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n86 posts

Nokia N86 firmware v20 brings exciting new features, improvements

by Chris Ziegler posted Oct 1st 2009 @ 11:44AM

Something like a year and a half ago, every camera manufacturer in the world suddenly decided that face detection was the Next Big Thing -- so naturally, cameraphones were destined to follow down that path. Given that the N86 8MP currently resides as Nokia's undisputed photographic champion, it makes sense that the company would be pushing its awesomest (is that even a word?) camera features that way -- and indeed, the just-released firmware version 20 adds face detection, red eye reduction, improved video quality, and a host of bug fixes and tweaks. Seems like a must-have update, so fire up that NSU client and go to town, won't you?

[Via All About Symbian]

Nokia N86 8MP finally available stateside

by Chris Ziegler posted Sep 18th 2009 @ 1:39AM

It's still showing as a preorder on Nokia USA's own site, but Amazon and the brick-and-mortar flagship stores in Chicago and New York are finally stocking the N86 8MP -- a little bit of a stretch for the "coming weeks" claim made at the North American version's launch announcement back in July. The beefy dual slider features a 2.6-inch QVGA OLED display, US 3G up to 3.6Mbps on the downlink, and WiFi -- but clearly the big draw is its 8 megapixel cam with Carl Zeiss optics around back accompanied by a dual LED flash. We would've liked this last month, but the good news is that it's launching for less than the $558 originally mentioned: Amazon's got it written up at $469, while the flagship stores are apparently hawking 'em for $30 more.

[Via The Nokia Blog]

Nokia N86 8MP coming to the US for $558

by Chris Ziegler posted Jul 17th 2009 @ 12:42PM

Nokia's trying to make a big deal today about the fact that the N86 8MP will be coming to Nokia's US flagship stores in New York and Chicago along with nokiausa.com in the "coming weeks," but in light of the company's recent North American strategy shift, the US availability of the N85, and the handling of the N97 launch, we'd be far more surprised if it wasn't coming. As for pricing, you're going to be looking at $558 out the door -- an oddball price, to be sure, but considering that you're getting arguably the best S60 3.2 device ever conceived, it seems within the realm of reason (and you'll be able to get it through third-party retailers for considerably less, we'd wager). Who's in?

Nokia N86 8MP reviewed, "arguably the best device that money can buy"

by Chris Ziegler posted Jun 24th 2009 @ 8:18PM

For anyone firmly planted in the touch world, the N86 8MP may feel like a bit of a step backwards -- but as non-touch Nokia smartphones go, the N86 8MP represents a new high end, outdoing the N85 and possibly beating the final nail into the coffin of the aging N95 series. The dual slider's just been released over in the UK, and All About Symbian has done its typically fantastic job of breaking the phone down to the nitty gritty. Anyone used to the N95's well-documented creakiness will be pleasantly surprised, as AAS reports that the N86 8MP is one of the most solid phones Nokia has made to date (they've been getting better for a while now, we'd say), though the added chunkiness over the N85 might be a big drawback for some -- especially considering that it's essentially the same phone as the older model other than the better camera and the active kickstand. In the final analysis, the camera output looks very good (though perhaps not quite as good as the variable aperture and Carl Zeiss optics had us hoping) and AAS comes away with the conclusion that it could be the "best device money can buy" -- assuming, of course, that you're cool with S60 3.2 and touch isn't your bag.

Nokia N86 8MP and N97 launching in UK today

by Chris Ziegler posted Jun 19th 2009 @ 11:21AM

Most of us have our sights squarely fixed on the iPhone 3G S launch today, but in the UK, there are a couple of other heavyweights that are finally hitting retail: the N86 8MP and the N97. All About Symbian is covering the launch live, though it looks like there isn't much chaos and bedlam outside the Regent Street store -- maybe it has something to do with that other flagship store reflected in the window?

Nokia's N86 8MP now shipping worldwide

by Darren Murph posted Jun 10th 2009 @ 9:02AM

Just under two months. That's how long it took Nokia's N86 8MP to go from FCC to store shelves here in America, as the cats in Espoo have just announced to the world that the aforementioned cellphone is now shipping globally. In case you've forgotten, this 8 megapixel slider touts variable aperture, a mechanical shutter and automatic motion blur reduction, not to mention 8GB of internal memory and a microSD card slot. There's no official mention of price, and as of right now, the phone's not even listed on Nokia's American e-store; still, based on early estimates, we'd say you best break out the bank just in case.

Nokia's N86 8MP cruises through the FCC's database

by Darren Murph posted May 21st 2009 @ 6:39AM

When Nokia unveiled its N86 back in February, we Yanks were given no hope whatsoever that a US release was in the cards. We're doing our best to stifle our excitement, but it sure looks like a stateside launch is a lot closer now that said handset has made its way through the dark and murky halls of the FCC. Seen here in a lovely, washed-out shade of black, the 8 megapixel, OLED-equipped dual-slider seems no different than the one we toyed with in Barcelona, save for the whole US-friendly aspect, of course. C'mon Nokia, come clean with the price and ship date, won'tcha?

