How can the GPU not be known? Doesnt it have to be Adreno? I was under the impression Microsoft wrote very specific and very tight drivers and that was it.
Afaik, with mango, there are some more hardware options to use. But yes, it's tight and welldefined. And in the end won't matter, as all of the hw has to be "good enough to be always smooth". and it is. so what would more bring? nothing.. (and no, not a thing in games, too, as they're fixed, too)
How about upgrade ready? The 205 gpu is four times faster than the 200, and supports hardware accelerated flash and svg. Maybe MS will come out with a windows phone 8.0 os that has prettier tiles with shadows and fades and bends differently (sweeter) than the current setup?
I wonder if i should buy a windows phone 7 this fall or wait for the next gen wp8 that might come out next year, like a adreno 220, more ram and two cpu cores? I had hoped a nokia would have everything I wanted but 3.7" is too small for me.
They wont really add any more eye candy to to UI. Windows 8 Metro UI dont even have shadows, fancy animations and bends and stuff, simply because that would look crap and dated, like OSX.
UI design in general is heading in a more simple and clean fashion, and in this area MS are far ahead of the competition.
There are bigger WP7 devices coming out. Much bigger, if you want. I don't think a dual core would help anything, certainly not your battery. Also keep in mind this is one of their first WP7 devices, if you're stuck on Nokia.
I will say I wouldn't mind having an Adreno 220 though, even if it wouldn't be of much use initially.
The Adreno 205/Snapdragon S2 does limit them to 720p encoding, and other stuff. However as Mango doesn't have any official native code-apps dual-core wouldn't do much difference in terms of how much power the apps has to their disposal, neither are you allowed to do traditional multitasking. Adreno 200/1GHz Snapdragon will also be the lowest common denominator that software is design for. But all that does mean that Nokia can't beat say Apples 1080p video recording.
This is something I've been looking forward to. I've been using Symbian for many years, but when they produced phone after phone that's been crippled in hardware in one way or another, I had to jump ship to iOS. I picked up a Samsung Focus beginnig of the year and have been very impressed with Windows Phone 7, so this device is definitely on my watchlist.
I just hope they don't take the same cost-cutting measure they've been employing in their past devices of recent years and make this a true flagship Nokia smartphone.
The Qualcomm 8255 is indeed in there, but it is a singlecore, not a dualcore (WP 7.5 only supports 8250 and 8255, so no dualcores as of yet, unless you code all the drivers yourself).
Keeping my eye on these phones though, hope Nokia will make a strong showing!
Why can't we call it single core 1ghz ARMv7 and adreno 205? It would be like calling a PC with a geforce 480 and core i7 2600k for 8255 and expect everyone knew what was behind.
Because not all ARM processors of the same family are equal. Companies like Qualcomm take the Cortex A9 design and tweak it, so performance may differ. ARM just licences them, after that the company can do whatever with them.
I wonder just how far behind Winphone is compared to Android. Is it already usable? I dislike many things about Android and resent iOS for fruit-specific reasons, so Winphone seems the only alternative. But is it a good one?
That's a very subjective question, depends on your needs, basic usability is fairly close w/Mango IMO. I like Android, but frankly I think it's biggest long term competition is WP7 and not iOS. Even if iOS retains it's current market share, WP and Android share more of the same demographic.
I'd actually argue that WP7 and iOS have a lot more in common than WP7 and Android.
Controlled software, restricted hardware, propriety software required to interface with the device etc. WP7 is slick, even if I'm personally not a fan of metro, but the platform philosophy is 95% iOS.
It really is. The iOS model is a powerful one. You can do a lot with controlled hardware.
I can deal with the older SoC since the software is tuned for it, but I really hope they make the jump to 720p soon. 800x480 is getting pretty silly. Look at the 4.7" Titan, it's just laughable.
Well, I switched from Android to a used Trophy on VZW (the only choice right now) and slapped Mango on as soon as I got it. I like it a lot. My contract renewal comes up in December so hopefully I see a flagship level WP on VZW at that time...if not I will wait for one.
