Feature

Opinion: Glitz and glamour all that's missing from Nokia's Lumia launch

Elop, take the stage

Opinion: Glitz and glamour all that's missing from Nokia's Lumia launch
They say that presidents and prime ministers of old - those in office long before the big screen in our living rooms began to dominate our lives – wouldn't fare so well in the modern age.

To command respect in the 21st century, you have to come across well on camera.

It often doesn't even matter if what you have to say is entirely vacuous – if you can engage your audience effectively, then half the battle is won.

In the context of our industry, there's little doubt that the President Obama of the mobile world is Apple.

Doing the job

Though the death of Steve Jobs has taken some of the shine off its recent product launches – as, of course, has the lack of a live stream these days – no one holds a candle to Apple when it comes to lifting the lid on a new product or service.

It's not even that complex an art to master.

Apple's approach is easy to pin down: whether it's been Jobs or Cook on stage, all the Cupertino giant does is explain, very simply, the new features it's launching step by step.

Sometimes it even goes to the hassle of numbering them from the start – beginning the press conference with a goal of delivering the "six new features of iOS", or somesuch.

Not only does that help the writers and editors in the audience, it also leads to articles across the web happy to sing to Apple's tune – namely because Apple makes it very easy to deliver what could easily be difficult or indiscernible bits of new tech in a snappy soundbite.

In short, Apple gives things brand names.

What's in a name?

Almost every iOS feature you can think of – from iCloud to Siri – comes with a recognisable name that consumers can grab hold of, even if they don't truly understand the service behind them.

It's the anathema of the kind of approach many of Apple's rivals use to adopt.

Microsoft has, for a long time, been guilty of packing Windows full of unhelpful jargon that, for the trained eye, no doubt explains the ins and outs of a feature in detail, but to the masses just sounds like garbled tech speak.

The Redmond giant's new best friend Nokia, however, is slowly learning to master this approach.

Nokia's PureView brand has now been adopted by its upcoming Windows Phone range – even though the tech behind the original PureView 808 and the new Lumia 920 is quite different.

In reality, it matters not: consumers who have identified PureView as a brand associated with top quality cameras will, in turn, apply that same attribute to the firm's new handsets.

A pure view

Nokia's new PureMotion tag – one designed to illustrate the quality of its handsets' display – is an extension of this approach.

Videos detailing its implementation are promising, communicating the benefits in a simple, almost Apple-esque manner.



Where things fall apart, however, is how Nokia delivers such features in its press blitzes.

Nokia's Lumia 920 unveiling was hardly hitch free – a fairly by-the-numbers presentation was almost entirely sabotaged by SVP of product and program management Kevin Shields.

During Nokia World 2011, Shields blazed onto stage as if a man possessed. 

At the firm's most recent presentation, however, he awkwardly bungled his way through a series of needless demos and repeatedly got his words mixed up as he over explained a number of features that had already been well detailed at the start of the presentation.

It left a sour taste in the mouth, and one the Lumia 920 – undoubtedly one of the most impressive handsets likely to be unveiled before the end of 2012 – was entirely undeserving of.

Eyes on Elop

So, I say to Nokia, next time, keep things simple. When it comes to your advertising, explain things in a way consumers can understand.

And when it comes to your presentations, let Elop deliver it all. Every single word. The entire thing.

After all, Elop is the man who vocalised Nokia's 'burning platform' in the first place – he's the reason the Finnish giant jumped aboard the good ship Windows Phone.

If Nokia wants to communicate with journalists and consumers alike, let the man behind the company's new vision talk with those it's looking to convert directly.

Let him share his passion personally, rather than pass it on to a subordinate.

Oh, and keep putting the word 'Pure' in front of things. For reasons unknown, it has the knack of making somewhat menial things sound a little bit cool, and - as discussed - presentation really is half the battle.


With a fine eye for detail, Keith Andrew is fuelled by strong coffee, Kylie Minogue and the shapely curve of a san serif font.