[Thanks, eleminop]

Keepin' it real fake, part CCXII: Nokia's N86 cloned ahead of release

by Darren Murph posted May 20th 2009 @ 11:42AM

It's a sad state of things in the smartphone arena, folks. Nokia can't even get its forthcoming N86 out of the door in official fashion before the cloning labs in China push out a suitable impostor. Of course, it's not as if this hasn't happened to Nokia before, but with such an anti-knockoff mentality, you think it'd take a little action to make the nightmare stop. Or maybe it secretly adores the attention -- yeah, that has to be it.

[Thanks, Jason]

Nokia N86 8MP features amazing active kickstand

by Nilay Patel posted May 1st 2009 @ 9:52PM

So here we were, thinking that the Nokia N86 8MP was just a featurebumped N85, and what happens? These screenshots showing off a series of custom settings for the kickstand in the back leak out and blow our minds. See, the N95 just has a dumb plastic stand back there, but the N86 8MP can actually launch an app when you flip it out, making it an instant video player, picture frame, or speaker system. That's innovation, friends. Now let's party.

Expansys puts Nokia N86 up for pre-order, gives it a release date

by Laura June posted Feb 20th 2009 @ 8:56PM

If our trusty old, leaky friends at Expansys are to be believed, European markets can expect to see Nokia's N86 handset on or about July 22, 2009. This would seem to be in line with the Q2 2009 estimate we'd previously heard, though the Expansys price -- €659.99 (about $853) -- is a lot higher than the €375 quote we've heard. Either way, the dual-slider boasts an 8MP camera with a Carl Zeiss Tessar lens, AutoFocus, a mechanical shutter and a dual-LED flash, and is sure to be an eye-popper for cameraphone buffs when it does appear. Expansys has the N86 up on site and available for pre-order right now, if you simply cannot wait until this summer.

[Thanks, Stephen]

Nokia N86 hands-on with video!

by Paul Miller posted Feb 17th 2009 @ 4:13AM

We just messed around with Nokia's new N86, and while the form factor and feel of the device seem a little last-gen, there's no denying the camera's quality. Some of the soft button the face of the phone are a little difficult for our large fingers to press, but the d-pad is pure quality, as is the generic-looking numeric keypad -- T9ers rejoice. In traditional N-series fashion, the slide mechanism is practically perfect, with a meaty, satisfying and easy motion to it, and the general feel of the device, including the seamless glossy front, screams quality. The camera we played with seemed a little glitchy in operation -- it's still pre-production -- but the images were excellent. The LED flash won't be able to handle a large dimly lit room, but can do close-quarters indoors shots just fine, and should match up well with other high resolution shooters in the outdoor arena. The OLED screen, but it might not have been set at full brightness -- it's crisp, but not necessarily vibrant. Overall it's a "nice" handset, but somehow 8 megapixels alone doesn't seem to justify another go at this fairly dated and chubby N-series form factor -- but maybe that's just us.

Update: We bumped up the brightness and stacked the phone up against the iPhone 3G and found the N86's screen to be considerably brighter -- another win for OLED! There's also now some video after the break!

Gallery: Nokia N86 hands-on

Continue reading Nokia N86 hands-on with video!

Nokia's N86 makes its 8 megapixel debut

by Paul Miller posted Feb 17th 2009 @ 3:46AM

Sure, things looked pretty legit yesterday, but we were awaiting official confirmation from Nokia. That's here, and now we can take a gander at the N86 purely on the up-and-up. The dual-slider (keypad on one end, camera and playback controls on the other) naturally centers on its 8 megapixel camera, which includes a Carl Zeiss Tessar lens, AutoFocus, a mechanical shutter and a dual-LED flash, but there's plenty of other N-series goodies like 8GB of storage, a 2.6-inch OLED screen, TV-out and a microSD slot. Nokia Maps, Ovi integration and all those other goodies are onboard -- though the new email capabilities of its E-series brethren seem absent. The phone is due in Europe in Q2 2009 for around 375 Euro before taxes and subsidies.

Gallery: Nokia's N86 makes its 8 megapixel debut

Nokia busts out its own 8 megapixel slider: the N86

by Darren Murph posted Feb 16th 2009 @ 11:06AM

Whoa, Nelly! While Samsung is strutting its 8 megapixel Memoir and Sony Ericsson is letting us all in on the forthcoming 12 megapixel Idou, Nokia is getting even with its 8 megapixel N86. Amazingly, we saw that the suits in Espoo had this thing on the brain way back in 2007, but not until today have we seen a real live product. The N-series slider boasts a Carl Zeiss lens, AutoFocus, dual-LED flash and Symbian S60, not to mention a 2.6-inch OLED display, 8GB of internal memory, a 3.5 millimeter headphone jack, microUSB connector and Share on Ovi integration. We're left in the dark when it comes to pricing and availability, but we're hoping to hear more really, really soon. More shots are waiting in the read link.

Update: The full specs sheets have just leaked, yum!