In 2004, Nokia introduced the first three NSeries phones: the N70, the N71 and the N93. History now tells us that it was the N70 that turned into a bestseller and brought the NSeries spirit to the masses. However, after the introduction of the N90, the mobile landscape wasn`t the same.
The N90 founded the claim of the NSeries to be the top-line not only of Nokia, but the whole mobile industry (at least in the western world). The NSeries consisted of phones that pushed the boundaries further and further and functioned as technology-enablers for features like high-quality cameras, WLAN or GPS, all functions that are somewhat standard today even in midrange phones. As I wrote in my post “The NSeries dilemma”, the situation, at least as far as the NSeries line is concerned, is a little different today.
So I was even more excited when I recently had the chance to get a brand new N90 for a reasonable price and use it as my everyday-phone for some time. I won`t dive too deep into the technical aspects of the N90. There are some very good reviews out there that explain the phone in all its shining details. I was still curious and excited to find out if a five year old phone is still capable to handle my everyday tasks. To be honest, I expected nothing less, but the N90 passed all tests. Not only did all functions work as advertised. Fring, Nimbuzz, Opera Mini, Email, Goggle Mail, everything I slammed on the N90 worked flawlessly and was a real joy to use. Most apps greatly benefited from the high-resolution screen. The superb large keypad made writing Emails and text-messages a breeze. Stand-by time was not stellar but OK. Reception and call-quality were outstanding. One thing especially worth mentioning is the ultra-low SAR-value of the N90, making it the most emission friendly phone from Nokia. I could also write at lengths about the camera of the N90, the first one to incorporate a lens by Carl Zeiss. In contrast to the disappointing camera of the Nokia 5800, the N90 carried the Carl Zeiss logo with proud and produced pics that are still better than most 2 or 3 Megapixel cams today.
When released, the N90 was often compared to the Sony Ericsson K750. This can be justified only when the cameras in both phones are compared. Beyond that, both phones have absolutely nothing in common. Although I also consider the K750 to be a landmark, it will always only be remembered because of its camera. This is totally justified. The camera of the K750 is still better than most of todays 2 megapixel cameras. But that´s it. The K750 is a landmark in the history of mobile phones because it brought high quality imaging to the masses. The N90 was far, far more. Not only was it a rare species. I have yet to come across a N90 in the wild. No matter how hard I looked everywhere, I haven`t seen any N90 outside a shop. The said K750 was so popular at a time that almost everyone was using one. It was really that widespread, at least in Germany. The N90 was too big, too heavy and finally very very expensive, even after several months of its release. It never suffered the decline into the ordinary as the K750 did. Instead, it was and always will remain some kind of Avantgarde. It was definitely the phone with the best and most complete feature list at its time. It had an outstanding camera, a display with the highest resolution even up until today, UMTS, high-quality video recording and a unique feature with its swiveling camera compartment. And above all this, all these feature worked as advertised. The N90 didn`t compromise on a single aspect. In addition to its great feature list, it had also what I sadly miss in the recently released NSeries phones. It had that magic touch. This is a very subjective conclusion, but I think many will agree. Opening the phone and putting it into the camcorder-mode of holding it, the N90 almost screams “go out and be creative, capture photos, capture videos”. For me, this is the quintessence of the NSeries.
Some of this spirit was lost in that last five years. Nokia received some hard beating, especially in the last year. Some of it was justified, most of it was not. At the end of the year 2009, whenever you talk about mobile phones, the iPhone gets mentioned. For many, the iPhone has picked up that magical spirit that was once exclusive to the NSeries. Nokia is more and more shifting its focus to services. I think this is absolutely justified and needed. But they shouldn`t forget what made the NSeries once great and what is, in my opinion, a great part of the success of the iPhone: Emotions. Interesting times, nevertheless.
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