Nokia kills off WiMAX gadget

Finnish handset vendor Nokia is understood to have stopped production of its only WiMAX device, the N810 Internet Tablet.

According to reports the world’s biggest handset vendor has called time on the gadget, which has only been available for nine months. Distributors are understood to be returning unsold stock to Nokia, although the device is still for sale on the Nokia Shop website.

The reasons behind the decision are unconfirmed but slower than expected rollout of WiMAX seems likely. The vendor has not said that it won’t release more WiMAX-based devices in the future, perhaps when the technology becomes more widely adopted.

The news could be seen as another blow to WiMAX, and comes shortly after Alcatel-Lucent announced that it is to step up investment in LTE whilst pulling back on WiMAX. This is part of new CEO Ben Verwaayen’s strategy to turn the struggling company around.