3GSM 2004

by Rich Brome
February 24, 2004

3GSM kicked off with a bang Monday in Cannes, with Nokia's unveiling of the 9500 - the company's new ultra-high-end business phone. The highly-anticipated device continues the successful Communicator series, after an extended delay since the last model.

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The 9500 is one of the first triple-radio devices to be announced. The three radios are GSM, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi. The GSM side is tri-band, and also includes EDGE for high-speed data. The 9500 will be available in two tri-band versions: one 900/1800/1900 for Europe, and one 850/1800/1900 for the Americas.

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Like previous Communicators, the 9500 features a "sideways" clamshell design that opens to reveal a full QWERTY keyboard and large, wide display. The keyboards in the Communicator series are much larger than the typical "thumboards" found in some competing models from other companies. While quite cramped, it is possible to type on a 9500 keyboard using your fingers.

Another hallmark feature of the Communicator series is the ability to use primary phone functions while closed, using an external display and keypad. The 9500 adds significantly to this by stepping up to a large 65,000-color display, and adding a complete Series 40 interface. Advanced functions such as the camera and even e-mail can be accesed in this mode.

In contrast to other recent Nokia smartphones, the 9500 features a hot-swappable MMC card slot. The battery cover must be removed to access it, but the battery itself can remain in place.

Rounding out the feature set is a user-changeable front/outer cover. While it might seem out of place on a business phone, Nokia market research indicated that business users wanted to customize their phones just as much as other consumers.

Below are a few screenshots showing parts of the main Series 80 interface:

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