User Login
Understanding the N96 |
| Written by PseudoFinn | |
| Monday, 18 February 2008 06:20 | |
|
Aside from the lack of an Earth-shattering new feature- the big complaint you will hear about the N96 is the battery size- it's a 950mAh battery, same as the 'classic' N95. A lot of people are asking why Nokia neglected to learn the lesson with the very vocal disdain for the battery life of that device. I can assure you that they have learned a lesson- though it's not as apparent at first glance. Nokia has deemed it more important to work on improving the efficiencies of the device's power consumption, rather than to pack a larger battery into the device in exchange for a feature or two, or ending up with a brick of a device- another complaint that some had with the N95. So the battery life is extended through the optimizations made for music playback, which is now 14 hours- or nearly double the playtime of the N95 they claim. Feature pack 2 makes several optimizations to the system to conserve battery usage, and it's not using the same processor as the N95- presumably offering more operating time. They've also decided against the xenon flash for the same reasons- battery life and size. It was easy for them to fit the N82 with a xenon bulb because of the real estate that the mono-block design allows, but it was apparently not much of an option for them with the N96- again with concerns for creating a massive brick of a device.
When it comes down to it, the N96 is intended to be a consumption-user's device, not a content creator. That's where the thinking has to be to understand the N96- which I'm starting to get a little more now. What do you think now after hearing more about the N96? Does it fit in the product tier of the other N9x devices? Do you still think there should have been some radically new feature included in the device? Comments (8)
  written by James Burland, February 18, 2008
Nice explanation. So this leaves the door open for a Nokia flagship content creation device, does it not? N99?
Votes: -1
report abuse
vote down
vote up
 written by PseudoFinn, February 18, 2008
Oh, yes. Forgot about the N99- lots of excitement about that at MWC! Lots of specs floating around.
Votes: +0
 Yes- a flagship content creation device. I could be with that. Still think we're as far off as they'd have us believe from 720p recording and that micro-hdmi out? report abuse
vote down
vote up
written by PseudoFinn, February 18, 2008
DavidM- That's certainly one look at it. While I can understand your desire for that 'perfect' device for you- one "that is no compromises in every dimension, business, creative, communications, pleasure" you have to realize that this is not the device for everyone- these compromises are made because the market demands them. Nokia is developing a 'range' of devices that will suit the needs of specific users. As for an all-in-one device, I'm sure we'll be seeing a true successor to the N95- but the N96 is not that device, and is not trying to be that device.
Votes: +0
And I don't see Nokia going that aggressively at touch. It will be a feature device, it will be lacking in some areas that another TBA device will excel in, it probably won't be for the N95 user crowd... we'll see plenty of alternatives to touch. I don't think you can say that our devices today won't be supported late this year/early next year... the N73 from late '06 is still getting great updates- demand paging? I'm upset with the fact that my N95 hasn't seen the same feature updates as the rest of the N95 line, but I don't know if that's tragic. I think we were all just hoping that a device named the N96 would have been the next level from the N95- and it's not meant to be that device. report abuse
vote down
vote up
 written by davidm, February 18, 2008
PseudoFinn, I get your points and mostly agree with them. But sadly I think the in the long run an i Phone is a better choice (or maybe one of the new brands that are emerging). Apple is not releasing 30 different types of phones, they're releasing one, which will probably very consistently be supported until the hardware can no longer support features. I think it is a big compromise and disservice for Nokia to support so many similar product lines. I have a long list of areas where the N95 is inferior or lacking, even to the SE p800 I had 4 or 5 years ago. I doubt this would be the case if they had more focus.
Votes: +0
And I think touch is an extremely important feature. Browsing the web and using apps such as maps is quite clunky without direct input. I didn't know the n73 is still getting updates - that's great. But the lack of consistency between n95 versions, and Nokia's statement that they only provide updates for series N version X is quite offputting - these phones cost as much as a portable computer, which is fully open and flexible, and it's simply a waste to not give consumers full upgrades until the hardware won't support them. And I'm the type to upgrade every year regardless, it's just not the type of policy that holds my interest. report abuse
vote down
vote up
 written by bartmanekul, February 27, 2008
Whatever sort of phone you like is personal choice, which will vary from one person to another. Touch screen for me? No thanks. Qwerty keyboard for me? No way, I dont want the larger form factor.
Votes: +0
Hence Im extremely confused at your choice of an iphone being among the better choices for a non compromise device. You are already severly compromising on hardware, and automatically choosing a form of input many people hate. People who dont want a touch screen? Iphone is out. People who need to be able to run their phone longer by carrying spare batteries? Iphone out. Anyone wanting 3G or faster? iphone out. Thats not another iphone dig, Im well aware theres many people happy with iphones. But its a good example of how you simply cannot create a device that covers every dimension. Whatever you do, someone will always want something different. Interestingly, for every nokia model theres always people who love it. It can have awful reviews and be a bad handset, but some still love it more than other phones. So you could argue nokia are doing it wrong, but it seems to me they are doing it right in offering the product tiers they do. So as PseudoFinn said, this is why theres such a range of nokias. While I agree nokia could certainly do with a bit more focus, I think your comments fly way off the mark. report abuse
vote down
vote up
 written by Nigel Jones, June 18, 2008
I have an N95 8Gb which is superb. I probably have the chance to exchange for an N96. In most respects this is a really minor upgrade, but more importantly I am a little concerned on the battery aspect.
