Mod me down, my New Earth Global Warmingist friends!
4. Re:Recognition by Lunix+Nutcase · 2014-10-21 04:00 · Score: 1
  
  They only licensed the Nokia name for a limited time. They chose the only thing possible.
5. Re:Recognition by i+kan+reed · 2014-10-21 04:01 · Score: 4, Interesting
  
  The only error in your post is that most people can't bring themselves to care enough about Microsoft anymore to go as far as hating them. Say what you want about 95 through early XP era blue-screens, they were recognizable.
  Now, though, windows is basically synonymous with white collar office work, and not a lot else. A lot of people don't even use it at home for internet browsing anymore.
6. Re:Recognition by msobkow · 2014-10-21 04:05 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  Then they were fools. The whole point of buying an established company is to buy the brand as well as the factories. Anyone can build a factory, usually for no more than it would cost to buy someone else out.
  
  --
  I do not fail; I succeed at finding out what does not work.
7. Re:Recognition by gstoddart · 2014-10-21 04:11 · Score: 2
  
  Intellectual property ... market share ... product offerings ... future company direction.
  Maybe they weren't the fools you think they were?
  
  --
  Lost at C:>. Found at C.
8. Re:Recognition by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 04:12 · Score: 0
  
  Microsoft is not universally hated, though legions of ignorant users have grown accustomed to using this scapegoat for their computer woes, no matter if it's the fault of a 3rd party or their own. None of the "most hated companies" lists I could find made any mention of Microsoft, but here's one that mentions Nokia at #2. Marketing 102: Don't listen to Slashdot trolls.
9. Re:Recognition by Lunix+Nutcase · 2014-10-21 04:16 · Score: 2
  
  They didn't buy the company. They bought some of its divisions and IP.
10. Re:Recognition by Mike+Buddha · 2014-10-21 04:18 · Score: 1
  
  It's not exactly the name recognition, it's the name's reputation.
  Nokia: well recognized, well liked brand with positive reception everywhere,except amongst developers that actually programmed for Symbian.
  Microsoft: well recognized, universally hated brand, regular finalist in "most hated company" competitions,but appreciated by developers for their excellent dev tools/environment.
  Marketing 101 says: they picked the right name but for reasons that aren't readily clear to the general public
  FTFY
  
  --
  by Mike Buddha -- Someday the mountain might get him, but the law never will.
11. Re:Recognition by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 04:22 · Score: -1
  
  I feel bad for trolls like you. You've made hating Microsoft a full-time hobby. A clear indication that your life is unsatisfying.
12. Re:Recognition by sunderland56 · 2014-10-21 04:31 · Score: 2
  
  They didn't buy the company. They bought some of its divisions and IP.
  They bought the phone division...... you mean there were other divisions of Nokia?
13. Re:Recognition by pushing-robot · 2014-10-21 04:31 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  The correct word is "bungle". A bungle of idiots.
  Coincidentally, the same collective noun is used for managers. Microsoft seems to have both in great abundance, as well as a muddle of analysts and a quandary of advisors.
  
  --
  How can I believe you when you tell me what I don't want to hear?
14. Re:Recognition by jeffmflanagan · 2014-10-21 04:36 · Score: 2
  
  Lumia: Recognized as nice phones with excellent cameras.
15. Re:Recognition by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 04:39 · Score: 0
  
  It's always hilarious when some derpster with an extremely limited view calls people with far more knowledge and expertise "fools."
  
  This is what /. has become. A bunch of dorks pretending to be superior to knowledgeable professionals. This might as well be a Breitbart blog.
16. Re:Recognition by jeffmflanagan · 2014-10-21 04:42 · Score: 1
  
  No, Windows is synonymous with both serious business and high-end gaming, so there's no viable substitute at home or in the office.
17. Re:Recognition by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 04:46 · Score: 1
  
  Of course not. Not a single one. And it is total bullshit that the company started out as a rubber manufacturer *cough, cough*.
18. Re:Recognition by TemporalBeing · 2014-10-21 04:55 · Score: 1
  
  Then they were fools. The whole point of buying an established company is to buy the brand as well as the factories. Anyone can build a factory, usually for no more than it would cost to buy someone else out.
  Except they weren't trying to buy the "brand". They were trying to buy the product to ensure that there was an actual product in the market with their failing OS on it; they were simply trying to buy market share; nothing more.
  
  The fact that it's their name on it now won't change anything. It will still fail just as a badly as before (may be even worse).
  
  --
  Truth is like the sun. You can shut it out for a time, but it ain't goin' away. - Elvis Presley (source: imdb.com)
19. Re:Recognition by SydShamino · 2014-10-21 05:06 · Score: 1
  
  For most people there are many viable substitutes for "high-end gaming" as a hobby.
  
  --
  It doesn't hurt to be nice.
20. Re:Recognition by DarkOx · 2014-10-21 05:10 · Score: 1
  
