Nokia Plans Major Symbian Update for April 12

With Nokia's recent deal with Microsoft already in motion, many have speculated that the company is dropping support for its legacy mobile OS, Symbian.

Not yet, says Nokia, which confirmed to the Wall Street Journal that it is planning a major update to its mobile operating system set to be released on Tuesday.

Rumors of the update surfaced as early as last week, when Nokia released a teaser hinting - or perhaps directly announcing - that it was planning something big for Symbian. While the teaser may have given the impression that Nokia was planning a major event, the company will make all announcements without an actual physical event.

The announcements next week are all online activities, said a Nokia spokesperson to mocoNews last week. The announcements will be made at 4 a.m. Eastern, the spokesperson said.

For Nokia supporters, news of an imminent Symbian upgrade could not be more calming. Nokia has been inordinately silent on the status of the operating system in recent months. But in a letter to developers Nokia vice president Purnima Kochikar emphasized that it was in Nokia's best interests to continue support of Symbian, noting that markets such as China, India, and Russia will continue to play a major role for the Finnish company.

Nokia isn't expected to ship new Symbian models until later in the year, but the company's looming OS update may tide the company over until then. In spite of its deal with Microsof Nokia says that it plans to sell 150 more Symbian devices in the coming years.