Nokia 7700

Year: 2003
Prototype level: Cancelled
Codename: MX

Overview

The Nokia 7700 was an ambitious media-focused smartphone announced in 2003 and cancelled before it could reach the market. It was Nokia’s first device based on the new Series 90 platform for Symbian OS, and also one of the company’s first attempts at a pen-operated touchscreen phone. Its large 640 × 320 colour display, stylus input and wide landscape-oriented form were a significant departure from Nokia’s conventional phones of the period. The 7700 was also intended to showcase new mobile-media services including Visual Radio, web browsing, music and video streaming. 

The project was cancelled in June 2004, after Nokia had already produced working hardware and demonstrated the phone extensively. Instead of being released, the 7700 was repurposed for trials with network operators and media companies, including early DVB-H demonstrations. Nokia subsequently developed the closely related 7710, which introduced a revised design and became the only commercially released Series 90 device. 

For the collection, the 7700 is particularly interesting because it represents Nokia’s first serious attempt at a touchscreen smartphone and the original hardware implementation of Series 90. It is therefore not simply an unreleased model, but an important missing step between Nokia’s Communicator-era devices and the touchscreen smartphones that followed.