  Yea but the hatred of Microsoft is more resentment and jealousy than anything else. Sure geeks hate them but nobody else really does. Microsoft like IBM before it represents safety in a confusing market place. Nobody every got fired for buying Microsoft, just like nobody ever got fired for buying IBM before that.
  Microsoft has lost the consumer phone space, they have not yet decided they won't try but they know trying to get Teens and college kids to think their phones are 'cool' and or convince homemakers they are easy and safe would mean dislodging incumbents who have invested lots in that messaging already and have largely succeeded and are now seeing those ideas intrenched. Nokia still has come cache there; if they were going down that road they'd pick Nokia.
  Microsoft is instead going with their old top down we're gonna force it on you strategy. The business mobile space has tons of companies that still don't have device deployment beyond the sales force, they have large orgs that are fleeing the Blackberry sinking ship. They can land those deals, right now all the policy management and such absolutely sucks for IOS and android; its all half backed and has more holes in it than a Swiss cheese. Microsoft is a brand you sell IT managers on. Its familiar and rule 0 of marketing is familiarity is more important than likability. People will knowingly select a brand they have had negative past experience with over the unknown.
  IT manager thinking works like this: durr herp derp Samsung they make TVs; now Microsoft they make IT solutions! derp.
  The truth is Windows phone probably can/will score better on their myopic score card spreadsheet too, Microsoft knows how to win the weighted decision matrix game. Which we all should know is a tool managers everywhere use to give a veneer of objectivity to their most subjective a prejudiced decisions. I look forward to the TCO whitepapers streaming from Microsoft.com servers in 5 . 4 . 3 . 2 . 1 what relevance do the categories and metrics chosen have to do with anything; well the will have been 'scientifically' chose to make Microsoft look good.
  
  --
  Repeal the 17th Amendment TODAY! Also Please Read http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/right-to-read.html
21. Re:Recognition by serviscope_minor · 2014-10-21 05:13 · Score: 2
  
  Microsoft seems to have both in great abundance,
  In fairness, so does/did Nokia.
  Remember when Nokia were at or at least only a little past their peak? When everyone had a Nokia phone and pitied (rightly) those poor souls on non-nokia phones which were hilariously bad to use. When it was one of the most well recognised and liked brands in the world.
  Well, they decided to launch things like maps and so on.
  And for some reason they decided to launch under the brand "Ovi".
  Whey the hell would you squander one of the best brands in the world and spend millions trying to create one not nearly so well recognised?
  
  --
  SJW n. One who posts facts.
22. Re:Recognition by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 05:17 · Score: 0
  
  Nokia has more brand name recognition, so of course we won't use that.
  Idjits.
  Yes, you are.
  Part of the deal was the Microsoft only had rights to the Nokia brand name for 2 years. They are going to have to re-brand anyway, so they might as well do it sooner, rather then later.
23. Re:Recognition by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 05:19 · Score: 0
  
  Then they were fools. The whole point of buying an established company is to buy the brand as well as the factories. Anyone can build a factory, usually for no more than it would cost to buy someone else out.
  But that's the rub, Microsoft didn't buy all of Nokia (which is what Steve Ballmer wanted to do). They bought Nokia's mobility division (which is what the board compromised on).
24. Re:Recognition by Comrade+Ogilvy · 2014-10-21 05:29 · Score: 1
  
  Your point about policy management makes a lot of sense. Every software company I have worked at in the Valley has had IT with excellent non-Windows chops, yet they all still end up installing MS Exchange. There are certain solutions areas where MS has plenty of street cred among those who have to make the decisions.
  It is still an uphill battle. IT is often desperate to reduce the scope of device support, and they are not allowed to say no to the iPhone, and probably not Android either. If it comes down to a battle some VP will complain and the CEO will lay down the law that the E-teams favorite phones will be supported.
25. Re:Recognition by perryizgr8 · 2014-10-21 05:43 · Score: 1
  
  Every software company I have worked at in the Valley has had IT with excellent non-Windows chops, yet they all still end up installing MS Exchange. There are certain solutions areas where MS has plenty of street cred among those who have to make the decisions.
  And this is true for a good reason: everything apart from Exchange is shit. Seriously. Name one large-scale email system that you fully control and is fully featured, has apps on all platforms, and is well-known by a lot of system admins.
  
  --
  Wealth is the gift that keeps on giving.
26. Re:Recognition by Lunix+Nutcase · 2014-10-21 05:48 · Score: 1
  
  Moron or troll attempt? Too hard to tell.
27. Re:Recognition by Kjella · 2014-10-21 05:53 · Score: 1
  
  Nokia has more brand name recognition, so of course we won't use that.
  Of the "let's frame it and put it on a wall" more than "I want one in my pocket" variety. I'll always have fond memories of Nokia 3210 and the state of the art in 1999, but it's not selling a new phone and it's not quite up to collectible/antique standards either. And Elop's little stunt sure didn't help Nokia's reputation as a has-been either. Not to mention that Nokia running Windows Phone might have some of the same hardware but there's very little in common between "old Nokia" and "new Nokia" anyway. I think this was a pretty easy call of Microsoft and would have happened regardless, if they'd ponied up a little more they could have gotten the Nokia name for good as it matters more to consumers than the commercial market the remains of Nokia serves.
  
  --
  Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
28. Re:Recognition by Kingkaid · 2014-10-21 06:03 · Score: 1
  
  I am glad you're not in marketing then. Marketing 101 says don't use names you aren't legally allowed to use. Microsoft purchased part of Nokia, not Nokia, and so doesn't own the rights for the Nokia name (at least in the long term). Part of the deal was the transfer of the Lumia brand from Nokia to Microsoft for exactly this purpose.
29. Re: Recognition by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 06:06 · Score: 0
  
  Yes, Microsoft has always been about the truth, except when it was lying luminously.
30. Re:Recognition by Ravaldy · 2014-10-21 06:21 · Score: 1
  
  Hated brand on /.
  I don't hear anybody say they hate Microsoft outside forums such as this one.
  As for Nokia and Kodak, both those names are now history so it doesn't matter if the name sounds good.
31. Re:Recognition by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 06:29 · Score: 0
  
