Nokia's (NOK) Lumia Smartphone Gets Unexpected Praise from Rival

August 23, 2012 8:56 AM EDT
Say what you want about Nokia's (NYSE: NOK) Lumia-series handsets, but the device is getting some positive vibes from one of its fiercest competitors in the industry.

According to reports out Thursday, one Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) lawyer, Harold McElhinny, has praised the device, saying, "Not every smartphone needs to look like an iPhone." (Notably, McElhinny also held up a Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc when making the comment.) Comments were made in closing arguments of the Apple/Samsung patent trial.

Okay, maybe its a little bit of a backhanded compliment. While McElhinny noted the design, he didn't note anything about the operating system.

The Lumia 900 -- which runs on Microsoft's (Nasdaq: MSFT) Windows Phone platform -- has seen solid sales in the first few quarters its been offered. Nokia reported that about 4 million were shipped last quarter. Sales might have been better, but Microsoft noted in a July event that the Windows Phone 7 platform wouldn't be upgradable to Windows Phone 8, which is expected later in the year.

Nokia and Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) are expected to hold an event on September 5th to discuss the next line of Windows Phone 8 handsets.

Shares of Nokia are up about 2 percent in early trading.


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