The N-Gage's Demise, As We Predicted

As our erstwhile readers may recall, a scant two weeks ago we predicted the imminent failure of Nokia's new handheld video game device/PDA/cell phone, the N-Gage. We hate to say that we told you so (actually, we kind of enjoy gloating, but keep it under your hat), but it looks like our assessment was right on target: early sales figures reveal that the N-Gage sold less than 5000 units in its first week on the market. These low figures are especially stunning in light of the amount Nokia spent to hype the product in the US (an estimated $117m), and are hugely disappointing when you compare the N-Gage's sales figures at launch to similar technology products. For example, Microsoft's XBox managed to sell 1.5m units on the first day of its launch in the United States at an identical price point to the N-Gage ($299), while Nintendo's GameBoy Advance handheld--the N-Gage's closest competitor--sold 540,000 systems in its first week of launch. Ugh. We're sure that the N-Gage launch team is keeping a low profile @ Nokia HQ in Finland right now, particularly when you consider that just days ago, they were telling anyone who'd listen that the N-Gage would easily sell several million units through 2004. For the handful of analysts who continue to think that Nokia is a good bet, we'd suggest that they try to remember when the last time that they'd purchased a Nokia product that worked well (we've had problems with every Nokia phone our cell carrier has saddled us with), and adjust their ratings accordingly.