  > Yea but the hatred of Microsoft is more resentment and jealousy than anything else. Sure geeks hate them but nobody else really does.
  What are you smoking??
  * http://bgr.com/2014/01/31/microsoft-windows-8-1-live-tiles/
  * https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6596038
  * http://ask-beta.slashdot.org/story/06/12/13/019241/why-does-everyone-hate-microsoft
  * https://www.google.com/?#q=microsoft%20hate
  People hate Microsoft because they keep trying push their shitty products, and don't have a clue about _good_ UI. Microsoft is all about vendor lock-in. They kick, scream, and drag there feet with open standards.
  i.e. HOW many years did we have to put up with IE6 ??
  This is a company that doesn't have a clue about what people want. They called Linux a "cancer", yet NOW they have tons of open source projects.
  ~ Unknown Soldier
  Catpcha: thieving
  --
  Microsoft Windows 8: A 64-bit compilation of 32 bit extensions and a graphical shell for a 16 bit patch to an 8 bit operating system originally coded for a 4 bit microprocessor written by a 2 bit company that can't stand 1 bit of competition with 0 bit of understanding good UI.
32. Re:Recognition by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 06:40 · Score: 0
  
  The correct word is "bungle". A bungle of idiots.
  Coincidentally, the same collective noun is used for managers. Microsoft seems to have both in great abundance, as well as a muddle of analysts and a quandary of advisors.
  I thought it was 'flange', i.e. and in order of decreasing intelligence: a 'flange' of baboons,, a 'flange' of idiots a 'flange' of managers, a 'flange' of politicians.
33. Re: Recognition by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 07:05 · Score: 0
  
  You'll change your tune when the new Microsoft wearable wireless computing golashes revolutionize the nacent market of ruggedized personal navigation. The pedoproprioceptic feedback systems in development by Microsoft in this brand new promising area will help keep eveyone on the right path, eventually.
34. Re:Recognition by Jesus_666 · 2014-10-21 07:33 · Score: 1
  
  To be honest, Windows is no longer the big name in gaming platforms, Steam is. And Valve is pushing for game devs to move away from Windows-exclusive games so they can sell their Linux-based Steam Machines. While Linux support isn’t quite common yet it does pop up every now and then and OS X is actually seeing a fair number of high-profile releases.
  
  Right now Windows might hold its dominance in the video game market but whether it’ll still be the obvious choice in a few years is not settled. (For instance, I have no idea what effect Microsoft’s rumored plans for a free baseline Windows with subscription addons would have - depending on how they'd play it it might make Windows more attractive to gamers or it might scare them off. We’ll see.)
  
  --
  USE HOT GRITS WITH STATUE OF NATALIE PORTMAN (NAKED AND PETRIFIED)
35. Re:Recognition by unrtst · 2014-10-21 07:35 · Score: 2
  
  Name one large-scale email system that you fully control and is fully featured, has apps on all platforms, and is well-known by a lot of system admins.
  (bold added by me)
  If you replace "email" with some other term (ex. "groupware", or something that encompasses email, calendaring, contacts, etc), then you'd be a lot closer to having a point. There are still others, but that solution space is smaller when you demand those items be integrated in many ways. Just "email"... the list of excellent alternatives is too long.
36. Re: Recognition by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 07:40 · Score: 0
  
  You sound frustrated. If you seek enlightenment, perhaps your choice of interactive social news media sucks. Or it may be that you need to get afkb, out of the house, down the road, in touch with your feminine side, or back to your roots. Descartes wouldn't have stuck around to watch Slashdot get Googlized... It's time to expand your mind beyond the net or the promise of Googlized democratization.
37. Re:Recognition by sootman · 2014-10-21 08:28 · Score: 1
  
  > Does this make anyone feel bad for Steve Ballmer?
  No.
  
  --
  Dear Slashdot: next time you want to mess with the site, add a rich-text editor for comments.
38. Re:Recognition by UnknowingFool · 2014-10-21 09:58 · Score: 2
  
  Except MS didn't get Nokia IP. MS is licensing Nokia patents.
  
  Microsoft Corporation and Nokia Corporation today announced that the Boards of Directors for both companies have decided to enter into a transaction whereby Microsoft will purchase substantially all of Nokia’s Devices & Services business, license Nokia’s patents, and license and use Nokia’s mapping services.
  
  --
  Well, there's spam egg sausage and spam, that's not got much spam in it.
39. Re:Recognition by UnknowingFool · 2014-10-21 09:59 · Score: 1
  
  What IP do you refer? They are licensing Nokia's patents. They didn't get them in the acquisition.
  
  --
  Well, there's spam egg sausage and spam, that's not got much spam in it.
40. Re:Recognition by UnknowingFool · 2014-10-21 10:01 · Score: 1
  
  And who negotiated the MS Nokia acquisition? Was it Google? Was it HP? No. MS negotiated the deal. They made a terrible deal if they didn't get naming rights.
  
  --
  Well, there's spam egg sausage and spam, that's not got much spam in it.
41. Re:Recognition by Rhywden · 2014-10-21 12:33 · Score: 1
  
  Since they didn't acquire the whole of Nokia, I'm quite sure that this was the best result available.
  They "only" bought the mobile part of Nokia.
42. Re:Recognition by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 12:50 · Score: 0
  
  Yeah, right. This is right up there with the fabled "Year of the Linux Desktop" that the zealots have been preaching for the past 15 years.
43. Re:Recognition by 0100010001010011 · 2014-10-21 13:10 · Score: 1
  
  Notes.
44. Re:Recognition by richlv · 2014-10-21 13:19 · Score: 1
  
  uh, microsoft fucked up market share of nokia badly enough already. and how do you keep market share by renaming the product to something that is not only less known in the area, but also associated with... not the most exciting thing ever ?
  ok, maybe they didn't rename it, they just killed the old, good products and introduced a new one.
  
