Nokia says it's 'open to any option' for tablet OS as it drops more hardware hints
In an apparent effort not to reveal anything about a rumoured Nokia Windows RT tablet, the company's chief Stephen Elop has told Australian media he is willing to "consider any option" for a tablet operating system.
Elop made the comments in Sydney on Monday when pressed about a Nokia tablet and whether it would run Android or Windows, the platform Nokia has staked the future of its Lumia smartphone business upon.
"We would consider any option [Android or Windows] … It is important to note that the opportunity for companionship is something that any user is looking for. So, when you think about the Lumia 920, running on Windows Phone, having a Windows tablet or PC or Xbox is something that will give us the opportunity to have a pretty integrated experience. Our first focus on what we look at is clearly in the Microsoft side," Elop said, according to the Australian Financial Review.
Nokia last Friday alerted media to a press conference it plans to hold on the first day of Mobile World Congress later this month in Barcelona, which is where Nokia is rumoured to be unveiling a Windows RT tablet sporting a keyboard cover that provides an auxiliary power supply.
Elop said on Sunday that while Nokia had not made any announcements about a tablet, the company is "studying" Microsoft's efforts with Surface to inform how and when it could enter the market.
"We are studying very closely the market right now as Microsoft has introduced the Surface tablet, so we are trying to learn from that and understand what the right way to participate would be and at what point in time," he said, according to AFR.
If and when Nokia does launch the tablet, it could add some strength to Nokia's pitch that its Windows Phone 8 Lumia devices offer the best compatibility with Microsoft's Office products, which are as yet still unsupported on iOS and Android.
Microsoft last week launched its latest version of Office for the desktop and Office 365, with the notable omission of any iOS support, which is anticipated to arrive early this year.
Elop said that Nokia was having some success in convincing business customers that Office support on Lumia devices was a worthwhile investment.