Video Review of Nokia 5800 XpressMusic Touch Screen Symbian Phone
OCWorkbench team 3rd Oct 2008

Have you been thinking about getting a touch phone but it is way too expensive or you not like the underlying operating system. Well, Nokia brings touch screen phones to another level powered by the familiar Symbian Operating system.

We attended the launch in Singapore at Odeon Towers this morning and was impressed by the touch screen sensitivity and ease of use. Not only that, this little device is a powerhouse when it comes to music. The Nokia 5800 XpressMusic will be among the first devices to support Comes With Music, Nokia's groundbreaking service which offers one year of unlimited access to the entire Nokia Music Store catalogue.

When it comes to music phones, people all over the world want a device that is a great music experience - with more memory, loud and powerful speakers, easy synchronization - and must still work well as a mobile phone with direct access to important contacts and content. The Nokia 5800 XpressMusic delivers on all counts and allows consumers to access and share content.


Media Bar, Contacts Bar - putting people first

Taking advantage of touch screen technology, the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic introduces the 'Media Bar', a handy drop down menu that provides direct access to music and entertainment, including favourite tracks, videos and photos. The Media Bar also offers a direct link to the web and to online sharing. Because the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic supports Flash content, individuals can surf the entire web, not just pieces of it. In addition, the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic offers all the music essentials, including a graphic equalizer, 8GB memory for up to 6000 tracks and support for all main digital music formats, and a 3.5mm jack. Built-in surround sound stereo speakers offer the industry's most powerful sound.

Ensuring a seamless music experience, Nokia 5800 XpressMusic also provides easy access to browse and purchase tracks from the Nokia Music Store, where applicable, while the newly updated Nokia Music PC software allows for easy drag-and-drop transfer of songs and management of any music collection.

The innovative 'Contacts Bar' lets consumers highlight four favorite contacts on their home-screen and, through a single touch, track a digital history of recent text messages, emails, phone logs, photos and blog updates.


"As Nokia's first mass-market device with a touch screen, the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic turns a 'user interface' into a 'human interface' by truly putting people first. For example, we've introduced the Nokia Contacts Bar, which is like a digital RSS feed on your life," said Harlow. "By adding the benefits of touch screen technology to S60, the world's leading smartphone interface, Nokia is taking the familiar and giving it a human touch. We have used touch technology where it really adds value such as the Contacts Bar, Media Bar and clever shortcuts from the homescreen to menu items such as calendar, profiles and clock. "

For the best screen resolution available on a mobile phone, the 3.2" widescreen display brings photos, video clips and web content to life in vibrant color and true clarity. With a 16 by 9 aspect ratio and 30 frames-per-second playback and recording, the device is ideal for VGA quality video recording and playback.

The Nokia 5800 XpressMusic also features a 3.2 megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss lens and, with a single touch, images or videos can be shared via a favorite online community, such as Share on Ovi, Flickr, or Facebook. Music playlist song titles can also be shared through Bluetooth, MMS or online sharing.
 

Music for the masses
The Nokia 5800 XpressMusic supports 60 languages worldwide, which covers nearly 90 percent of the world's population. As people around the world use their phones in different ways, the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic offers a variety of input methods including a virtual alphanumeric keypad, a virtual computer-style QWERTY keyboard, a pen stylus -- and for true music enthusiasts, a plectrum -- are all available.

The Nokia 5800 XpressMusic will be available worldwide beginning in the fourth quarter of 2008 for an estimated retail price of 279 EUR before taxes and subsidies. The Nokia 5800 XpressMusic featuring Comes With Music will be available early next year. Pricing details to follow. 279 Euros is approximately USD 390, SGD 560, HKD 3020.

Specifications

Dimensions : 111 x 51.7 x 15.5mm
Weight : 109g

Screen : 3.2" widescreen touch display with responsive tactile feedback, 640x360 pixel nHD resolution, up to 16mil colours, 16:9 aspect ratio, automatic orientation sensor (acceleraometer) for display rotation

Input Methods : Stylus, plectrum, and finger touch support for text input and user interface control, Alphanumeric keypad, full mini QWERTY keyboard and handwriting recognition.

Media Bar
Dedicated Media Bar touch key for access to music, images & video, share online, Video Centre and web

Music Player
Selection by artist, composer, album and genre, playlists, album graphics display and audio visualisations, 8 band graphic equaliser, Bass booster, stereo widening, and loudness

Sound
Integrated stereo speakers with surround sound and dedicated audio chip for crystal clear hifi sound quailty

Camera
3.2 megapixel (2048x1536 pixels), Carl Zeiss pticls, 3x digital zoom, auto focus, Dual LED flash, image format JPEG

Video
Video recording at 640x480 at 30fps, up to 4x digital zoom, clip length of up to 90 minutes. Front camera for video calls.

Memory
8GB microSD memory card included expandanable up to 16GB. 81MB internal memory

Connectivity
3.5mm Nokia AV connector, Bluetooth v2.0, micro USB connector, USB 2.0 high speed, TV out with Nokia Video out cable included

High SPeed access
HSDPA Cat 6 max speed 3.6mbps (DL), WLAN IEEE 802.11b/g (3G version only).

Contacts Bar
Home screen video of four favourite friends with avatars, communications histories (SMS,IM,email,web feeds) and shared media

A-GPS
Assited GPS with Nokia Maps application

Power
BL-5J 1320 mAH Lion battery
Talk time (max) GSM 8.8hrs / WCDMA 5h
Standby Time (max) GSM 402.6 / WCMDA 400h
Music Playback time (max) Up to 35h