The end of the beginning?

I'd just like to state that the N80 is in no way, shape or form whatsoever trying to cash in on the phenomenal success of the Samsung D500 & D600.

Is it really coming out Q1 2006?

Well its meant to be. I suspect if will late Q1 / early Q2.

Excellent preview, Rafe :)

One thing, though -

"With quad band GSM (850/900/1800/1900) and dual band WCDMA (1900/2100) radios, it will work almost anywhere in the world. The dual band WCDMA means the N80 will almost certainly be making an appearance in the USA (on Cingular) which up until recently has had few S60 devices widely available."

Are you sure it's Dual Band WCDMA? From the announcement, current nokia specifications pages at http://www.nokia.com/n80, and the FCC approval of the N80-3, it seems that instead of dualband WCDMA, there will be two versions, each with one WCDMA band.

(i.e. the North American version will have GSM (850/900/1800/1900) and WCDMA 1900 while the Europe/Asia version will have GSM (850/900/1800/1900) and WCDMA 2100)

I am currently a happy 6620 owner. I will gladly wait for the N80. Althought I am wondering if Singular is going to disable the WiFi or any of the other features of the N80. This is the only phone I am willing to renew my contract with Cingular to. I am currently on a much better but non renewable AT&T Wireless plan.

- Kiteless (U.S.A.)

Kiteless - Yes it looks like you may be right (having just done some checking). Its either one WCDMA band or the other. I recall a big deal being made out of the fact it had two bands, but evidently while it does have two bands its not at the same time (apologies for this - not the easiest thing to test). I will updte the article to reflect this. Simaraly I've been asked about Bluetooth 2.0 - this is accurate as far as I know both from people at NMC and the Symbian.com phone page. The specification don't mention a version. It does have EDR (enhanced data rate) and A2DP as there a S60 3rd Edition thing.

Very nice review and interesting device !
Do you know if the browser support gmail in full javascript mode ?
(much better than the html degraded mode usually supported on other smartphones)
Thanks !

Very nice review and interesting device !
Do you know if the browser supports gmail in full javascript mode ?
(much better than the html degraded mode found on other smartphones)
Thanks !

Can you confirm that the N80 will be taking MiniSD cards? The Nokia website's compare feature suggests that it might be MMC mobile that's all...

That does look good!, I still think they should have released the '7650i' though as it was a much nicer phone to look at, also i've yet to use a better joystick on any phone since.

If you look at the N80 spec page they confirm that it's MiniSD.
Good choice.... 18 months too late though.

UA

Since Nokia changed their minds about InfraRed and about memory cards I was wondering if they also changed their minds about removing dial-up data call support...... Rafe can you please check if the only type of connection allowed is packed-data? Thanks.
UA

Would it be possible that Nokia adds by a software update autofocus afterwards? Or does it need hardware modifications as well? Thanks! Otherwise it seems to be a good phone allthough a bit heavy.

I would say it needs hardware.... you need to move the lens to change the focus!

UA

Should be no problem from now on:
http://m.gmail.com

Are the phones in Ebay, the N80´s in this case... Are they real versions of the cell or are they demos... In case they are demos, will they fail i I purchase one?
Thanks

They are stolen prototypes or, more likely, just scams (nothing to sell, but just want to take your money).

I have to say that I have used other Nokia Proto-type devices with this new screen resolution. It really is a massive improvement. I will be waiting for this device in particular though as it has the 3MP camera. I am a bit disappointed to see that it does not have Auto focus. At first I thought that it might be down to the hardware needing more room but then the Sony E K750I has it so why does this device not have it.

I worked with the 7650 and have to say that this device really does look like the mature educated successor and want one.

Shame about the auto-focus though

Butla

I have only one gripe I can find so far with this phone. How the heck can you do any real input w/o a qwerty keyboard or stylus for handwritting recognition? Anyone have any idea? Oh yeah, I don't want to lug a foldable keyboard everywhere with me, but I would take the virtual laser keyboard (hope it will be compatible with this phone)

Can you post pictures of the camera shots taken using this phone in day and night mode ?

The N80 will probably be my next phone
however, i am very concerned about its battery life
I am currently using the 6630 and i am quite happy with it
Except for the battery life, which on light usage cannot even last a full day
With the N80 having more extensive functions, camera flash, 3G etc
I dont understand why Nokia would choose an even weaker battery - 820mAh, compared to the 970 mAh for the 6630
I do not want to end up with a phone that can only last half a day!

Hi,

Ive just purchaced a N70, after leaving my Samsung D500. Great phone, although some applications (eg. Camera/Messages) are a little slow to load up(maybe a couple of seconds longer than they should), esp when compared to other phones. Has this been improved on the N80?

Thanks

Nokia N80 phone SMS; picture messaging; SMS distribution list Supports?

Nokia N80 phone release date in india ?

If I travel to Japan & Korea a lot does that mean that I should buy the Asian version of the phone with WCDMA 2100? Thanks.

Only CDMA/CDMA2000 phones work in South Korea (no GSM or WCDMA phones, because - as far as is my experience - there are no GSM or WCDMA networks in South Korea). So, you need a local (Korean) phone. At the Seoul airport you can rent CDMA phones where you can often use your own GSM/WCDMA SIM card (even if CDMA phones in general do not use SIM cards).

All WCDMA phones (like the N80) are 2100MHz band phones and they will work in Japan at least on the Vodafone KK network (in principle they should also work on NTT DoCoMo's FOMA network, which is also WCDMA, but DoCoMo doesn't seem to support roaming like that).