Nokia N96 - Now Shipping

In eventually getting round to shipping the N96, Nokia has been accused of some people of making paint drying seem fast.   This is a handset that has been on the pending list for months now (actually over half a year). Images of the N96 have been all over the web, along with reviews since March, but until now no actual handsets.  Nokia certainly is the opposite of Apple when it comes to how best to create hype.

However, now all the waiting is over and the latest and greatest in the much acclaimed Nokia N series, has made its way from Finland to Blighty. Nokia’s latest dualslider multimedia flagship has been the subject of frenzied internet (and real world debate) since it was originally announced all the way back in January of this year.

Scores on the doors seem to suggest that the N96 will cost around £440 (which is around £100 more expensive than the N95 8GB). Of course, if your teaming it up with a £35 contract, expect to pay something more like £100-£150 and maybe as little as £0 if you are really breaking the bank with your monthly spend.

Functionality-wise the N96 pulls very few punches in dishing up a seriously heavyweight feature-set:

• Live TV thanks to integrated DVB-H (Digital Video Broadcasting - Handheld) technology
• A 2.8″ Display which produces high quality images and supports a wide range of video formats
• Assisted GPS which offers turn-by-turn voice navigation using Nokia Maps
• A Massive 16GBs of internal memory with the potential for extension to a monstrous 24GB by way of an optional MicroSD card
• N-gage gaming which takes full advantage of the vivid display and the onboard 3D sound
• 5 Megapixel camera which includes superior quality optics from Carl Zeiss
• WLAN and HSDPA support

And not resting on their Scandic laurels, Nokia have recently announced another new phone for their Nseries range, the Nokia N85. This handset slips nicely in between the N79 and N96 in Nokia Nseries range, and is a dual action slider like the N95 and N96. It is also slated to feature Wi-Fi and HSDPA connectivity, integrated GPS and a Carl Zeiss lens in its 5 megapixel camera (which can capture VGA video at an impressive 30 frames per second).

Nokia N85 - Coming Soon!

The Nokia N85 will be packing a 2.6 inch OLED screen, rumoured to be lighter and more energy efficient than the usual TFT displays. The N85 also has a microSD card slot and will come with an 8GB card as standard. Other features include Bluetooth and USB connections for transferring data to and from the N85.

The N85’s battery will have a capacity of up to 5 and a half hours of talk-time and up to a jaw-dropping 25 hours of audio playback in its offline mode.

Little news as yet in terms of price or networks, but rest assured that will follow in the run up to the launch of the Nokia N85, which is probably going to be late-October.

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