Of SIMs and Tablets . . .
 

Re: Of SIMs and Tablets . . .
 

Much of what you discuss was to be addressed by the WiMax version to come out next year. I don't know if Xohm will use a SIM card or equivalent, but it is was supposed to be open so you can VoIP and video call to your heart's delight.

Re: Of SIMs and Tablets . . .
 

I must agree with RogerS. To me, the NIT and the mobile phone have two separate functions. A major reason for this is the size requirements. Whilst for the NIT I want as large a screen as practical, for the mobile phone I want as small a form factor as practical. These two requirements go in opposite directions. I do not want the two tools to be combined.

Re: Of SIMs and Tablets . . .
 

Exactly. And I already own a phone. And I've been replacing it regularly, which I intend to continue to do, and at the same time I intend to hold on to the NIT.

Re: Of SIMs and Tablets . . .
 

Yeah, good point. I believe that most consumers (at least in the US; can't speak for elsewhere) view their phones as somewhat disposable, in that they assume they are going to upgrade every two years or so. I like the idea of holding onto my IT for a few years longer.

Re: Of SIMs and Tablets . . .
 

That's ^ my feeling too: the 2 devices have different lifecycles, at least in the US. Makes sense from one perspective to integrate phone capability into tablets, but equal sense on the other hand to keep them separate.

Maybe there just need to be more variants...

Re: Of SIMs and Tablets . . .
 

When I got started with my 770 in December '05 I had an EDGE-capable phone. This summer I upgraded to a (cheap, second-hand) 3G-capable one. Maybe next year or later to a 3G+ unit or whatever comes after ?

Also, I still have and will keep my 770 but I'm also waiting for a N800 off eBay. With my phone I will be able to connect either using BT, without needing to swap SIMs.

I for one am quite happy that this Nokia is not a phone :-)

Edit: also, 3G and above are greedy battery suckers. My phone lasts less when connected than the 770 tethered to it. It's good to be able to manage both battery lives independently, and to still have a working tablet when the phone is dead...

Re: Of SIMs and Tablets . . .
 

I also want the maximum flexibility of a cell phone that is small, and a NIT that has a large display, etc. Although any good 3G cell phone is more expensive than the N800. Unfortunately, in the US, 3G wireless data is a difficult market for anybody other than the carriers (even Nokia), so Nokia desperately would like to do an end around. While WiFi will become ubiquitous, open APs will not. Where this leads no one knows, except that VoIP is part of the answer, which the 3G carriers will fight, and so it's hard to know where this will end up. Whatever alternative appears, Nokia will probably jump on it with the IT.

Re: Of SIMs and Tablets . . .
 

In the UK I tend to find that people either keep their phones until they die completely (and these people wouldn't be buying an IT in the first place) or change them annually. Most UK contracts are 12 months, although 18 months is starting to appear more often.

Personally, I don't like to keep a phone more than 6 months, but then I'm just awkward (and work in the mobile phone industry). Currently I'm using a Motorola Q9, Sony Ericsson W950i or a Nokia N95, depending on my current mood :) I think an HSDPA version of the 6500 classic could settle me down, maybe even for 12 months

Re: Of SIMs and Tablets . . .
 

I have a slightly different perspective -- I've had a cell phone since Voicestream was a carrier in the US (late '90s?). And, get this, I still have the same phone.

Funnily enough, it makes and takes phone calls just fine.

I've thought about upgrading to a camera phone, or something I can SMS with (I can receive 'em but sending I've never figured out). Except a) I don't like being tied to a contract (although I could get around that with an ebay buy), and b) I don't want a monthly bill.

I went pre-paid a couple of years back. I just don't talk that much to warrant the monthly fee, and I emphatically do not relish the idea of an expensive monthly dataplan fee. (Anything over $20 a month I'm going to consider expensive.)

On the other hand, a one-time purchase of a useful IT is reasonable. If it were married with a phone, though, I'd much more hesitant about purchasing, for fears of functionality being impeded if I didn't also spring for a monthly phone and/or data plan.