Manufacturer Nokia | Predecessor Nokia N80
Nokia N93 | |
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Compatible networks HSDPA (3.5G), Quad band GSM / GPRS / EDGE GSM 850, GSM 900, GSM 1800, GSM 1900 Availability by country March 2007 (N95)
September 2007 (N95 8GB) Successor Nokia N96
Nokia N86 8MP Related | ||
The Nokia N95 (N95-1, internally known as RM-159) is a smartphone produced by Nokia as part of their Nseries line of portable devices and released in March 2007. The N95 runs on S60 3rd Edition, on Symbian OS v9.2. The phone has a two-way sliding mechanism, which can be used to access either media playback buttons or a numeric keypad. It was first released in silver and later on in black, with limited edition quantities in gold and purple. The launch price of the N95 was around 550 € (about US$730, GB£370).
Contents
- History
- Integrated GPS ability
- Multimedia features
- Internet
- Accelerometer
- N Gage
- N95 8GB N95 2
- Improvements
- Negative changes
- N95 NAM N95 3
- N95 8GB NAM N95 4
- N95 CHINA N95 5
- N95 8GB CHINA N95 6
- Versions comparison
- Ad slogans
- References
Its capabilities include: a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver with maps and optional turn-by-turn navigation; a 5 megapixel digital camera with Carl Zeiss optics, flash, video recording and video conferencing; wireless connectivity via HSDPA, IrDA, 802.11x and Bluetooth; a portable media player with the ability to download podcasts over the air; an FM Radio tuner; Composite Video output via included cable; multi-tasking to allow several applications to run simultaneously; a web browser with support for HTML, JavaScript and Adobe Flash; messaging via SMS, MMS and e-mail; Office suite and organizer functions; and the ability to install and run third party Java ME or Symbian mobile applications. It also supports GPRS (2.5G), EDGE (2.75G), UMTS (3G), and HSDPA (3.5G), one of the first smartphones to support 3.5G.
Since the introduction of the original N95-1, several updated versions have been released, most notably the N95 8GB with 8 gigabytes of internal storage, a larger display and improved battery. The N95 and its upgraded variant N95 8GB are widely considered as breakthrough technologies of its time and one of the greatest products to hit the market. It was well noted for its camera, music player, 3D graphics mobile gaming, the innovative dual-slider, its GPS and 3.5G capabilities as well as its light-weight for such device. On 6 November 2007, AllAboutSymbian declared the N95 8GB as the "best smartphone ever". On 24 January 2013, PC Magazine described the Nokia N95 as "One of the best smartphones in history on any platform".
History
The phone was unveiled on 26 September 2006 at the Nokia Open Studio 2006 event in New York City. Nokia called the N95 as the multimedia computer. It was released at the end of March 2007.
On 8 March 2007 Nokia was shipping N95 in key European, Asian and Middle Eastern markets. It was on sale in many countries on the week of 11 March.
On 7 April 2007, the N95 went on sale in the United States through Nokia's Flagship stores in New York and Chicago and through Nokia's nseries.com website. No US carriers were expected to offer this phone. The U.S. version started retailing without carrier branding or discounts in Nokia's flagship stores in New York and Chicago on 26 September 2007.
On 29 August 2007, two updated versions of the N95 were announced at a press event in London; first, the N95-2 (N95 8 GB), an updated version for the European/Asian markets with 8 gigabytes of internal storage and larger screen; secondly, the N95-3 (N95 NAM), replacing the original 2100 MHz W-CDMA air interface with support for the 850 MHz and 1900 MHz frequencies used for the 3G networks of most GSM-compatible mobile carriers in the Americas, including AT&T Mobility.
Finally, later on 7 January 2008, Nokia introduced the N95-4, which is the US 8 GB version of the N95-3. The phone got its FCC approval on 30 January and launched 18 March. The first carrier to utilise this approval was Rogers Wireless in May 2009.
The N95's main competitors during its lifetime were the LG Prada, Apple's iPhone and the Sony Ericsson W950i. The N95 managed to outsell its rivals. Despite Apple's much-hyped iPhone with its multi-touch technology, thin design and advanced web capabilities, the N95 had several key features against the iPhone, such as its camera with flash, video camera, Bluetooth file sharing, 3G and 3.5G connectivity, GPS, third-party applications and several other features.
