Nokia today acknowledged that the N8 was affected by a serious power flaw. The company claimed that a "very small number" of the phones wouldn't turn on properly. Users have reported that their phones' power management failed and won't allow them to reboot, recharge or start up when it happens.
Company Executive VP Niklas Savander said Nokia had taken "immediate actions" to fix the problem, though it didn't say what those might be. The phone only launched in September or October for most areas and is still covered by the initial warranty.
While the company has characterized the issue as limited to the one device, well-known Russian leaker Eldar Murtazin today said that one of Nokia's other main Symbian^3 devices, the C7, was also suffering from the same problem but wasn't being acknowledged. He also commented on Nokia's update that as much as five percent of Russian stock had either been repaired or was in the middle of a repair. The information wasn't sourced but may be accurate, as Nokia has repeatedly tried to target Murtazin for his connections to authentic sources.
Nokia hasn't commented on either claim, but customers in YouTube comments and elsewhere have complained of service representatives denying an widespread problem.
The issues mar what is a critical launch for Nokia, whose market share has been falling fast as customers have been opting for Android devices or iPhones. It also comes with a layer of irony as the company recently criticized the iPhone 4 antenna flaw, although Apple's occasional issue is believed inherent to the phone rather than the part defect encountered by Nokia.
