X

A rare view of Nokia's home turf (pictures)

CNET takes a tour through Nokia's headquarters in Espoo, Finland, and heads north to an R&D facility in Tampere.

Roger Cheng
Roger Cheng (he/him/his) was the executive editor in charge of CNET News, managing everything from daily breaking news to in-depth investigative packages. Prior to this, he was on the telecommunications beat and wrote for Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal for nearly a decade and got his start writing and laying out pages at a local paper in Southern California. He's a devoted Trojan alum and thinks sleep is the perfect -- if unattainable -- hobby for a parent.
Roger Cheng
IMG_7261.jpg
1 of 14 Roger Cheng/CNET

Welcome to Nokia House

Nokia's headquarters in Espoo, Finland, is known as Nokia House, or NoHo, and is the centerpiece of an industrial park on the bay. It's about a 10-minute drive from the center of neighboring Helsinki.
IMG_7260.jpg
2 of 14 Roger Cheng/CNET

Grand Nokia entrance

Walk in the main entrance, and you're greeted to a unique waiting area with an expansive view of the bay and the Helsinki skyline.
IMG_7245.jpg
3 of 14 Roger Cheng/CNET

Open-air design

NoHo has three connected buildings which share the same atrium open-air design. The building is an impressive mixture of glass, steel, and wood.
IMG_7264.jpg
4 of 14 Roger Cheng/CNET

Sitting on the bay

Nokia House sits on the Keilaniemi Bay and spans three structures.
IMG_7285_1.jpg
5 of 14 Roger Cheng/CNET

Natural light -- when it's around

The large skylights mean a lot of natural light filters into the building. Unfortunately, Finland at this time of year sees the sun come up late in the morning and set excessively early in the afternoon, making for a dark building.
IMG_7308.jpg
6 of 14 Roger Cheng/CNET

A glimpse into the Nokia offices

Nokia didn't let me into the main working areas of the office, so I had to settle with a bit of stealth photography to get my peek.
IMG_7278.jpg
7 of 14 Roger Cheng/CNET

One long hall

This hallway and the one above connect all three buildings, so no one has to brave the elements to get from one place to another.
IMG_7251.jpg
8 of 14 Roger Cheng/CNET

Lounging with Nokia

The Finnish have been known to be reserved in their show of enthusiasm. Naturally, Nokia hedges its mission statement a little bit in the entrance of its lounge/product showcase.
IMG_7252.jpg
9 of 14 Roger Cheng/CNET

A colorful history of phones

The Nokia lounge features a bulk of the notable cell phones in its history. Notably, the lipstick cell phone, the N-Gage cellular and handheld gaming device, and a few bulky old suitcase cell phones were on display.
IMG_7282.jpg
10 of 14 Roger Cheng/CNET

Futuristic kiosk

By the lounge is this kiosk and display, which looks like something out of the movie "Tron."
IMG_7296.jpg
11 of 14 Roger Cheng/CNET

Nokia at night

The Nokia blue shines through from its logo at night. This picture was taken at 8 a.m. local time.
IMG_7328.jpg
12 of 14 Roger Cheng/CNET

A visit to Tampere

Tampere, in northern Finland, houses its R&D facilities and works on projects such as the PureView cameras. On display here is a reminder of where it came from, a giant classic candy bar phone.
IMG_7319.jpg
13 of 14 Roger Cheng/CNET

Torture test

Because of the sensitive nature of the work here, I could only get limited photos of the facility. Shown here is a Lumia PureView 808 mounted and ready for a drop test. That office also tested its ability to handle rain drops and excessive cold. Corrected at 7:03 a.m. PT: to change the name of the phone that was tested. It was originally and incorrectly labeled as a Lumia 820.
IMG_7326.jpg
14 of 14 Roger Cheng/CNET

One quiet office

The Tampere offices in particular were fairly quiet. Shown here is the central cafeteria at the base of one of the buildings. It was already 3 p.m., however, so it's not surprising that no one was down eating.

More Galleries

My Favorite Shots From the Galaxy S24 Ultra's Camera
A houseplant

My Favorite Shots From the Galaxy S24 Ultra's Camera

20 Photos
Honor's Magic V2 Foldable Is Lighter Than Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra
magic-v2-2024-foldable-1383

Honor's Magic V2 Foldable Is Lighter Than Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra

10 Photos
The Samsung Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus Looks Sweet in Aluminum
Samsung Galaxy S24

The Samsung Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus Looks Sweet in Aluminum

23 Photos
Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra Now Has a Titanium Design
The Galaxy S24 Ultra in multiple colors

Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra Now Has a Titanium Design

23 Photos
I Took 600+ Photos With the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. Look at My Favorites
img-0368.jpg

I Took 600+ Photos With the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. Look at My Favorites

34 Photos
17 Hidden iOS 17 Features You Should Definitely Know About
Invitation for the Apple September iPhone 15 event

17 Hidden iOS 17 Features You Should Definitely Know About

18 Photos
AI or Not AI: Can You Spot the Real Photos?
img-1599-2.jpg

AI or Not AI: Can You Spot the Real Photos?

17 Photos