David Shapshak
Product: NOKIA 9110 cellphone/personal digital assistant
James Bond has one. The Saint has one, and now you can have one too. The Nokia 9110 is the latest must have for the mobile warrior.
It looks like a cellphone, albeit a slightly bigger version than the current smaller-is-cooler vogue, but with a click it’s a fully functioning hand-held computer that can surf the Internet, send e-mail, record voice memos and remember birthdays.
It didn’t take as long as expected for the (not so) humble cellphone to be integrated with the personal digital assistant to become a portable briefcase, something that will revolutionise cellular telephony for the digital cowboy.
The value-added cellphone has arrived, or arrived again in a better outfit. Nokia pioneered the synergy between phone and electronic diary with their 9000 communicator, a large, somewhat clunky device that let you store a list of contacts, a schedule, as well as sending and receiving faxes.
The 9110 goes much further. You can still do all of those but also receive images from a digital camera (via infra-red port) and send those as e-mail attachments. It weighs just 253g and its slightly larger size – that of the old Nokia workhorse, the 2110 – makes it anachronistically cool. If this were a Bond movie, the phone would have been handed to me by Q.
It looks like a normal cellphone, although a bit larger, but it clicks open to reveal a small keyboard and a clear, backlit screen. A row of buttons down the right side acts as selectors for a range of options (“select” or “open”, and “cancel” the most common), while another row across the top of the keyboard launches the various functions: Internet and e-mail access, your contacts, the telephone itself, the short message service, the calendar/diary and the system settings.
Given its size, it’s ideal to navigate with two thumbs and typing, although clumsy because of the keyboard’s and keys’ small size, is acceptable.
Don’t fall into the trap of comparing the phone to palmtop computers, which run Windows CE, a scaled-down version of Microsoft’s flagship operating system. Remember that the 9110 is not only a fully functioning phone but a mini-computer.
The 9110 has a 486-based embedded processor made by AMD, and uses a customised operating system. Navigating is easy enough with the screen-side buttons, as well as up cursor arrows and the enter key. Sending a quick e- mail or fax, checking my e-mail or the cricket score on the Net while in Cape Town without a computer were all as easy as making a call.
The device will transmit data at 14,4 bits per second – although this could dramatically increase when the network that relays data to mobile devices is upgraded. It’s perfect for those on the road, salespeople, journalists (of course) and estate agents – who could conceivably remotely access databases and download or update their 9110 with whatever data they need.
In these days of advanced batteries, it’s almost academic to detail the phone’s talk time (six hours) and stand-by (170 hours or seven days), which are more than adequate. The phone itself can be switched off while you can use the mini-computer.
Keeping in mind the mobility of the intended user, Nokia has cleverly built in a flight profile enabling you to use the phone on a plane. Once in the flight profile, the 9110 – which has a similar interface to the 6110 series – has its network-seeking feature (the one that interferes with an aeroplane’s navigation system)disabled.
The 9110 is not only incredibly functional but – this is important for the gadget-fiend – makes a fashion statement. It is a classy machine with innate qualities in two areas that matter most: its voice quality and its screen.
The phone has a hands-free function, which is automatically activated when the phone is open. So when you’re sending a fax or receiving one, and you need to talk about it or to take notes during a conversation, click open the 9110 and talk away. The speaker and mike are strong enough to sit on the dashboard while you’re driving with the window open. Without the other party being aware of it, you’re on hands-free.
Although it doesn’t have the colour screen or the graphics of Windows CE-driven palmtop computers, the screen quality is very clear and can handle quite complex graphics in faxes.
One of its key features, as with everything being released these days, is its Windows compatibility. Nokia bundles a software package with the phone, the PC Suite, to “sync” with your personal computer, including the ber-organiser mail package Outlook.
A cable is included, but the 9110 is infra- red active (or wireless). This means that if the companion device has its own infra-red port, you can connect to your PC and print directly to the printer. Added memory is available with thumbnail-sized memory cards that slot into the back.
So whether you want to be an espionage agent or just love the latest techno toys or want to send e-mail from the top of Table Mountain (or any other remote place), the 9110 is for you.