Everyone agrees, even the staunchest anti-Symbian zealot, that the Nokia N95 was a game changer (just as they'd later admit that the Apple iPhone was a game changer in a different way a year later). When introduced it took the entire smartphone world up a gear in terms of raw specifications, introducing a dual-slide form factor, 5mp camera with mechanical shutter and built-in camera glass protection, VGA video recording, GPS, accelerometer, Wi-Fi and stereo speakers as standard features in top end phones. If your current phone has all of those then you've got the N95 to thank. If your current 2009 phone still can't match that list then it just emphasises how cutting edge the N95 was and indeed is.
Since its introduction, the N95 has received an unprecedented number of firmware updates from Nokia, fixing the inevitable bugs and keeping it as current as humanly possible. And yet, even beyond these improvements and even beyond the spec level of the N95, smartphone evolution has meant that its outclassed by the latest in its family tree, the N86. Let's chart exactly how far we've come from the initial N95 release to the current (v11) N86 8MP....
| Function | Nokia N95 with launch firmware (Spring 2007) |
Nokia N86 8MP (v11, Summer 2009) *NB. Very important. Almost all the software elements below have been added to the N95 in firmware updates (to v31 at present) and in standalone free add-ons |
| Form | Plastic bodied dual slider, main frame somewhat flimsy, screen recessed, dust prone and 'soft' | Metal and plastic bodied dual slider, with flush tempered glass front, metal frame and metal slider mechanism |
| OS | Symbian OS 9.2, S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 1 | Symbian OS 9.3, S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 2, much better codec support, power optimisations, better Settings organisation |
| Memory | 64MB RAM (18MB free after booting); microSD expansion up to 2GB (limit later raised with support for SDHC) | 128MB RAM (80MB free after booting), plus demand paging (more efficient use of RAM); (8GB flash) mass memory built-in; microSD expansion to 32GB extra |
| Internet | Web v3; S60 Messaging | Web v7, smoother, slicker and twice as fast; Podcasting; Ovi Store; Nokia Email (next-gen Nokia Messaging) |
| Maps and navigation |
GPS, Smart2Go navigation system (renamed quickly to Nokia Maps), Assisted GPS support added in v12 for faster fixes |
Assisted GPS; Ovi Maps (effectively Nokia Maps 3.0), faster, smoother operation, extra features (traffic, 3D buildings, speed camera alerts etc); digital compass |
| Music and entertainment | Music player, FM radio | Music player, FM radio, Nokia Music store; FM transmitter; Internet radio; N-Gage client and full games compatibility |
| PIM, office, files | Calendar, Contacts, Notes, Quickoffice 3.8 viewers | Calendar, Contacts, Notes, Quickoffice 6.2 viewers, Msg reader (text to speech), Dictionary, Nokia Search (Internet and local) |
| Screen and graphics | QVGA transflective, 2.6", OMAP 2420 graphics acceleration | QVGA AMOLED, 2.6", far brighter indoors, but worse outdoors, custom graphics hardware |
| Camera | A game changing, high quality, large-apertured 5 megapixel stills camera, LED flash | Bigger sensor, bigger (variable) aperture, dual LED flash, 8 megapixel resolution, better photos in all light conditions |
| Camcorder | The first mass market 'phone' to have VGA video recording, and with surprisingly good audio. Camera hardware allows pre-set focus in video mode, of around 2 metres. Built-in (licensed) video editing suite. | Same base video performance to N95, but with better low light videos (wider aperture and more of the sensor used), plus the possibility of night videos, AND real digital zoom without picture compromise, up to 4x or so. Basic video trimming and merging only. |
| Battery | 950mAh, charging via mains/2mm jack only | 1200mAh, charging via either microUSB/data cable or mains charger; OLED screen means greater battery life, too, because it's more efficient than traditional backlit screens |
| Hardware notables | Camera glass protection particularly well thought out and effective; loud stereo speakers | Kickstand around camera lets the N86 be propped up for easy video watching; keylock toggle switch; rather tinny stereo speakers |
| Communications | USB 1.1 data transfers via miniUSB | USB 2.0 high speed data transfers via microUSB |
In almost all areas above, you can see significant progress, though, admittedly, Nokia's generosity with firmware updates has meant that the original N95 'classic' can now match almost all areas of the current devices in terms of software. Even demand paging of RAM was added, in firmware at v20 firmware, in one fell swoop dramatically increasing the multitasking ability and performance of the N95. And, even today, many owners swear by the N95, preferring it (e.g. for loud speakers, 3D accelerated graphics, video editor) over current day, 2009 alternatives.
Yet the objective observer would have to conclude that the leap from N95 with launch firmware and software bundle to N86 8MP is significant, maybe even 'impressive'. As with other areas of the mobile world, two years is a long time and, clearly, Nokia haven't been standing still.
The acid question though is "Can this form factor be taken much further?". In other words, what else can be improved in terms of a non-touch, button driven form? Possibly not a lot beyond detailed improvements to individual applications - S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 2 is a pretty darned mature operating system and interface. Camera zealots will still yearn for a Xenon flash in the camera (though the N86's sensor partly makes Xenon unnecessary), music lovers will ask for better speakers, screen-tech-geeks will want a return to a transflective display of some kind that can be seen in direct sunlight. But we're not talking about huge jumps here. In truth, the N86 is, more or less, the ultimate one-handed, dual-slider, S60 phone.
So what of the future? I doubt that this form factor will die out - it's simply too popular. But the attention of the tech media is definitely on touch-based phones at present - these things do go in cycles and the N86 is released at an unpopular point in the cycle. I just refuse to believe that the N86 is any the worse a device for the timing of its launch....
Steve Litchfield, All About Symbian, 20 July 2009