Nokia N92 Review
Introduction
Nokia
N92 was introduced in 2005, “The display of the Nokia N92 mobile phone is one
of the best though, and at 16M colors the wallpapers and designs look awesome.
The mobile phone is a clamshell and has a 65K color external display. The
internal screen is pretty big measuring 42 x 57 mm and at 320×240 pixels. The
mobile phone has a 90MB internal memory with a mini SD card slot which can take
in about maximum 2GB cards. The phone comes with EDGE, 3G and GPRS for data.
Wi-Fi 802.11b/g is also one of its attractions. For connectivity you also have
Bluetooth, Infrared and a USB 2.0 port.”Nokia are using the N92 to showcase
DVB-H technology, which is truly impressive, but the device has plenty to offer
besides mobile TV.
“The N92 runs S60 3rd Edition, which together
with the underlying Symbian OS 9 is the engine behind many of the improvements
found in the phone. The S60 platform team have put a lot of work into making
the user interface and bundled applications generally easier to use. There are
four key reasons for this. Firstly the higher screen resolution than earlier
devices give a crisper, easier to read display. 3rd Edition supports scalar
vector graphics, meaning a similar physical size can be retained whatever the
screen resolution. In general, a similar amount of information is shown on
screen as earlier (lower resolution) devices, thus avoiding the readability
issues often found in other high resolution devices. However in some instances,
such as photo viewing and web browsing, the higher resolution can be used to
display more information on the screen than was previously possible. Thus 3rd
Edition enables the best of both worlds and makes the most of the extra screen
resolution. Secondly, there have been several sensible UI design changes. These
include making the height of the title/status area smaller in some instances,
such as the applications view, and the introduction of scrollbars in several
areas such as in list views. Thirdly, support for a landscape view across all
applications (in contrast to the N90, which was Camera and Gallery only) means
users can choose the one they prefer. Certain tasks and applications have a
better user experience in landscape mode, with browsing being an obvious
example. Finally, many of the built-in applications have received minor updates
in layout, menu structure and functionality.”
“The Nokia N92 offers easy access to TV
programs without having to sit in front of a television set. Users can set
reminders to watch their favorite TV programs, create personal channel lists
and subscribe to TV channel packages. The outstanding new form factor offers a
highly ergonomic user-experience. The usability is further enhanced by the
large 2.8″ anti-glare QVGA screen with 16 million colors and the dedicated
media keys that deliver a rich viewing experience”. The Nokia N92 includes an
MP3 player. This phone comes with built in polyphonic ringtones, which means
you can download simple MIDI files from the Internet and upload them through
your phone, or simply download them via GRPS (if GRPS is built in).
Design
The
N92 is a chunky handset and given what is packed inside it is not surprising
that it tips the scale at a relatively heavy 191g, but size-wise at 107 x 58 x
25 mm it is not a total pocket buster.
The
N92 offers a new design form factor – a flip and fold – with a total of four
usage modes. In closed mode there is a small secondary screen that displays a
limited amount of information (time, message, and battery and signal
notifications). In flip-open mode the phone operates as a traditional flip
phone and it fits snugly in the hand.
In
capture mode, the screen is twisted around 90 degrees so that is at right
angles to the keypad. The camera is located in the barrel of the hinge with a
button on one end acting as the capture key. This mode has already been very
popular in the 6260 and the N90 so it was good to see it included here. It
makes taking pictures a much more initiative process. Unfortunately, unlike the
N90, there are no soft keys or direction pad on the screen of the
phone. Consequently, it's actually quite difficult to change settings or
access the menus in this mode because it's more difficult to associate the keys
with the labels on the screen and the ergonomics are such that two hands are a
necessity. On the plus side, the capture button is ideally located for one
handed use so it should be a bit easier to take those time-critical snapshots.
TV mode
In
TV mode, the screen is rotated a further 90 degrees so that it becomes flush
with the long side of the keypad. This gives the impression of a clamshell device.
It is this mode that is used for watching TV. However, thanks to Series 60 3rd
Edition, all the normal applications also work in landscape mode. This is
particularly good for web browsing, but also has benefits for any kind of data
entry, especially text messages. However, once again the position of the
soft keys is less than optimal. They are turned away towards the back and
slightly under the screen which means they are quite difficult to press. The
stereo speakers are located on the back of the unit (away from the person
watching TV), which is not ideal, but was probably dictated by space
constraints.
Keypad
It
seems that Eric the keypad has escaped from the broom cupboard that Nokia
locked him in after they released the 7610, and he's done a job almost as bad
as the infamous 3650 rotary keypad, because it is not just the soft key
position that is poor. The whole keypad is made out of a single piece of rubber
and many of the keys are almost completely flat, with just printed labels
differentiating them from those around them. The result is that you have to
look at keys to check what you are pressing and the tactile feedback is poor.