  --
  Rich
45. Re:Recognition by hairyfeet · 2014-10-21 13:26 · Score: 1
  
  Uhhh...did everybody forget that Nokia still exists as a company? And that as part of the sale they are only barred from selling mobile devices for 3 years? Why in the hell would they want to build positive rep for a brand they will be most likely competing against in a few years?
  Frankly the whole argument is moot anyway because you go into mobile stores and folks don't call it the "Nokia Lumia" anymore than they call it the "Samsung Galaxy" or "HTC Evo" its just the Lumia, Galaxy, and Evo. Working retail I deal with folks and phones all damned day (one of the new services I offer is loading Android ROMs,becoming quite popular here) and I can tell you nobody calls them the full name, they just call it by the model.
  
  --
  ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
46. Re:Recognition by sg_oneill · 2014-10-21 13:32 · Score: 1
  
  It's not exactly the name recognition, it's the name's reputation.
  Nokia: well recognized, well liked brand with positive reception everywhere,except amongst developers that actually programmed for Symbian.
  Microsoft: well recognized, universally hated brand, regular finalist in "most hated company" competitions,but appreciated by developers for their excellent dev tools/environment.
  Marketing 101 says: they picked the right name but for reasons that aren't readily clear to the general public
  
  Spot the "hasn't programmed for pre smartphone era winmo" guy.
  WinMo was as mangled as Symbian (And trust me Symbian was *BAD*) ,except you where coding in an OS for people who didnt understand telephones, and you where coding in an API that looked like the familiar Win32/16 api except it was completely goddamn different, nothing worked like it did on "real" windows, had different app lifecycles and was an even bigger nightmare than symbian to get your apps signed.
  But now, finally the worlds are combined. Symbian and WinMo together at last , like lovers embracing in an endless vista of sewerage.
  Ok yeah so now its all "slightly more sane" dot net winmo. But its still bad guys, face it.
  
  --
  Excuse the Unicode crap in my posts. That's an apostrophe, and slashdot is busted.
47. Re:Recognition by UnknowingFool · 2014-10-21 14:08 · Score: 1
  
  Google bought Motorola Mobility in 2011. They didn't get all of Motorola. They got the mobile phone division and got to use the name Motorola. Motorola Solutions still exists. This is the kind of deal that MS could have negotiated but didn't.
  
  --
  Well, there's spam egg sausage and spam, that's not got much spam in it.
48. Re:Recognition by HalAtWork · 2014-10-21 16:08 · Score: 1
  
  Part of their deal when they bought out a subsection of Nokia was that they couldn't use the Nokia name on such products.
  
  --
  Twinstiq, game news
49. Re:Recognition by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 16:13 · Score: 0
  
  This time the idiot is an indian, so you can't make fun of him and call him stupid because that would be racist, and /. is not racist. You can always make fun of white people though especially if they are old. Microsoft's problems are steve balmers. You can't expect an indian to fix what steve spent the last 16 years messing up. In point of fact, Steve should pay this new indian guy a lot of money (call it reperations) for all the terrible things he did.
50. Re:Recognition by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 16:27 · Score: 1
  
  Acually USian companies are notorious for doing stupid things. E.G. Google trashing motorlola, and selling it out to the Chinese for less than they paid for it. IBM selling out to Lenova, and then paying someone to take over it's chip fab business, and the list goes on. If you as a coporate elite executive sell off an unprofitable business, to a competitior and the competitor is able to make a ton of money of this uprofitable business, then it means that you as an elite management executive suck donkey balls. Rather than selling off our children, how about just outsourcing the upper mangagement to foreigners. A retarded monkey could run the USian companies better than the top edumicated Harvard business school elite are doing. This would be a win win. It would save USian jobs, and allow retarded monkies a more prominent position in USian society. But this new microsoft executive is obstensibly an super edumicated Indian. Maybe there is just something in the USian water that makes everyone retarded after they spend so many years in the country. . If the USA want's to compete with China it should offer any and every Chinese citizen a full scholarship the prestigious Harvard school of business. They would have to agree to go back to China after graduation and to run a Chinese company.
51. Re:Recognition by rtb61 · 2014-10-21 17:26 · Score: 1
  
  So let me guess, you also had a part in the 'Zune' product name or how about 'Live' search or 'Bing' for 'B'allmer. There were two distinct brands M$ and MSN, one over time developed a really bad name and the other was for some insane reason purposefully weakened down and broken up. The real problem is they still refuse to break up the company into two distinct and completely separate units and let them go their own way, allowing the more creative MSN to further define it's own unique brand. Rather than spending billions weakening MSN, to create other short lived failed brands, a whole goofy assed trail of them. Sounds like Marketing 101 has been solidly targeted at the M$ management team and they have been sucked in time and time again by their marketing consultants to spend up big on those marketing consultants. You always have to be careful who those Marketing 101 skills are actually being targeted at and why.
  
  --
  Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
52. Re:Recognition by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 18:06 · Score: 0
  
  Windows is synonymous with both serious business
  Since when? Windows barely exists on the web. It's widely reviled among technical workers. Developers to sales to execs have only been moving away from it for the last decade. So maybe call center workers and the few people left filling out Excel spreadsheets all day.
  So I ask again, where in the world is Windows synonymous with serious business?
53. Re:Recognition by binarylarry · 2014-10-22 04:36 · Score: 1
  
  I troll them because I love them so much.
  
  --
  Mod me down, my New Earth Global Warmingist friends!
54. Re:Recognition by Jesus_666 · 2014-10-22 04:47 · Score: 1
  
  I'm not saying that Windows is going to drop off the market; I just think that it won't be the only choice anymore.
  
  Now if you'll excuse me; Steam just finished downloading Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel on my Mac.
  
