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Nokia says it will ship a firmware upgrade for existing and new 770 Internet tablet owners. The OS 2006 upgrade, expected this quarter, will bring better memory performance and a “refreshed look.” It will also feature VOIP capabilities and a pre-installed Google Talk client with a full-screen “finger” keyboard.
Additionally, the OS 2006 firmware release will support standard SIP-based VOIP clients for enterprise use, such as SIPPhones Gizmo Project, which allows users to make and receive calls to and from public telephony networks.
The 770 tablet appears to have only a single one-eighth-inch headphone jack, but the jack actually supports mobile phone headsets with microphones. The new release will have drivers to support audio input, potentially enabling a variety of audio applications in addition to VOIP.
Speaking at the VON Europe conference in Stockholm May 16, Ari Virtanen, Nokias vice president of convergence products, told assembled media that Nokia expects Web access to “go mobile,” much as telephones have.
The 770 met its 2005 shipment goals, Virtanen said, and the company hopes its deal with Google, which leaked May 12, will drive additional volume. VOIP capabilities have been the single most-requested consumer feature, according to Virtanen.