Nokia launches N79 and N85 N-Gage handsets
Games platform goes from strength to strength
Nokia has unveiled two new Nseries handsets, the N79 and N85, both of which include its N-Gage games platform.
They were officially announced this morning, although some eager bloggers leaked the details over the weekend.
The N85 is the one that's got us dribbling, thanks to its 2.6-inch OLED screen, five-megapixel camera, GPS, Wi-Fi and HSDPA data connectivity. It's like a supercharged version of the N81.
Here's how it looks:
N-Gage is well and truly on-board, since the N85 will have 10 N-Gage games preloaded. This is free demos, rather than full games. However, in the box will be a voucher allowing one full game to be activated.
Like the N81, there are also dedicated gaming keys above the screen (or on its right in the picture above) that light up when you play in landscape mode.
The N85 goes on sale in October, with a €450 price tag (around £360) before subsidies and taxes.
Meanwhile, the N79 (left) also has the ten preloaded N-Gage games and a five-megapixel camera, but is more of a follow-up to the N73 - a handset that's yet to get the N-Gage client, incidentally, despite Nokia's promises.
The N79 also has wi-fi and HSDPA, as well as offering different Xpress-on covers in a range of colours. It's out in October too, with a pre-tax/subsidies price point of €350 (around £280).
The announcement is good news for N-Gage gamers, especially the preloads and voucher elements, since it should ensure an injection of new gamers into the N-Gage community.
However, N73 owners may be wondering if the N79's launch spells the end of their hopes that the N-Gage client will be released for their handset. We'll keep you posted on that.