  --
  USE HOT GRITS WITH STATUE OF NATALIE PORTMAN (NAKED AND PETRIFIED)
55. Re:Recognition by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-22 09:43 · Score: 0
  
  so nobody important is what you're saying, 3 neckbeards isn't really a very valid concern
Which no one will buy by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 03:39 · Score: 0

...and end up thrown away like the Zune.
Nokia was once a giant in the field, then Microsoft poisoned them killing the company, bought them for a song, and now this. Has any company killed another from the inside at this scale before?
1. Re:Which no one will buy by ic3m4n1 · 2014-10-21 04:24 · Score: 1
  
  Isn't this how it works nowadays in Tech Industry. May be it is new management principle.
  Buy off competitor (or in this case take a chance with Nokia) worst case it didn't work out to your benefit then close off business. Whats there to lose - few numbers less companies cash pile, fire some guy to appease shareholders.
  
  Rinse and Repeat till:
  a) You run out of cash pile/people to fire
  b) You luck out on some partial or complete successful product which could just be pay off investment in development.
2. Re:Which no one will buy by TheRaven64 · 2014-10-21 04:34 · Score: 2
  
  Microsoft poisoned them killing the company
  Bullshit. Nokia mismanaged itself to death by promoting infighting and sabotaging other product groups (rather than competing with other companies) until adopting Windows Phone and killing internal OS development was the least bad option.
  
  --
  I am TheRaven on Soylent News
3. Re:Which no one will buy by Uecker · 2014-10-21 04:46 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  The numbers seem to imply other wise. Profitable with increasing sales before and loss-making and collapsing sales after declaring Symbian dead and switching to Windows Phone. In don't doubt that there was infighting which delayed things a lot, but the awesome N9 and its brother (with keyboard) were ready before Lumia - even when it took a long time, they had their own modern smartphone OS which got a lot of praise. And then there was always Android as an option. Switching to Windows Phone which was already loosing on the market was simply the most stupid thing to do.
4. Re:Which no one will buy by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 07:46 · Score: 0
  
  Microsoft did poisoned them killing the company.
  A former Microsoft employee became the CEO of Nokia to bring it down so it was an easy sale. Possibly the best corporate espionage and take-over ever.
5. Re:Which no one will buy by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 16:05 · Score: 0
  
  Nokia smartphone revenue and profits were increasing, though market-share was decreasing. This is around the time of the iPhone 4 release and for the next quarter - half afterwards. The S^3 ecosystem was complicated but the migration to MeeGo was underway - somehow the board was convinced to drop everything they had that was working and announce a shift to Windows Phones though they did not have a WP product available for a further 9 months!
  
  "Nokia annual revenues fell 40% from 41.7 Billion Euros per year to 25.3 Billion Euros per year. Nokia profits fell 92% from 2.4 Billion Euros per year to 188 Million Euros per year. Nokia handset sales fell 40% from 456 million units per year to 274 million units per year. Nokia share price which was at 7.12 Euros on the day Elop was hired, had fallen 81% to a bottom level of 1.44 Euros two years later...
Brilliant! by ArhcAngel · 2014-10-21 03:42 · Score: 4, Insightful

Throw away a brand synonymous with durability and communication and replace it with...ZUNE II !
What could possibly go wrong?

--
"A person is smart. People are dumb, panicky dangerous animals and you know it." - K
1. Re:Brilliant! by dontbemad · 2014-10-21 04:04 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  I'm fairly certain that in the layman's mind, that same "durability and communication" that the brand name Nokia implies conjures images of the old Nokia brick phones. While those certainly were durable and useful, they are also very archaic. Nokia might represent good, durable technology, but that is meaningless when the general public perceives it as "old". In an age where 2 years between new phones begins to sound like an eternity, a phone manufacturer would probably do well not to let the public still think of its main product as a monochrome, extremely basic cellphone from the early 2000s.
2. Re:Brilliant! by serviscope_minor · 2014-10-21 05:16 · Score: 1
  
  They might percieve it as old, but talk to anyone about Nokia phones.
  It'll take about 20 seconds for them to get on to how much better they were for actually making voice calls and how it was nice to have a phone that lasted a week on a charge and didn't break when you dropped it.
  They may be old, but people still associate a lot of awfully nice things with the name.
  
  --
  SJW n. One who posts facts.
3. Re:Brilliant! by perryizgr8 · 2014-10-21 05:47 · Score: 1
  
  One thing people overlook is the UI. Nokia phones had a really intuitive soft button UI with the function written above the button on the screen. It made a huge difference in usage from the other phones at that time. Slowly, everyone adopted the same thing, of course. If Nokia were like Apple, they would have sued the hell out of Motorola, Samsung, Sony, LG, etc.
  
  --
  Wealth is the gift that keeps on giving.
4. Re:Brilliant! by squash_me_quickly · 2014-10-21 11:34 · Score: 1
  
  "While those certainly were durable and useful, they are also very archaic."...
  I had a Nokia N8, which was their second to last smart phone running Symbian. It was both durable and very useful, but very far from archaic.
  I would still be using it, if it wasn't that it stopped working after the 6000th time that I dropped it.
  - It was durable, I dropped it on everything concrete, paving stones, etc. from "ear height" (about 1.70 meters... yes, I'm very clumsy)
  - Between recharges, I could talk for about 10 hours, use the GPS for 10 hours, the internet for 5 hours, and take a few hundred pictures.
  - Most of the housing was metal... you have to pay mega-money for many other phones like that.
  - Because the housing was metal it "felt well made", Many newer/expensive phones feel flimsy. I heard that some even bend :)
  - There was no "system rot", it didn't get slower over time.
  - It was a very good map system. You didn't need an internet connection to use them, and the maps were always up to date (much better that Garmin's maps).
  - The GPS was much better than most newer phones I have tried. It connected faster, and as far as I can remember, it never lost connection.
5. Re:Brilliant! by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 12:23 · Score: 0
  
  Yeah, nobody complained about the longevity of their devices quite like Zune owners. They really should've copied what apple was doing with their mp3 players...
6. Re:Brilliant! by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 15:49 · Score: 0
  
  I still have my N8 as a backup phone, though it mostly sees duties as my bedside clock using 'sleeping screen' with auto-dim OLED. Tough as nails, damn useful for navigation and pics. Bit iffy on the social networking side though in that S^3 ecosystem.
Dumb idea by Pop69 · 2014-10-21 03:45 · Score: 1

What did they pay so much for if not the brand recognition ?