You are certainly not going to be breaking any speed records on this keypad. On
the other hand, keyboard opinion is something subjective and it seems to be the
thing Nokia improve most between prototype and final device models.
Screen
The
screen on the N92 is mid resolution (240 x 320), high color (16 M colors) and
has an anti-glare feature, all of which add up to one excellent screen.
Physically, it is a little bigger that other Series 60 phones, but the pixel
density is higher, resulting in a crisper and brighter display. The Pop-port is
located on the side of the keypad which is good for the TV mode, but is not
going to work as well in the other modes as any headset plug will protrude from
the side of the unit which could be inconvenient when sitting in a shirt
pocket. The case and general feel
of the phone itself is a little plastic, with a slightly fragile feel,
especially when compared to other N-Series devices such as the N91 or N70.
There is definite room for improvement here.
Connectivity
With
tri band GSM (900, 1800, and 1900) and single band WCDMA (2100), the N92 is not
a world phone, though it is possible there will be regional variants. Outside
of cellular connectivity, the device is well specified. Wi-Fi 802.11g,
Bluetooth 2.0, Infrared and USB 2.0 are all provided. Bluetooth version 2.0
brings improved connection speeds, lower power usage and improved multi-link
usage and performance. Additional profiles are also supported such as A2DP
(Advanced Audio Distribution Profile) which allows for stereo Bluetooth
headsets among other things. A very welcome addition is support for the USB
Mass Storage profile, this means that when you plug your phone into your PC it
will appear as a disk drive (just as flash memory drives or external hard
drives do) allowing for files to be copied back and forth more easily and
potentially sync the files of third party programs.
Software
The
N92 runs 3rd Edition, which together with the underlying Symbian OS 9 is the
engine behind many of the improvements found in the phone. The S60 platform
team have put a lot of work into making the user interface and bundled
applications generally easier to use. There are four key reasons for this. Firstly
the higher screen resolution than earlier devices give a crisper, easier to
read display. 3rd Edition supports scalar vector graphics, meaning a similar
physical size can be retained whatever the screen resolution. In general,
a similar amount of information is shown on screen as earlier (lower
resolution) devices, thus avoiding the readability issues often found in other
high resolution devices. However in some instances, such as photo viewing and
web browsing, the higher resolution can be used to display more information on
the screen than was previously possible. Thus 3rd Edition enables the best of
both worlds and makes the most of the extra screen resolution. Secondly, there
have been several sensible UI design changes. These include making the height
of the title/status area smaller in some instances, such as the applications
view, and the introduction of scrollbars in several areas such as in list
views. Thirdly, support for a landscape view across all applications (in
contrast to the N90, which was Camera and Gallery only) means users can choose
the one they prefer. Certain tasks and applications have a better user
experience in landscape mode, with browsing being an obvious example. Finally,
many of the built-in applications have received minor updates in layout, menu
structure and functionality.
As
with previous S60 phones, there is a full range of software (PIM, Telephony,
and Multimedia) on board and 3rd Edition should see Office applications
(Word, Excel, PowerPoint and PDF viewers) become standard. The web
browser application has received a complete over all and is now based on Web
Core and JavaScript Core from Apple's Safari browser, resulting in
improved standard compliance and support. Innovations include a 'Mini Map'
which allows you to see the whole page (effectively a view of the whole
rendered page, zoomed out to 20% or so) at a glance and helps you to navigate
around it, 'Visual History' which allows you to see a graphical representation
of pages you have visited, and support for RSS feeds. The N series also has an
exclusive feature in the form of a 'Scroll Mini Map' which pops up when you are
scrolling around the page to aid with navigation around the page.
Multimedia - Music and Imaging
Music
With
the Xpress Music brand attached, the N92 is also a capable music phone. Music
can be copied directly to the phone thanks to the USB Mass Storage Device, but
it will also be possible to synchronize from Windows Media Player. This is
thanks to the licensing agreement Nokia made with Microsoft which also enables
the playback of Janus DRM protected files in addition to MP3, AAC, eAAC+ and
RA. This means the N92 will be able to use subscription-based music services
such as Napster or Yahoo Music. The N92 will ship with an adaptor to
convert the POP-Port to a standard 3.5mm audio socket so you can use your
preferred headphones.
Memory
The
N92 will come with 90 MB of internal memory. Although this is generous for a Smartphone
it is not going to go far once you start adding multimedia. Fortunately the
memory can be expanded via the mini SD slot. Currently sizes up to 2GB are
available and the slot supports hot swapping of memory cards.
Support
Like
its rival the N80, the N92 supports UPnP, which allows you to play music on
your phone over your home UPnP-enabled HiFi system, download music and content
from your PC, and display images and video from your phone on your UPnP TV.
