Nostalgia Video: Nokia N86 8MP features rediscovered
The year is 2009, and while Nokia had the lion’s share in terms of market dominance and sales, creaks were finally starting to show. The phone manufacturing juggernaut was still stuck in 2 minds, one which is to stick to what you know and continue making smartphones on legacy hardware, and two which is to chase the iPhone and fully embrace the touchscreen era. The Nokia N97 was aimed at the latter, while the Nokia N86 8Mp was focused on the former. You can check my video on the N86 below:
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxX0xdPzpPI&w=560&h=315]
Nokia N86 8Mp Specifications
- Display: 2.6″ AMOLED, QVGA
- Processor: Single core ARM 11, 434Mhz
- Memory: 128Mb RAM, 8Gb Internal storage
- OS: Symbian 9.3 S60 version 3.2
- Camera: 8Mp f/2.4-3.6-4.8, variable aperture, Dual LED flash, Carl Zeiss Optics
- Form Factor: Dual Slider, Keypad down and Music controls up
- Battery: 1200 mAh, up to 312 hrs of standby
The Nokia N86 is the last N series slider/non-touchscreen device from Nokia. It was a farewell to an era of dominance and some of the coolest devices, they made, under the N8X monicker, which started by the Nokia N80. The 8 series was all about multimedia prowess and camera performance, and with the N86, Nokia introduced their first-ever 8Mp sensor at 28mm, making it one of the earliest implementations of an ultra-wide camera. It also brought innovations such as a variable aperture (not technically the first to do so), which automatically increased or decreased the aperture size based on sharpness or light-gathering requirements. Cool stuff. The other aspects of the N86 are very similar to the N85 it replaced, with its AMOLED 2.6″ display and dual sliding action.
But the sad truth is, Nokia was starting to fall behind on both the touchscreen front (iPhone), and the non-touchscreen front (Samsung) despite the market share, and the N86, even though it was capable, didn’t establish itself as a class leader for the time. I still love and miss the form factor, and the build quality and design were both top-notch. Sounds eerily familiar 🙂
So what do you think about the Nokia N86? Which slider stole your heart at the time? I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments!
