Nokia Launches Mobile With Hard Drive

Nokia has launched the “Nseries branded range of next generation multimedia devices”. The big thing appears to be the introduction of a hard drive, and the distinction of the NSeries not being called “phones”…”This next step in digital convergence brings together mobile devices, Internet content, still and video cameras, music, email and much more. Nokia Nseries devices share similar design traits as mobile phones, but they are actually powerful pocketable computers with a comprehensive set of multimedia features,” said Anssi Vanjoki, Executive Vice President, Multimedia, Nokia.

Nokia N91 Mobile Music PhoneThe device most likely to cause a ruckus in the Nokia N91, which aims to provide “a true mobile music experience”. Whatever happens with this phone, there will be a lot of press comparing it to iPods and asking whether this will see the end of Apple’s portable music player… The N91 has a 4 GB hard drive, which can hold up to 3,000 songs, and comes with a stereo headset with remote control included. The phone supports a range of music formats including MP3, M4A, AAC and WMA, which gives it an edge over technologies that support only one format, and allows transfer of music files from the PC. “Encased in stainless steel, the Nokia N91 has dedicated music keys on its face, which slide down to reveal the phone keypad” (see picture…).

This phone may actually help Apple, depending on which rumours you listen to. Despite reassurances by Motorola’s chief that the delay of the iPhone is due to differences in practices between Apple and mobile phone manufacturers many people are still convinced that mobile carriers are balking at offering subsidized version of the iTunes playing phone. The rationale is that they want consumers to buy music through their portals and download it over their network rather than bypass them by transfering files from their PC. However, Nokia’s flagship mobile music phone also allows the transfer of files from the computer, and I suspect that just about every mobile phone optimized for music that is produced by brand-name manufacturers will also allow this feature, because it’s what consumers want. That being the case it’s going to be harder and harder for telcos to refuse to stock the phones, especially once one company takes the lead in a bid to lure consumers to their network…

Other phones in the NSeries include the Nokia N90, aimed at photography enthusiasts and coming with a “2 megapixel camera with autofocus and 20x digital zoom, integrated flash, macro mode for sharp close-ups, and high quality video capture with on-phone editing capabilities”. The Nokia N70 has a bit of everything, “incorporating a complete smartphone feature set, as well as a 2 megapixel camera, flash and front camera for video calling, the Nokia N70 comes fully equipped with stereo FM radio, a digital music player and new 3D games”.

If you’re interested, have a look at Nokia’s comments on nanotechnology

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