T-Mobile sells the Memoir now for $250 with a $50mir and 8mp penetration has been all over other countries for all of 2008, but I don't think that was his point. The point is that Nokia was always at the cutting edge for a consumer-driven smartphone that brought high-end features to the masses. They led the pack in the megapixel race, video recording, and for a long time, software development as well. At this point, it's like they've completely stopped. 8mp cameras aren't common now but when they are the standard, it will be Nokia catching up. Samsung's experience with their lenses and camera modules will start to mature as Nokia only begins to introduce their own. Even now, these cameras have more features than what we see on Nokia's matured 5mp shooters 2 years after their introduction.
A lot of phones didn't have 3G for North America, but people still bought the N82 for it's incredible flash and the E90 for it's unique form factor. Those people would still beg for a US 3G version of those devices to this day, and I'm sure there are other non-Nokia S60 users in the US who value other features over 3G as well. I think everyone would be thinking a little bit differently if we could access 3G on the 2100 UMTS frequency; it would open up our device possibilities three fold.
Fortunately for Samsung, Nokia's huge reputation is now making Samsung's look inferior, even though they seem to have just as good or bad customer service as Nokia. It seems we all too quickly forget how much of a nightmare it is to have to deal with getting a phone fixed or replaced through Nokia's channels. Does anyone remember the huge threads on how poor their customer service was?
Anyway, I don't mean to rant. The point is that Nokia doesn't seem to be doing nearly as much to stay competitive anymore and the lack of development in favor for the iPhone is making it worse. The only reason I stay with S60 now is because I know it so well. It's nearly impossible to explain to someone the benefits of buying an unlocked S60 (at an unlocked premium, no less) over their carrier-discounted phone of choice. The advantages are just becoming very, very few. I could still name them, but I could also tell you just as much about what's unique on other platforms as well (a lot of which the new market of smartphone buyers seem to value more).