Nokia Planning New E-Series Phones

A Nokia executive says the company is planning a new E-series of enterprise-oriented handsets, following along the lines of the N96.

A Nokia executive has let slip that the company plans to release new E-series handsets in the third quarter of 2008, and that the company’s N96 multimedia phone is setting the template for where the company sees the mobile device market is headed.

Nokia did not reveal information on specific E-series models, but industry insiders expect the company to announce E66 and E71 models next week, offering integrated GPS receivers, 3.2 megapixel cameras, and up to 128 megabytes of memory. The enterprise-oriented slider phones will also feature a full QWERTY keypad for email and messaging.

The company is describing pre-orders for its N96 device as “encouraging”—the N96 will be a followup to Nokia’s high-end N95 Internet-enabled slider phone which, despite some grumbling about durability, has proven to be a solid earner for Nokia outside the North American market. In the United States, Nokia made the unusual move of offering the N95 directly to consumers without partnering with a mobile operator. As yet, there’s no word on whether Nokia will follow suit with the N96.