Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) (BIT:NOK1V) (HEL:NOK1V) is not finished releasing devices just yet. The company’s mobile division is set to become part of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) at some point in the coming months, but the Finnish company is not giving up in the face of that end. According to The Verge the company will release an eight-inch Windows 8.1 tablet in early 2014.
Reports broke earlier that Nokia Corporation (NYSE:NOK) (BIT:NOK1V) (HEL:NOK1V) was planning a new Lumia tablet for release in the coming months, but The Verge reached out and managed to confirm the rumor this afternoon. According to the report the tablet is nicknamed the Illusionist. It will come with a Qualcomm processor and Windows 8.1 RT.
Nokia 8 inch tablet
The 8-inch tablet is the latest in a series of form factor experiments from Nokia Corporation (NYSE:NOK) (BIT:NOK1V) (HEL:NOK1V). The company released its first-ever tablet just two weeks ago alongside two Windows Phone 8 phablets. Nokia may be getting out of the mobile business, but it’s clearly not done trying just yet.
There are questions surrounding the future of the Nokia Corporation (NYSE:NOK) (BIT:NOK1V) (HEL:NOK1V) tablets heading forward. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), which will take control of the Nokia tablet business in the coming months, is rumored to be releasing its own mini tablet early in 2014.
The Nokia Corporation (NYSE:NOK) (BIT:NOK1V) (HEL:NOK1V) Lumia tablet range will have to compete with the Microsoft Surface tablet range inside Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT). It’s not clear what the Redmond company is going to do about that internal competition. It’s possible that the Nokia release may be a waste of time.
Windows 8.1 release
Windows 8.1 is promised to be the solution to many of the problems that Windows tablets and notebooks have faced in the last year. The Nokia Corporation (NYSE:NOK) (BIT:NOK1V) (HEL:NOK1V) 8-inch tablet will come with the RT version of the operating system. The Windows tablet business has not taken off just yet, but Microsoft is hoping to see its fortunes change in the coming months.
Nokia Corporation (NYSE:NOK) (BIT:NOK1V) (HEL:NOK1V) is trying its best to popularize tablets on Windows 8. None of the devices have hit the market just yet, but the initial hands-on reviews appear to have been good. Nokia won’t have its name on any tablets in a year’s time, but its initial entries into the market may be remembered.
