Symbian phones including the E7 and N8 can now be upgraded to the keenly-anticipated Anna version of the OS, but many have been unable to download the update
Nokia has rolled out the much-awaited Anna update to its Symbian platform, but the process has not gone smoothly for everyone.
People using smartphones such as the N8
and E7 were given the chance on Thursday to download the new version of Symbian, which features significant
upgrades to the operating system's browser, maps, input and
general feel, as well as to its email and instant messaging
capabilities. However, many in the UK and elsewhere found themselves
unable to download Anna.
"We want to apologise to Symbian smartphone users," Nokia said in a
statement on Friday. "A power failure where a number of our servers
were located caused download issues for some users. Please bear with
us — we promise you'll be able to download Symbian Anna again
soon."
The problem affected some — Nokia did not say how many
— who were trying to download the update through Nokia's Ovi
Suite desktop software. Most owners of the E7, N8, C7
and C6-01 handsets were able to update wirelessly, but mobile
operators in the UK and Germany got Nokia to force customers in those
countries to download the update through a broadband connection.
In a blog
post entitled Why Does Nokia Do This To Itself?, CCS Insight
analyst Ben Wood said the experience must be "galling" for Nokia.
"It seems Nokia has learnt no lessons from the Ovi
Store debacle in May 2009," Wood wrote. "Once again, the company's
servers appear to have buckled under the strain, leaving most of those
who tried to upgrade disappointed."
Once again, the company's servers appear to have buckled under the strain, leaving most of those who tried to upgrade disappointed.
– Ben Wood
Wood suggested that the problems were "partly a result of Symbian's
popularity" as, despite its winding down as part of Nokia's
big switch to Microsoft's Windows Phone platform, Symbian devices
are still hugely popular in Europe and other markets.
"Rather than delighting the customers in Europe's two biggest
markets who have persevered and remained loyal to Symbian, Nokia has
once again left them disappointed, if only for a day or so," Wood
wrote. "Nokia already has a dismal reputation when it comes to
software and this does nothing to dispel that idea."
When Nokia and Microsoft announced
their Windows Phone deal in February, Symbian was given an
official prognosis of two years. However, Nokia said it intended to
use that period to sell 150 million more Symbian phones, to add to the
200 million already in users' hands.
The Anna-upgradable handsets are still on sale, and new units will be sold with the new OS version,
Nokia said. Smartphones that are already shipping with Anna onboard
include the Nokia
X7 and E6.
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