Nokia N91 music phone now available in the U.S.
Nokia started releasing their NSeries devices last fall and they are aimed at the high end multimedia market with most having high quality cameras, the N90 has Carl Zeiss optics. The latest device to hit the U.S. this week is the Nokia N91. What sets this device apart from other camera phones is its 4GB hard drive for massive file, music, and video storage. I would like to have seen a 4GB flash module like the iPod Nano for durability reasons, but the N91 packs a whole lot more in it than a Nano.
If you commute long distances or travel a lot it may be very convenient to have your music and phone capabilities in a single device. The Nokia N91 also runs Symbian 9.1 with S60 3rd Edition so you get all the functionality of a smartphone too. Specifications include integrated WLAN 802.11b/g and Bluetooth 1.2 radios, 2 megapixel digital camera, standard 3.5mm headphone jack (a nice refreshing change from the Nokia connector), Visual Radio, 176 x 208 pixel display, additional 30MB of storage for contacts, calendar notes, etc. in the device, and 850 mAh battery. The device has a cool slide down bottom half that has media control buttons on the top with a phone keypad under the slider. It has a metal casing and is a hefty mobile phone at 5.7 ounces.
My biggest concern with a device like this and others with large capacity drives that will be coming later this year is the battery life. The phone functionality is the primary need and use for a device like this, but if you use it to listen to lots of music or watch videos then the power may not be there when you need to make or receive an important call. Battery technology is one area of mobile devices that needs to catch up with the rest of the improvements in features, size, and integration.
ZDNet users currently have the Nokia N91 rated at 9 out of 10. All About Symbian has a detailed review of the N91 and I hope to get one to review in my hands shortly as well. The device sells for US$599.99 from Nokia and is SIM unlocked so it can be used with Cingular or T-Mobile in the U.S. and in other countries with its GSM 900/1800/1900 MHz frequency radio.