Even though Nokia's Symbian mobile OS is the most dominant smartphone operating system in the world, the Finnish phone maker has opted to fit its new touchscreen smartphone, the N900, with Maemo.

Nokia announced the N900 smartphone, a mobile device running the Linux-based Maemo operating system that the company typically uses for its tablets.

Maemo is a Linux-based operating system normally used in Nokia's tablet computers. The new Nokia phone redefines power and flexibility in meeting mobility needs. The device runs a Mozilla-based browser and offers still and video photography, an FM radio and 3.5G and WLAN connectivity.

Maemo is the operating system used in Nokia's tablets, and the Finnish handset maker's description of the N900 shows it's moving to converge the computer, the Internet and the mobile phone.

Nokia sees the Maemo OS as driving its new technology, and the N900 as merely the hardware to contain the OS. "Nokia today marked the next phase in the evolution of Maemo software with the new Nokia N900," reads a statement the company issued.

The Nokia N900 has a 60 MHz ARM Cortex-A8 superscalar processor and up to 1 GB of memory. It uses a 3-D graphics accelerator with OpenGL ES 2.0 support. OpenGL ES is a subset of the OpenGL 3D graphics API designed for embedded devices such as mobile phones and PDAs.

The N900 has 32 GB of internal storage, expandable to up to 48 GB with an external microSD card.

Other features are 3.5G and WLAN connectivity; the ability to transfer data over a cellular network at 10/2 Mbps (megabits per second) and over WiFi at 54 Mbps; Flash 9.4 support; and full-screen browsing.

The N900 also has an integrated A-GPS (assisted GPS) receiver and works with Nokia's Ovi Maps, which are pre-installed. The N900 has an 800 by 480 touchscreen display, a fully integrated QWERTY keyboard and a removable battery.

It also has a 5 megapixel digital camera with Carl Zeiss optical lens, dual LED flash and 800 by 480 video recording capabilities.

Users can add widgets to their desktops and create multiple desktops for different people. The N900 has a dashboard feature that lets users run multiple tasks and switch tasks much like a PC.

Users can make calls by rotating the device from landscape to portrait mode. They get free Skype-to-Skype calls, although they may have to pay data charges. With its functionality and its Linux-based OS, the N900 could be seen as possible competition for the iPhone.

The Nokia N900 will be available in select markets starting in October at about $713.