Much easier to use an existing brand than try to create a new one
1. Re:Dumb idea by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 03:49 · Score: 1
  
  Nokia's Patents, business partners/agreements, and manufacturing plants.
2. Re:Dumb idea by gstoddart · 2014-10-21 04:02 · Score: 1
  
  Ah, but if you buy it, you can phase out the brand, and have one less competitor.
  There is one less major company making a phone which isn't Windows now.
  Do you think that was an accident, or a strategy?
  
  --
  Lost at C:>. Found at C.
3. Re:Dumb idea by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 04:09 · Score: 0
  
  Microsoft only knows how to do dumb ideas.
4. Re:Dumb idea by SydShamino · 2014-10-21 05:09 · Score: 1
  
  In the time it took for them to poison, acquire, and absorb Nokia, Samsung became a major vendor. I don't think there's a net benefit to Microsoft in the market.
  
  --
  It doesn't hurt to be nice.
RIP Nokia by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 03:47 · Score: -1

So, anyone else still think the "Burning platform" memo was anything but eulogy at Nokia's funeral?
The second I heard an MS bagman was in charge over at Nokia I knew the company was dead. (Fucker didn't even move his family. He knew he'd not be there long) This is a big fucking I-told-you-so to all the doubters that stupidly laughed in the face of the obvious.
I'm not bitter. :p
We seen this before... by __aaclcg7560 · 2014-10-21 03:56 · Score: 1

Does it come in Luna Brown?
The holy trinity ... by gstoddart · 2014-10-21 04:00 · Score: 1

Embrace, extend, and then extinguish.
Nokia used to write good software, it just didn't happen to be Microsoft.
Resistance is futile, especially when the CEO gets parachuted in to make decisions which aren't good for Nokia.
It's hard not to think that the Nokia shareholders didn't essentially get robbed in order to benefit Microsoft.

--
Lost at C:>. Found at C.
1. Re:The holy trinity ... by Nemyst · 2014-10-21 04:20 · Score: 3, Funny
  
  Feels like they remembered the mantra but not that the last step was supposed to apply to competitors.
This is too easy. by wcrowe · 2014-10-21 04:02 · Score: 1

"Microsoft Lemona". I already don't want one.

--
Proverbs 21:19
Meanwhile everyone is making Android devices by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 04:07 · Score: 0

They hired a man, an ex-Microsoftie, who destroyed the company to sell it cheap to the only buyer possible, Microsoft.
Now their biggest selling point for their phones is they run Android apps by running Android on top of Microsoft crap. What a mess. Samsung, the number 2 in the market to Nokia is now the dominant player in Android phones and tablets, so much so, even Google can't make a Nexus device that will outsell them.
And he walks away with a big reward FROM MICROSOFT for the takeover, a clear conflict of interest, and nobody says or does anything.
1. Re:Meanwhile everyone is making Android devices by Stormwatch · 2014-10-21 04:19 · Score: 1
  
  True. I'm puzzled that no one has sued the bastard. I doubt there was ever a more blatant case of breach of fiduciary duty.
  
  --
  Circumcision is child abuse.
2. Re:Meanwhile everyone is making Android devices by CRCulver · 2014-10-21 04:25 · Score: 1
  
  True. I'm puzzled that no one has sued the bastard. I doubt there was ever a more blatant case of breach of fiduciary duty.
  
  The installment of Elop was actually demanded by Nokia's major shareholders.
  For anyone wanting to know more of the strange twists and turns in this story, and how such a giant could fall so quickly, I'd recommend David Cord's The Decline and Fall of Decline , an exhaustive account which confirms a lot of the gossip that I had heard from Nokia employees and contractors here in Finland.
3. Re:Meanwhile everyone is making Android devices by CRCulver · 2014-10-21 04:39 · Score: 1
  
  The Decline and Fall of Nokia, rather.
4. Re:Meanwhile everyone is making Android devices by hughk · 2014-10-21 05:46 · Score: 1
  
  The installment of Elop was actually demanded by Nokia's major shareholders.
  
  The word I heard in Espoo was that it was some major US institutional shareholders who also held shares in Microsoft. They saw synergy in raiding one to help the other. Note whilst this was beneficial to shareholders who held money in both (it rescued the Windows Phone brand), Elop's reign was deeply problematic for everyone else.
  
  --
  See my journal, I write things there
ZUNE by ron_ivi · 2014-10-21 04:07 · Score: 2

I love how Zune has now become a word for Microsoft screwing a partner.
https://gigaom.com/2006/07/22/...

Microsoft Partners, You Been Zunked
More on that some other day, but the real and perhaps the only story in the news is that Microsoftâ(TM)s partners â" from device makers to music services â" just got double crossed by the company they choose to believe in. I like to call it Zun-ked (a tiny take off on Punked.)
1. Re:ZUNE by wonkey_monkey · 2014-10-21 04:52 · Score: 1
  
  I'm not sure if "used once" counts as "has now become." And as puns go... I haven't seen many worse.
  