Even after the release of later Nseries phones, the N95's retail price was still around US$400 (about 300 €) as of early 2010 despite its three-year old age.
Integrated GPS ability
The N95 contains an integrated GPS receiver which is located below the 0 key on the keypad. The phone ships with Nokia Maps navigation software. This phone is not yet on the list of smartphones that Nokia is giving a free lifetime of voice navigation for.
Multimedia features
Out of the box, the N95 supports audio in MP3, WMA, RealAudio, SP-MIDI, AAC+, eAAC+, MIDI, AMR, and M4A formats. Its two-way slide, when opened towards the keypad, allows access to its media playback buttons. A standard 3.5 mm jack is located on the left side of the phone and allows the user to connect any standard headphones to the unit. With the AD-43 headset adapter the N95 introduced support for multiple remote control buttons on the headset. Users can also use Bluetooth for audio output using A2DP, or use the built-in stereo speakers. The N95 is also capable of playing video in 3GP, MPEG4, RealVideo, and, in newer firmware, Flash Video formats. All of the phone's video output can also be played through the TV-out feature. TV-out is a feature offered by the phones OMAP processor, that allows users to connect the smartphone, using the supplied cable, to a TV or any other composite video input. Its main purpose is to allow users to show photos and videos on a large screen. The N95's built in UPnP capabilities also allow the user to share the phones' media over a WLAN network. This provides easy access to the photos, music, and videos stored on the phone, from other UPnP capable devices on the network, enabling them to be watched or downloaded over the air.
Internet
The N95 has built-in Wi-Fi, with which it can access the Internet (through a 802.11b/g wireless network). The N95 can also connect to the Internet through a carrier packet data network such as UMTS, HSDPA, or EDGE. The webkit-based browser displays full web pages as opposed to simplified pages as on most other phones. Web pages may be viewed in portrait or landscape mode and automatic zooming is supported. The N95 also has built-in Bluetooth and works with wireless earpieces that use Bluetooth 2.0 technology and for file transfer.
It should be noted that the original N95 does not support US based versions of UMTS/HSDPA; UMTS features in these versions of the phone are disabled by default. Furthermore, the later N95 US versions support only AT&T's 850/1900 MHz UMTS/HSDPA bands, neither 1700 MHz of T-Mobile USA nor 2100 MHz bands are supported internationally.
The phone can also act as a WAN access point allowing a tethered PC access to a carrier's packet data network. VoIP software and functionality is also included with the phone (though some carriers have opted to remove this feature).
Accelerometer
The N95 includes a built-in accelerometer. This was originally only used for video stabilization and photo orientation (to keep landscape or portrait shots oriented as taken).
Nokia Research Center has allowed an application interface directly to the accelerometer, allowing software to use the data from it. Nokia has released a step counter application to demonstrate this. Another Nokia-created application taking advantage of the accelerometer is Nokia Sports Tracker.
Third-party programs have been created, including software that will automatically change the screen orientation when the phone is tilted, a program that simulates the sounds of a Star Wars lightsaber when the phone is waved through the air, a program allowing the user to mute the phone by turning it face-down, etc.
N-Gage
The N95 is compatible with the N-Gage mobile gaming service.
N95 8GB (N95-2)
A revision of the N95, called N95 8 GB (N95-2, internally known as RM-320), was announced on 21 August 2007, and put on market in October 2007. It was released in a black color, instead of silver like the N95-1.
The changes compared to the regular version are:
Improvements
Negative changes
N95 NAM (N95-3)
The Nokia N95-3 is a revision of the N95, internally designated as RM-160, designed specifically for the North American market. It is also available in Australian and South American market.
The following was changed from the original version:
N95 8GB NAM (N95-4)
The main differences to the N95-2 are:
Both N95-3 and N95-4 have also some additional changes, such as the removal of the sliding lens cover for the camera, improved battery life, and doubling of RAM from 64 to 128 MB.
N95 CHINA (N95-5)
Featuring the internal name RM-245, the N95-5 is targeted at the Chinese market. The main difference from the regular N95 is the lack of any 3G connectivity support, which has not been yet adopted in China at the time of release, and the absence of WLAN connectivity, due to Chinese regulations.
N95 8GB CHINA (N95-6)
The N95-6, internally coded RM-321 is a Chinese market-targeted version of the N95-2, lacking 3G and WLAN support just like the N95-5.
Versions comparison
This table lists only the specifications that differ between versions of the N95 models.