What makes the Nokia N95 a smartphone?: Ask the Editors

Nokia N95

(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)

Q: I guess I'm missing something, because I don't really see the overwhelming appeal of the Nokia N95. Yes, it has all the radios that we all want, but it's SO big. Also, it has Symbian, which seems about as common as a unicorn.

With its different interface and high price, why do so many editors love it so much? I would expect the iPhone or a BlackBerry model or a Treo model to be ranked higher than the N95 as a smartphone. Wouldn't you call the N95 a feature-phone rather than a smartphone? -- George, via e-mail

A: Hi George. You bring up a number of good points, but before anything else, let me first tell you how we, at CNET, define a smartphone. To us, a smartphone is a mobile phone running a third-party operating system, which includes Windows Mobile, Palm, BlackBerry, Symbian, and now Apple. There may be varying opinions on this, and in fact, even Nokia calls its N series devices "multimedia computers" rather than smartphones. We use this distinction because with the number of advanced cell phones these days, any handset with a boatload of features could loosely be defined as a "smart" phone.

Again, you make some valid points, George. Of the mobile operating systems, Symbian is probably the least known in the United States. This is in part because for whatever reason, U.S. carriers have been pretty reluctant to pick up these smartphones so they're not readily available for purchase, and if you do, you're most likely paying an exorbitant price for an unlocked version of the phone.

So why would anyone ever buy an Nokia N95 and why do editors love it so much? For one thing, just because Symbian isn't well-known doesn't mean it's not a good operating system. I've found the OS to be intuitive, responsive, and very robust in what it offers as far as productivity and multimedia tools. As for the N95 specifically, the chassis is admittedly a bit clunky, but the dual-slider design is useful and the display is gorgeous. Also, you have to remember when the Nokia N95 first debuted in 2006, it had a heap of features all in one device--a 5-megapixel camera (still a rarity now), integrated GPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, dedicated multimedia controls--whereas its competitors only offered bits and pieces. There have been various iterations of the N95 since then and the smartphone has only become better with more features (U.S. 3G support, more memory, and so forth) and better perfomance. The N95 is certainly not for everyone, particularly with its high price tag. However, if you can afford it, you will certainly get a powerful and well-rounded smartphone.

[glarge]

For me, "smart phone" means something very specific - a phone like the Blackberries, Palms, iPhone and a number of Windows- or Symbian-based phones that minimally have email and an address book, calendar and to-do list that sync with a PC or Mac. I suspect that most of your readers . obviously including Bonnie Cha - would agree with this definition. The fact that a phone like the N95 has lots of features and is technologically sophisticated does not make it a "smart phone".

Gordon Large

[moe3754]

Sound like you are talking just to hear your head rattle and have never owned a N95 at all,I personally have owned a N95-3 NAM and have since upgraded to the N95-4 and as for smart phones the N95 does more and has more powerful processors than any of the other Garbage you spoke of and yes I have had Blakberry and others,except Palm a device that is way past it's time!!!
Do any of your so called smart phones have Dual Processors and a dedicated graphics processor??The N95 does,do any of your other so called smart phones have WiFi,GPS,5MP camera and record 30fps video on them,does any of you phones have a bar code reader,Stereo speakers built in!!!My N95 can do all of the same things that my Desk top computer can so I would say not smart phone BUT a mini computer better than a smart phone,so why don't you go back to your Motorola Razr,and take you minimal knowledge of the N95 with you!!!!
Better yet just read this and see for yourself how lacking your so called smart phones really are!!!
http://www.forum.nokia.com/devices/N95_8GB

[bugm3n0t]

Where is the keyboard? I'll stick to my iphone... thank you

[hohoho08]

On the contrary, N95 with Symbian is still a well kept secret for many U.S. tech writers as it is not so much written about in the Internet and not available in your carrier's corner store. But, it is still more known than all the cool gear sold in Japan in the Tokyo Akihabara geek heaven or what one can find in China. However, N95 is the world's by far most sold smartphone, much more so than Apple's all iPhones combined, it is supported by carriers nearly everywhere except in the U.S. For the consumer it is cheap or free when sold via carrier. In hardware it still blows off the water even the most recent of the iPhone despite being more than 2 years older design. There is probably many times the amount of 3rd party apps available to it than to iPhones as well.