  --
  systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
Not a very exciting name by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 04:20 · Score: 1

It sounds like a great name for an incandescent light bulb that needs rebooted every 3 days.
reborn? by excelsior_gr · 2014-10-21 04:27 · Score: 1

What's with the euphemism? 'Reborn' us a very lame way to say 'dead', which is the real meaning in this case. Seriously, slashdot editors, if I wanted to read euphemisms, I would read the press release.
1. Re:reborn? by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 04:51 · Score: 0
  
  Nokia was dead. Look around Slashdot, the main advice the anti-Microsoft zealots have is that Nokia should've been yet another Android manufacturer. Next most popular advice is 'make a niche product that will appeal to 10% of Slashdot's numbered population, and no one else.' Nokia was being weighed down by their phone department, the brand name had lost any value (beyond comedy) years before Microsoft started looking at the acquisition. The indestructible phone meme respawned after Microsoft's buyout proposal got Nokia into the news again.
  Selling off the phone portion gave Nokia a significant influx of money and Microsoft took some of the related debts in the deal as well. It was a smart move, but the Slashdot groupthink is too entangled in 20 year old nostalgia (both favorable and grudging) to see modern reality.
2. Re:reborn? by jones_supa · 2014-10-21 04:56 · Score: 1
  
  I invented the word "reborn" there, not Slashdot editor. What comes to new Nokia, the networking business is doing OK and is feasible. Sure, it's quite different to the magnitude of the phone business, but the company is not just a dead stub which pretends to exist. And, if you take a look at the history of the company, Nokia has done very different things over the years and shapeshifted multiple times.
3. Re:reborn? by jones_supa · 2014-10-21 05:15 · Score: 1
  
  This is true. The Microsoft deal was an emergency move when Nokia was already in deep troubles. Their biggest problem was that they really insisted to stick too long with the crusty Symbian stuff, an operating system which offered a laggy user experience, crashed all the time, and was pain for developers. It was just too easy for the competitors to stomp over them.
4. Re:reborn? by hendrips · 2014-10-21 08:05 · Score: 1
  
  Say what? I'm pretty sure the meaning of the word "reborn" is very much the opposite of "dead."
  Semantic quibbles aside, Nokia is very much alive and kicking, as an independent and hopefully revitalized company. They have about 56,000 employees, $15.5 billion in revenues, and and a $30 billion market capitalization. They have been consistently profitable since shedding their phone division, with profits for the upcoming fiscal year expected to be around $1.5 billion. For reference, that puts post-spinoff Nokia at a bit larger than Texas Instruments, and a bit smaller than EMC/VMware (depending on exactly how you measure a company's "size").
lumia... by roc97007 · 2014-10-21 04:27 · Score: 3, Funny

"Microsoft Lumia. Because it will function as a flashlight."

--
Oliver's law of assumed responsibility: If you're seen fixing it, you will be blamed for breaking it.
1. Re:lumia... by itzly · 2014-10-21 04:54 · Score: 2
  
  And Microsoft had tuned the OS so that rebooting the phone only takes 2.3 seconds, which means you don't have to wait very long if you want to turn the flashlight on.
2. Re:lumia... by Voyager529 · 2014-10-21 04:58 · Score: 1
  
  "Microsoft Lumia. Because it will function as a flashlight."
  Don't be ridiculous. Flashlights have removable batteries.
3. Re:lumia... by perryizgr8 · 2014-10-21 05:51 · Score: 1
  
  As do (most) Lumias. This is one of the few plus points they have over phones from LG/HTC.
  
  --
  Wealth is the gift that keeps on giving.
4. Re:lumia... by roc97007 · 2014-10-21 06:54 · Score: 3, Informative
  
  And Microsoft had tuned the OS so that rebooting the phone only takes 2.3 seconds, which means you don't have to wait very long if you want to turn the flashlight on.
  ...but they reboot in 2.3 seconds by restoring a state image from the previous session. A full reboot after BSOD will still take 23 minutes.
  
  --
  Oliver's law of assumed responsibility: If you're seen fixing it, you will be blamed for breaking it.
5. Re:lumia... by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-22 02:43 · Score: 0
  
  "Microsoft Lumia. Because it will function as a flashlight."
  "... maybe..."
The Nokia name... by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 04:35 · Score: 0

Nokia branding was the reason so many in the UK and Europe bought into Windows Phone in the first place. I can't see MS being successful with MS branding on the product...even less so than they are now. It's a doomed platform, the only thing saving it right now is Microsoft's willingness to flush BILLIONS down the drain to artificially prop it up. But that hasn't gotten them over 5% market share, has it?
Lumia? Isn't that Spanish for pussy? by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 05:02 · Score: 0

I want one! Wait. I don't want one!!
Bad idea by spiritplumber · 2014-10-21 05:04 · Score: 1

they should capitalize on the "Nokias are indestructible" meme, and make ruggedized phones.

--
Liberty - Security - Laziness - Pick any two.
Two shitty tastes that now taste shitty together! by Chas · 2014-10-21 05:05 · Score: 1

Oh joy!

--

Chas - The one, the only.
THANK GOD!!!
Wonder how panasonic feels about this? by skribble · 2014-10-21 05:11 · Score: 1

"Lumia" is awfully close to "Lumix" (and the too make phones with cameras).

--
--- Nothing To See Here ---
1. Re:Wonder how panasonic feels about this? by danlip · 2014-10-21 07:46 · Score: 1
  
  I think Lumix is just cameras (a Panasonic brand).
2. Re:Wonder how panasonic feels about this? by skribble · 2014-10-23 11:54 · Score: 1
  
  http://connect.dpreview.com/po...
  
