Nokia Brings N78 Media Phone to U.S.
June 24, 2008 | by Geoff Duncan
Nokia is bringing its N78 multimedia phone to the United States...and, once again, the company has chosen to do so without a carrier partner.
Finland's Nokia is sticking with its recent tactic of bringing its Nseries devices to the United States without benefit of a partnership with a U.S. mobile phone operator. The latest mutimedia hanset to make the jump is the N78, sporting a 3.2 megapixel camera, integrated GPS, and (of course) tie-ins to Nokia Maps (three months free!) and Nokia's Ovi Internet-based social and sharing services.
"Offering the robust feature set expected from an Nseries device, the integration of these features with Nokia's new suite of Ovi services is what makes the Nokia N78 a perfect companion for a connected and mobile lifestyle," said Nokia's Go-to-Market VP William Plummer, in a statement.
The N78 features high-speed HSDPA connectivity that can be used on 850/1900 MHz networks, along with an integrated FM transmitter that lets user pump music to (say) an in-vehicle audio system. The N78 can use its integrated GPS to geo-tag photos, which can (of course) then be uploaded directly to Ovi or other selected image sharing services. The N78 offers a 2.4-inch display, up to 70 MB of user memory (expandable storage via microSD cards), and features a Carl Zeiss Tessar lens. The N78 also supports widgets and applications available through the unit's download client or Nokia's MOSH platform.
The N78 is available now in Nokia's Chicago and New York stores (as well as online retailers and selected brick-and-mortar sellers) for a suggested price of $560. Of course, customers will still need to make some sort of service arrangement with a compatible mobile provider—or be content with an awfully shiny paperweight.
Post Your Comment...Comments
Zaq on Jun 24th, 2008 at 1:24 PM:
retarded.
I've been eying up this phone for months now, as I've been eagerly anticipating a good music phone with a real headphone jack, and now they release it without a carrier for $560?! I'd be willing to pay $200 with a contract, like you would with an iPhone, or even pay as much as say, $350 without a contract, but this is just ridiculous.
They'll be lucky to move 10,000 units
Jason Hostler on Jun 24th, 2008 at 1:56 PM:
I really don't like the buttons on this. The price is ridiculous as well. Why get this when you can get an iPhone for cheaper?
Consultant on Jun 24th, 2008 at 3:16 PM:
The user manual submitted to the FCC back in February referenced "MediaNet" in the text - which is AT&T's service - so that implies they plan to partner with AT&T At any rate, with the GSM SIM card technology - it will work on the AT&T system like any other GSM phone.
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James on Jun 24th, 2008 at 10:03 AM:
It just doesn't look that fancy to me. 70MB of storage is terrible. The 3.2MP camera is sweet, but will fill up that internal memory pretty fast. $560 is ridiculous.