It is true one should be open to change definition of smartphone as chip evolution and the resulting software features blur the definition. Take Nokia's low end, the so called S40 that sell some 1/2 billion phones a year. These run often also on pretty impressive hardware sometimes nearly the same as the "smartphones" and in software expose to 3rd party most of the tricks the 3rd party OS "smartphones" can do, such as Java, extensive networking, tons of multimedia features, including 3G graphics, multitasking in the newest sdk, advanced broser technologies, etc., with a very fast and easy UI one can operate even in darkness, and have a huge number of software apps by 3rd party, one reason why "smartphones" have their work cut to take market from them. The S40 phones seem smart enough doing in practice as much as the "smartphones" but with a small fraction of the cost for end-user or carrier (that is, when talking about modern uncrippled S40 models sold worldwide not those very few cheap end-of-life models the major U.S. carriers have blessed into the U.S. market).

[idosalama]

1. the n95 is a smartphone...it has exchange support, GPS, 3G connectivity, a web browser. the only thing its missing is a dedicated keyboard. unfortunately the keyboard DOES make that big a difference when discussing smartphones. its a smartphone with a propensity for media.
2. symbian is the #1 OS in the world (64% of wordlwide market share in 2007. it might surprise you to learn that the US does not encompass the entire world, but nevertheless symbian is much more popular outside the US.
but to make the N95 a better smartphone...buy an e71.

[francute]

although Nokia N95 is a all in one phone, however, theres one thing lacking unlike any other smartphone. its the speed. it has very low processing speed. it always crash, hangs and deadlock. I think the best smartphone ever from Nokia is the Nokia E90. BTW, E-series from Nokia runs faster than N-series

[anhtney]

Remember nokia is mainly a European company, and europeans dont usually have CDMA they have GSM, thats why only the best nokia phones are released in the U.S

[spartan093]

The N95 has wi-fi, the ability to add applications, can read PDF and MS Office files, etc. The only thing that might make it not a smartphone is its lack of a QWERTY keyboard.

I own an N95 and its features are much more suited to me than those of other phones. I love the N95's 5MP camera with flash and autofocus; sure it's not the BEST camera out there but it's more than a suitable replacement for your basic point and shoot. It's easy to go out with friends and not have to worry about bringing a camera along anymore. Heck even the video recording works better than most other cell phones. Stereo bluetooth, which the iPhone does not offer, is a must for me since I use a pair of bluetooth headphones and also stream music in my car via BT (it's nice to use it as a GPS and music player without having to bother with wires). I don't use MMS very often but it's a nice feature to have. Since I carry my phone with me everywhere I go, it also serves as my pedometer. I have Sportstracker with GPS to track my workouts on an online map (I'm guessing the iPhone probably has an equivalent app). Yes the iPhone has a nice touchscreen with a keyboard but since I tend to walk-text, I prefer using the number pad since I don't have to look at the screen (and run into telephone poles and the like). I use it for VOIP for when I have to make international calls. I remote desktop into my home computer and I also have it connected to my home media server so I can stream videos straight from home onto my phone. Heck when I go on a trip somewhere I like putting quality videos on my phone and then later just hooking it up to the TV at the hotel and streaming it on the TV (or maybe play some games while I'm at it). Remote desktop into my work computer, use it for P2P, N-Gage 2.0... Let's just say I'd die if I lost my cell phone.

I think the iPhone is great for everyone from the tech-dummy to the semi-tech-geek. The iPhone doesn't fit me though because in making everything easy to use, it takes away some of the depth from its features. I've recommended the iPhone to many of my friends since it brings a lot of great features to the average user. That said, the N95 offers much more in features that I use (and that many other people may not use because they're not such a slave to technology) and despite some of its flaws, it executes everything at least moderately well.

[Kev50027]

The N95 is THE definition of a smart phone. It can run thousands of third party apps, the OS is easily customized, it has an excellent web browser and every feature under the sun, and it is well designed and easy to use. The iPhone I don't consider a smart phone, because it runs a proprietary OS, and is all but closed to third party software. Sure, you can install software that's been approved, but on my N95 there are literally hundreds of thousands of programs out there available for free or pay that dont need to be "approved" by anyone.

[Whatleydude]

This whole smartphone definition thing always intrigues me...

As I've always understood it - folk in the US perceive a smartphone to be 'any handset with full qwerty support'

Whereas in the UK a smartphone is perceived to be 'any handset that can run more than one app at a time'.

Thoughts?

[revtarded]

i would agree with the european definition of a smartphone. the smartphoen concept was built on the premise of an OS that can multitask. otherwise, there would be a lot of phones like the LG Rumor or the Samsung F700 that would be reclassed as a smartphone when they obviously aren't.

In addition, CNET's definition is WAY off the mark. If it were so, then 2 of the companies she mentioned (Blackberry and Apple) wouldnt be smartphones since they don't run 3rd party operating systems.