  --
  --- Nothing To See Here ---
Microsoft... by jasno · 2014-10-21 06:21 · Score: 1

Microsoft should really consider a re-org that puts their consumer focused products(xbox, phones, etc... not the windows OS though) in a separate division with a different name.
Put aside all of your feelings for Microsoft and just consider for a second how terrible a name like Microsoft is when it comes to cool, fashionable devices. Micro... soft... that's not a name I'd like associated with any kind of status symbol purchase. Sure, it's fine in the enterprise software space where image is less important, but if they ever want to seriously consider competing in the personal electronics space they'll need to change not only their branding but their name.

--

http://www.masturbateforpeace.com/
1. Re:Microsoft... by PPH · 2014-10-21 12:13 · Score: 2
  
  Micro... soft...
  Small electronic devices that bend easily. No, wait. That's Apple's product line.
  
  --
  Have gnu, will travel.
N900 by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 06:38 · Score: 0

N900 solid as a rock (the weight is similar too), this 2009 phone _still_ has almost a week of battery life, with wifi enabled 24/7.
Comes with an unlocking script provided by Nokia, that gives you full root access to a "Debian"-linux phone.
I have started to collect spare parts, and have in fact several spare N900's. I can keep this chunking along for at least another 5 years, and hope that this whole mobile phone hype has blown over by then.
How much time of your life are you willing to waste on messing with microsoft software, and how much would you be willing to pay for the privilege?
1. Re:N900 by moderators_are_w*nke · 2014-10-21 06:58 · Score: 1
  
  N900 does not have 1 week battery life, you're lucky to get 1 day.
  
  --
  "XML is like violence. If it doesn't solve your problem, use more." - Anonymous Coward
2. Re:N900 by janeuner · 2014-10-21 07:06 · Score: 1
  
  Mine goes about 60 hours now. Check ebay for a 2450mAh battery. They sell for about eight bucks.
3. Re:N900 by moderators_are_w*nke · 2014-10-21 07:25 · Score: 1
  
  Sadly the screen has gone on mine, I just get random colours on the lcd. It still rings though, so nothing wrong apart from that.
  
  --
  "XML is like violence. If it doesn't solve your problem, use more." - Anonymous Coward
4. Re:N900 by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 07:54 · Score: 0
  
  Exactly why I'm sticking to a Nokia E72. I've been looking for spares but they have been retaining their value very well so I'm not the only one.
  A real QWERTY keyboard, week battery life and all the features I need without being affected with all the 0day problems affecting phones that only last 1 day.
Like the Ford Taurus brand being retired by Beeftopia · 2014-10-21 07:00 · Score: 1

Brands are a big deal. They have value. Nokia had a storied history. Something like "Nokia (by Microsoft)" or just leaving "Microsoft" off entirely (like BMW does with Rolls Royce, or Tata does with Jaguar) would have allowed the brand value to be preserved.
Some years ago, Ford decided to get rid of the Taurus line and rename it the '500'. They quickly realized the error of their ways and brought the Taurus name back.
1. Re:Like the Ford Taurus brand being retired by vandamme · 2014-10-22 06:45 · Score: 1
  
  Like Dodge Darts are selling like proverbial hotcakes. Different car now, which is good actually.
Idiotic by 2ms · 2014-10-21 07:16 · Score: 1

I'm sure Microsoft has convinced themselves 1000 different ways that this makes great business.
However, the reality is that there will be no future for Windows Phone when the only brand it is associated with in phones is Microsoft. I consider whoever made this decision to be a total idiot. None of the reputation for quality of experience of Apple. None of the fight-the-power hipness of Android. None of the apps of either.
I consider it sad because I actually like Windows Phone a lot and own one. It's got noticably better performance and general quality of experience than Android, and was available at lower price point than Apple. The product was there, for once. Sad to see it fail for different reasons.
Lumia? Nokia? by 3vi1 · 2014-10-21 08:08 · Score: 1

I say we combine the two and call it the Microsoft Leukemia.
WTF? by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 09:31 · Score: 0

"a slow transition from Nokia.com over to Microsoft's new mobile site"
WTF? Who writes this stuff?
It took LESS than a year to sack the remainder of Nokia.com, ditch the name and ditch most of their products. Not to mention the quickest company-kill by its competit... I mean, "Partner", in history
They could have called it by hduff · 2014-10-21 11:15 · Score: 1

the ZUNE Phone.

--
"I believe in Karma. That means I can do bad things to people all day long and I assume they deserve it." : Dogbert
1. Re:They could have called it by mjwx · 2014-10-21 14:34 · Score: 1
  
  the ZUNE Phone.
  No, the PHUNE.
  
  --
  Calling someone a "hater" only means you can not rationally rebut their argument.
Nobody has asked the really important question by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-21 14:33 · Score: 0

Who owns rights to manufacture the 3315 now?
Lumia translated by Keruo · 2014-10-21 15:28 · Score: 1

The branding people at Nokia probably guessed what's going to happen with windows phone and made the product name to a subtle joke.
Lumia in Finnish translates as plural of snow in past tense.
If you use it in a sentence: "Menneen talven lumia" (common anecdote) it translates as "Thing of the past"

--
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Emotional attachment to brands by Anonymous Coward · 2014-10-22 20:26 · Score: 0

Dropping the Nokia name is a mistake. The name is synonymous with phones, and it has a place in the hearts of millions of people.
Microsoft on the other hand, is the weakest of all their brand names. The names Windows and Office actually engender more positive feelings that the name of the parent. They're hoping that Lumia will take its place alongside Office as their next big brand, but I don't think people will be able to get past 'Microsoft'. Better to have just called it Lumia and drop Microsoft altogether if they really must trash the most identified brand in the history of the mobile phone. :/