Nokia launched the Lumia 800 and 710 in style

Nokia launched the Lumia 800 along with its sibling, the 710, at a typically stylish event at the Vodacom Dome on the 25th of January. I haven’t reviewed either unit but you can read Duncan McLeod’s terrific review of the Lumia 800 here. I focused a little more on the people at the event (and spent a few minutes with the phone in between).

I like the new Nokia smartphones. I spent a little time with the N800 a while ago and the Lumia 800 (running Windows Phone 7) is just as sleek. Its easy to use and although it was my first experience with Windows Phone 7 and its UI which seems to run off the screen (I found it a little disconcerting and appealing at the same time), I can already see how refreshing it is coming from a pretty typical icon matrix UI. I love my iPhone and don’t see myself leaving it anytime soon but I do think wistfully about the interface from time to time.

The entertainment kicked off with an awesome performance by a tap dance group and the First Project drummers:

I was torn between capturing this performance and watching the spectacle right in front of me. I love this sort of dynamic tap and this group was awesome.

The entertainment aside, I think Nokia’s new smartphones, the Windows Phone 7 phones in particular, reflect a concerted effort to move beyond being phone supplier to farmers and average people to a purveyor of sexy hardware and beautiful interfaces.