Having seemingly recovered from a launch whereby early users experienced server crashes, Nokia's flagship Ovi Store service is now attracting attention, but for all the wrong reasons. According to experienced reviewers, after a disastrous launch Ovi Store is "rushed, early and not fit for public consumption."
According to reports, Ovi Store is lacking in apps because developers are experiencing listing problems leading to many of the most popular S60 applications, including Slick IM, LCG Media Player, StyleTap and even Nokia's Sports Tracker, not being found in Ovi Store. However, on the upside it does offer Skype clients that work over 3G connections, and a multitude of email and SMS applications.
Naturally, the comparison is made with Apple's iTunes store and two significant problems become apparent--Nokia has to support a range of handsets, and there is no integrated desktop software. Also, the Ovi Store web experience has been judged harshly against what Apple has achieved, with calls that a radical overhaul is needed.
Further criticism focused on Nokia's overly ambitious plan to roll out a store to so many territories and, in particular, to so many device categories, in one big bang. The number of devices supported goes back six years--encompassing eight versions of Series 40 and three versions of S60.
For more on this story:
- see this Register article
- or this Register article
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