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Mobile Phone

Nokia N80 Shows up on NokiaUSA

Oh, snap. The Nokia N80 has a home on the NokiaUSA website!

If we are to believe the digits given for network capabilities, this makes it very unlikely for a launch on Cingular. I find it unlikely that Nokia didn’t make a mistake — it is foolish to launch a 3G handset on T-Mobile which lacks a UMTS network.

The Nokia N80 is a 3-mega-pixel havin’ mp3-playin’, wifi-rockin’, email-fetchin’, S60 smartphone that is the absolute peak of Nokia multimedia innovation. Nokia has also announced a Bluetooth audio gateway that mates to the N80 allowing you to kick your audio from your handset to your home stereo system without cables. While Apple makes bigger and thinner iPods, Nokia is doing an end run.

Pricing is unavailable but I still expect the unlocked and unbranded flavor to fetch USD$900 upon release. if a US operator like Cingular or (gasp) T-Mobile starts selling it it is likely that they’ll charge around USD$400 for the device, as well as using the new strong-arm thug-life tactics to prevent customers from unlocking the device or de-branding it with proper firmware. It is also probable that US operators will cripple this device and there will be little you can do about it. Observe the footnote:

“To use the phone you must have service from a service provider. Many features and mobile services require network support. Some networks have limitations that affect how you can use phone features. Your service provider also may have requested that certain features not be activated in a phone. If so, they may not appear in the phone’s menu. Contact your service provider about feature support and availability.”

So even if this handset tucks you in at night and feeds your cat, there is a chance that your operator will block those features from use. It will be interesting to see how badly they screw this up. But you’re all savvy consumers who demand the best, so you’ll be paying the big bucks to get one that works as Nokia intended, right?

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Oh, snap. The Nokia N80 has a home on the NokiaUSA website!

If we are to believe the digits given for network capabilities, this makes it very unlikely for a launch on Cingular. I find it unlikely that Nokia didn’t make a mistake — it is foolish to launch a 3G handset on T-Mobile which lacks a UMTS network.

The Nokia N80 is a 3-mega-pixel havin’ mp3-playin’, wifi-rockin’, email-fetchin’, S60 smartphone that is the absolute peak of Nokia multimedia innovation. Nokia has also announced a Bluetooth audio gateway that mates to the N80 allowing you to kick your audio from your handset to your home stereo system without cables. While Apple makes bigger and thinner iPods, Nokia is doing an end run.

Pricing is unavailable but I still expect the unlocked and unbranded flavor to fetch USD$900 upon release. if a US operator like Cingular or (gasp) T-Mobile starts selling it it is likely that they’ll charge around USD$400 for the device, as well as using the new strong-arm thug-life tactics to prevent customers from unlocking the device or de-branding it with proper firmware. It is also probable that US operators will cripple this device and there will be little you can do about it. Observe the footnote:

“To use the phone you must have service from a service provider. Many features and mobile services require network support. Some networks have limitations that affect how you can use phone features. Your service provider also may have requested that certain features not be activated in a phone. If so, they may not appear in the phone’s menu. Contact your service provider about feature support and availability.”

So even if this handset tucks you in at night and feeds your cat, there is a chance that your operator will block those features from use. It will be interesting to see how badly they screw this up. But you’re all savvy consumers who demand the best, so you’ll be paying the big bucks to get one that works as Nokia intended, right?

By Jason O'Grady

Founded the PowerPage in 1995.