Intel and Nokia have announced the University of Oulu in Finland, which has expertise in 3D interfaces, will be the home of their first joint research lab.
The news is an indication of progress on software in the partnership announced in June last year between the biggest chipmaker and handset maker, but there remains no evidence yet of the exciting new hardware that was promised.
Intel had described its deal with Nokia in 2009 as the year’s most significant collaboration and Nokia said it would “explore new ideas in designs, materials and displays that will go far beyond devices and services on the market today.”
All well and good, but Intel, which is trying to break into the smartphone market this year, and Nokia, which is struggling to maintain its grip in it, need results fast and there is little sign of the partnership bearing significant fruit anytime soon.
The biggest step to date has been the decision in February to combine the two companies’ Linux work – Nokia’s Maemo and Intel’s Moblin into a common open-source platform called MeeGo.
Martin Curley, director of Intel Labs Europe, said on Monday there was now an “active and vibrant community” developing applications for MeeGo and the first developer conference will take place in October in Dublin.
“MeeGo has got the biggest attention,”Mika Setälä, Director of Nokia Strategy Alliances and Partnerships, told a media conference call, adding: “We are still exploring with Intel the possibilities to do something together on the hardware side, but today we don’t have any news to announce.”
A third aspect of the partnership – Intel licensing Nokia’s modem technologies – has become a moot point with the sale of that business to Renesas in July.
The new research lab at Oulu is opening with around two dozen researchers culled from the local community. The university has become a centre of expertise in 3D, with the open-source virtual reality platform realXtend created there.
Initial research will focus on 3D mobile interfaces and virtual worlds being used in mobile environments, but company executives cautioned this was a long-term project and the rapid addition of this to the operating systems of handsets was unlikely.