Notification (not phone) ringtones and integrating AIM, Gtalk, and Yahoo into their Messaging hub would really make it just about perfect for me. Otherwise....it's a damn fine OS already. I would recommend just finding one off contract on ebay or elsewhere to play with for awhile. Looks like the $200-250 range is where they run usually.
What I'm really curious about is how the old Nokia customers will react to WP7. It's actually a totally different approach: Tight integration with social networking services of all kinds, not much customization possible, very few accessories, in no way for the technically inclined, hardly any real hardware choices -- to me it looks very much as if the classical Nokia customer should actually be more interested in Android, while Nokia/WP7 targets 100% Apple and iOS.
I think WP7 is a nice OS if you actually prefer a tightly controlled experience like with iOS but want better integration with Facebook and the like. Which usually are not the first things you think of with Nokia and Symbian. Nokia will have to look for a totally different target group I would say. Not much of a problem in the US (Nokia is basically a blank slate there), but elsewhere...
I think MS is basically trying to out-apple Apple. Nokia will need to reinvent itself or it will just become a hardware manufacturer for Microsoft smartphones. Not the worst thing to happen for Nokia, but they will be in a very replacable position. Interesting times indeed.
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Cali3350 - Friday, October 14, 2011 - link
How can the GPU not be known? Doesnt it have to be Adreno? I was under the impression Microsoft wrote very specific and very tight drivers and that was it.Saumitra - Friday, October 14, 2011 - link
Fixed ;)davepermen - Friday, October 14, 2011 - link
Afaik, with mango, there are some more hardware options to use. But yes, it's tight and welldefined. And in the end won't matter, as all of the hw has to be "good enough to be always smooth". and it is. so what would more bring? nothing.. (and no, not a thing in games, too, as they're fixed, too)GuinnessKMF - Friday, October 14, 2011 - link
You'd be surprised what people are willing to pay to say they have the "best" even if there is no noticeable or measurable difference.DarkUltra - Saturday, October 15, 2011 - link
How about upgrade ready? The 205 gpu is four times faster than the 200, and supports hardware accelerated flash and svg. Maybe MS will come out with a windows phone 8.0 os that has prettier tiles with shadows and fades and bends differently (sweeter) than the current setup?I wonder if i should buy a windows phone 7 this fall or wait for the next gen wp8 that might come out next year, like a adreno 220, more ram and two cpu cores? I had hoped a nokia would have everything I wanted but 3.7" is too small for me.
B3an - Saturday, October 15, 2011 - link
They wont really add any more eye candy to to UI. Windows 8 Metro UI dont even have shadows, fancy animations and bends and stuff, simply because that would look crap and dated, like OSX.UI design in general is heading in a more simple and clean fashion, and in this area MS are far ahead of the competition.
Alexvrb - Saturday, October 15, 2011 - link
There are bigger WP7 devices coming out. Much bigger, if you want. I don't think a dual core would help anything, certainly not your battery. Also keep in mind this is one of their first WP7 devices, if you're stuck on Nokia.I will say I wouldn't mind having an Adreno 220 though, even if it wouldn't be of much use initially.
Penti - Sunday, October 16, 2011 - link
The Adreno 205/Snapdragon S2 does limit them to 720p encoding, and other stuff. However as Mango doesn't have any official native code-apps dual-core wouldn't do much difference in terms of how much power the apps has to their disposal, neither are you allowed to do traditional multitasking. Adreno 200/1GHz Snapdragon will also be the lowest common denominator that software is design for. But all that does mean that Nokia can't beat say Apples 1080p video recording.alphaod - Friday, October 14, 2011 - link
This is something I've been looking forward to. I've been using Symbian for many years, but when they produced phone after phone that's been crippled in hardware in one way or another, I had to jump ship to iOS. I picked up a Samsung Focus beginnig of the year and have been very impressed with Windows Phone 7, so this device is definitely on my watchlist.I just hope they don't take the same cost-cutting measure they've been employing in their past devices of recent years and make this a true flagship Nokia smartphone.
Exodite - Friday, October 14, 2011 - link
To my knowledge the N9 has a polycarborate body, much the same as I'd expect the N800 to have.The N8 is an aluminum unibody construction, however.
alexanderbrowne - Friday, October 14, 2011 - link
I was just going to post the same thing. See this designers' blog post for example:http://conversations.nokia.com/2011/06/22/nokia-n9...
