Nokia has put back the launch of the E7, a Symbian handset, until early next year. The company was previously expected to launch the new handset later this month. The delay is a blow to Nokia on two fronts: the handset misses the Q4 Christmas selling season and is another piece of bad news emanating from its smartphone business. The company’s earlier N8 smartphone suffered delays before it finally launched at the end of September. Like the N8, the E7 is based on Symbian^3, the latest version of the OS (although the company has now dispensed with this nomenclature). In a statement, Nokia said it needed more time to ensure “the best possible user experience” on the E7 before its release. However, the E7 is not a flagship device like the N8. The E-series smartphone is primarily a messaging device designed to compete with RIM’s BlackBerry. 

Separately, Nokia has announced that it will make about 800 staff redundant. The job cuts will take place in Finland and come into effect from January next year, the company said. Nokia did not specify which part of its business will feel the pain from the losses. It is two months since its last round of job cuts. In October, it announced it would cut up to 1,800 jobs including a restructuring of the Symbian smartphone unit intended to increase its responsiveness and speed time to market for new products.