This is done over a Wi-Fi connection, using the industry standard UPnP
protocols. UPnP compatibility can usually be added by means of an add on box.
FM Radio
An
FM Radio is also squeezed into the device, and as with other recent Nokia
phones there is support for Visual Radio, which allows additional content to be
shown on the phone (it is received via a GPRS data connection).
Camera
The
main camera is mounted in the barrel of the flip hinge, and at 2 megapixels
will produce good results. However, unlike the N90 (and other high end camera
phones), it does not have an auto-focus, which means that, like all fixed focus
cameras, the ability of the camera is limited. Pictures from the camera seem to
be on comparison with the N70, and as such are very good, but it would have
been nice to see some of the N90's camera features rolled into the N92. As with
other S60 phones, you can print via the USB cable (using PictBridge), via
Bluetooth and (new to N92) via UPnP. As with other N series devices, the Camera
and Gallery applications are a generation on from earlier Series 60 phones,
with a greater range of settings and more initiative controls and both
benefit from the higher screen resolution.
Multimedia key
The
multimedia key, first seen in the N70, has had a software update. The
multimedia key now brings up a screen which allows quick access to up to five
applications (one for each direction of the keypad). This is surprisingly
affective and is a definite improvement over dedicated short cut keys found on
other high end devices.
Mobile TV
The
TV functionality is accessed via the Series 60 TV application when in view mode
(landscape). Within this program you can easily change channel and access an
ESG (electronic service guide). It is clear the device is optimized for
watching TV in this mode. You can sit the N92 on a desk in front of you and
adjust the viewing angle, or it will sit just as easily in the palm of the
hand.
The
TV picture is displayed full screen and the quality of the picture is excellent,
and channel changing is near instantaneous. It is difficult to get across how
good it looks without seeing it for you, but between the high resolution screen
and the DVB-H technology, the N92 offers an unsurpassed mobile television
experience. At the NMC Nokia demo we were receiving a live stream of several
channels which was about 2 or 3 seconds behind traditional TV (shown on the
wall). In the keynote Nokia executives talked of the convergence of the world's
most popular entertainment medium (2 billion viewers) with the world's most
popular communication device. It is easy to be dismissive, but seeing BBC World
broadcasting live coverage of a Cricket match funeral gave a real sense of the
potential of the technology.
There
is also a constant 30 second rolling record function (like many PVRs) which
means you can get an instant reply whenever you wish and you can record TV
direct to the memory card (limited only by the space available). There is also
support for subscription services, meaning, potentially at least, the device
will support premium and pay per view channels.
Nokia
were also keen to emphasize the interactive capabilities of the device. With
cellular connectivity built in, it is far easier for TV to become a two way
medium compared with traditional TV, with TV voting and additional web
discovery being two of the possibilities highlighted.
DVB-H
DVB-H
is designed for mobile devices. Time-slicing means that information is
broadcast in high concentration short bursts (one second of TV in one tenth of
a second) so that the receiver can be switched off 90% of the time and thus
save battery power. Unlike TV broadcast over the cellular network, once
broadcast DVB-H can be received by an unlimited number of people. DVB-H also
has enhanced error correction built into the specification, reflecting the fact
that mobile devices with small aerials that may have varying quality of
reception levels.
DVB-H
is a technology still in its infancy, currently only pilot projects are up and
running and it is unlikely there will be a commercially launched network before
summer 2006, which is when the N92 is first expected to be available. How
successful DVB-H will be remains to be seen, but there are plans for commercial
networks in countries all round the world (including the US, the UK and many
other European countries, but the first to launch are likely to be
in Asia)
Final Words
There
is no doubt the N92 is a very powerful device. Seeing it working for the first
time does engender a sense of wonder. There is something undoubtedly cool about
convergence devices and one that has TV built in definitely packs that extra
wow factor. The device is well specified and feature packed. S60 3rd Edition is
a real boon and offers an extra refinement of usability and functionality
compared to previous versions. However, the design may not be to everyone's
tastes, with the general feel of the device, a not quite good enough camera and
the keypad being low points; and there is no getting away from the fact that it
is large and heavy.
There
is an obvious collision here between the feature packed Smartphone which has
eaten all the other consumer devices in a bid to become the one true converged
device and is consequently a bit fat, and the rise of the thin phone (such as
the Motorola RAZR). Which solution is right for you are a personal decision –
both are good as phones, but only one is something more. If you're looking to
reduce the number of devices you carry or find a powerful mobile solution then
a Smartphone is for you. If DVB-H is
launching in your country then you should consider the N92, otherwise you
should look at the smaller and perhaps even more desirable N80.
 Specifications
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
For Video Review
Go To-
0 comments:
Post a Comment