First Nokia MeeGo device will be powered by ARM, not Atom
After hearing the announcement of the Nokia-Intel alliance, followed by the merging of Maemo and Moblin to create MeeGo and the launch of Intel's smartphone-targeted Atom Z6xx (aka Moorestown) platform, we were feeling pretty certain that both MeeGo and Moorestown would debut in a new flagship Nokia device by year's end. But in an interview with The Inquirer at the Open Mobile Summit, Nokia VP Alberto Torres revealed that the company's first MeeGo device will use an ARM-based processor rather than an Intel chip, adding that we can expect the device to launch by the end of this year.
This is a slightly surprising development considering that shortly after the Atom Z6xx launch, Intel promised a Moorestown-MeeGo device would launch this year and Nokia said to expect the debut of its first MeeGo device in the same timeframe, leading us to assume the companies were referring to the same device. This latest information seems to indicate otherwise, leaving us to question when we will finally get to see an Intel x86-powered smartphone and from which manufacturer. Another element adding to the confusion is that currently, the x86-variant of MeeGo appears to be further along compared to the ARM-variant being tested on the N900. Has anyone given the recent MeeGo 1.0 release a try? What are your thoughts?
[Liliputing]