Saumitra - Friday, October 14, 2011 - link
Wow, I used the phone today, here in Dubai, it sure felt like aluminum! Thanks for the correction, much appreciated. :)Cow86 - Friday, October 14, 2011 - link
The Qualcomm 8255 is indeed in there, but it is a singlecore, not a dualcore (WP 7.5 only supports 8250 and 8255, so no dualcores as of yet, unless you code all the drivers yourself).Keeping my eye on these phones though, hope Nokia will make a strong showing!
DarkUltra - Saturday, October 15, 2011 - link
Why can't we call it single core 1ghz ARMv7 and adreno 205? It would be like calling a PC with a geforce 480 and core i7 2600k for 8255 and expect everyone knew what was behind.tipoo - Sunday, October 16, 2011 - link
Because not all ARM processors of the same family are equal. Companies like Qualcomm take the Cortex A9 design and tweak it, so performance may differ. ARM just licences them, after that the company can do whatever with them.Booster - Friday, October 14, 2011 - link
I wonder just how far behind Winphone is compared to Android. Is it already usable? I dislike many things about Android and resent iOS for fruit-specific reasons, so Winphone seems the only alternative. But is it a good one?Impulses - Friday, October 14, 2011 - link
That's a very subjective question, depends on your needs, basic usability is fairly close w/Mango IMO. I like Android, but frankly I think it's biggest long term competition is WP7 and not iOS. Even if iOS retains it's current market share, WP and Android share more of the same demographic.Exodite - Friday, October 14, 2011 - link
I'd actually argue that WP7 and iOS have a lot more in common than WP7 and Android.Controlled software, restricted hardware, propriety software required to interface with the device etc. WP7 is slick, even if I'm personally not a fan of metro, but the platform philosophy is 95% iOS.
ImSpartacus - Saturday, October 15, 2011 - link
It really is. The iOS model is a powerful one. You can do a lot with controlled hardware.I can deal with the older SoC since the software is tuned for it, but I really hope they make the jump to 720p soon. 800x480 is getting pretty silly. Look at the 4.7" Titan, it's just laughable.
Exodite - Saturday, October 15, 2011 - link
To be fair HTC brought the 4.7" 800*480 display to Android as well, I suppose it's the new smartphone for senior citizens. :)notposting - Saturday, October 15, 2011 - link
Well, I switched from Android to a used Trophy on VZW (the only choice right now) and slapped Mango on as soon as I got it. I like it a lot. My contract renewal comes up in December so hopefully I see a flagship level WP on VZW at that time...if not I will wait for one.Notification (not phone) ringtones and integrating AIM, Gtalk, and Yahoo into their Messaging hub would really make it just about perfect for me. Otherwise....it's a damn fine OS already. I would recommend just finding one off contract on ebay or elsewhere to play with for awhile. Looks like the $200-250 range is where they run usually.
mcnabney - Tuesday, October 18, 2011 - link
Why would somebody pay that much money for previous generation technology?No 4G? WVGA, when 720p is launching on multiple devices? Single core? Old GPU?
If it is really launching at $250 it is just to snare MS fanbois. Expect a price drop to $100-150 before Xmas.
uhuznaa - Sunday, October 16, 2011 - link
What I'm really curious about is how the old Nokia customers will react to WP7. It's actually a totally different approach: Tight integration with social networking services of all kinds, not much customization possible, very few accessories, in no way for the technically inclined, hardly any real hardware choices -- to me it looks very much as if the classical Nokia customer should actually be more interested in Android, while Nokia/WP7 targets 100% Apple and iOS.I think WP7 is a nice OS if you actually prefer a tightly controlled experience like with iOS but want better integration with Facebook and the like. Which usually are not the first things you think of with Nokia and Symbian. Nokia will have to look for a totally different target group I would say. Not much of a problem in the US (Nokia is basically a blank slate there), but elsewhere...
I think MS is basically trying to out-apple Apple. Nokia will need to reinvent itself or it will just become a hardware manufacturer for Microsoft smartphones. Not the worst thing to happen for Nokia, but they will be in a very replacable position. Interesting times indeed.