Votes: +0
The comments above on the change in processor and music player improvements are interesting. But how much do we know in a quantifiable manner about these improvements. I'm a "heavy" user. Not of music, but these capabilities I do use - Over the air sync (intellisync) - IM (skype, MSN) - constant data - Web browsing perhaps 1 hour day - calendar -viewing email (light) - photos (10 per day) - integrated GPS (ideally for all photos) - occasional GPS for navigation (few times a month only) So do we see - GPS power improvements - bluetooth/gsm/umts radio improvements - screen power improvements and are they better (enough!) than the N95 8Gb! I'm not expecting an answer, but sent customer care an email http://cherrybyte.blogspot.com...nokia.html If it's as good (or bad) as the N95 8Gb is now, then it's worth a shot. If it's any more than 10% worse I'll skip. report abuse
vote down
vote up
written by PseudoFinn, June 18, 2008
Cheers, Nigel. I think I can answer some of your questions and reassure you to the N96's capabilities.
Votes: +0
While it only has a 950mAh battery, we can expect much better efficiencies in power consumption. Even us power users should be able to last throughout the day without issue. Certainly there will be times of heavy power usage that will challenge that statement- but in general, even power users should be fine. According to the discussion we had with the Product Manager at the announcement event we can expect to see 14 hours of music playback- which is quoted as twice the expectancy of the N95. This is possible through greater efficiencies with FP2 and the dedicated music chip. I'm also told that while the screen is twice as bright as the N95- it is actually more efficient and will be less of a drain on the battery. As far as the GPS power consumption goes- I'm really not able to speak on that. I assume it's the same chip in use in the N96 as the N95, though they've admitted that they've "learned a lesson with the N95" with regards to the placement of the GPS receiver within the device- but no word on how this or any other improvements affect battery life. It's certainly one of the first points of interest that I will tackle when I get a unit in my hands. I'm also not able to speak on the efficiencies of the UMTS/BT radio or otherwise, but from what I'm told of Feature Pack 2- we can be well expecting that these components power consumption has been improved. The processor also does not provide 3d acceleration, I assume this was a decision to increase battery life as well. Basically, we can expect to see a LOT of improvements with the power consumption with this unit. Nothing remarkable with the battery, which I've stated is still a 950mAh unit (same as the classic N95-1), but we're looking at far more operating time with it- which is great news to both of us! I can confidently say that you can expect the N96 to out perform your N95 8GB on this end. I'd recommend you hold out until some official reviews of the N96 hit the 'net- which should be very shortly- but I think you will be quite pleased with what Nokia has done with this device, and S60's advancements with FP2- if only for the battery life improvements. Cheers- and keep your eyes peeled for those reviews! 
report abuse
vote down
vote up
Write comment
|
There's been a lot of discussion about the value of the N96 and its
place in the N9x line of Nseries devices from Nokia. Many feel that the
feature set, and more so the lack of new mobile technology that we've
been accustomed to seeing with N9x devices doesn't warrant the
numerology. After speaking with the product manager for the N96,
several things become better understood about the device and it's place
in the N9x range. First off is the fact that there's no new hardware.
Embedded data is not new, nor is an SDHC card slot, obviously. However,
such large internal memory storage in addition to the expandable memory
slot is. LED flash is certainly nothing new, and in fact has been argued as a step backwards from the xenon flash of the N82. To the
contrary, a dual LED system that allows for sustained operation with the
purposes of night time video recording is a step forward- clearly it's not the performance of a xenon flash, bu the flash
works very well. James Burland at NokiaCreative.com has 
Subscribe to this comment's feed
- N96 to have May Release Date? -17/02/2008
- Nokia N96 and N78: Hands On -12/02/2008
- Nokia N96 just got Official, still no Xenon -11/02/2008
- N96 Specs Leaked, Still has Room for Improvement -08/02/2008
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
Best Sellers
Why Nokia Users
Featured Software
But for me, Nokia has lost my interest, and I'll be looking at devices from companies that treat the comprehensive consumer experience more seriously, with a consistent supported operating system with upgrades, rather than haphazard cracked-mirror fragmented attention filtered through marketing, where they can't even get the software revisions for a single product line (n95 series) right and all their devices will always be lacking in some ways (it's not a business phone! for that you need X. it's not an entertainment phone! for that you need X. etc).
The n96 is a stop gap measure while Nokia works out their touch screen n-series (n-touch). When that happens, all the existing n serious will be forgotten; they'll still work, but there will be no more updates, and all the new software and attention will be focused on the new devices.