Nokia Unveils Playful Cell Phone

LONDON -- Nokia entered the games market Wednesday with the launch of its N-Gage device, which is both a games console and cell phone.

Games available on Multimedia Cards for the console, to be available across all GSM regions in time for the 2003 holiday season, will include Tomb Raider from Eidos Interactive and Sonic the Hedgehog from Sega. Nokia is also working with ActiVision, Taito, and THQ, Ikka Raiskinen, senior vice president of entertainment and media activities said at the launch here.

Playing Games

The N-Gage supports two kinds of games--smaller downloadable games and rich media games on 2MB, 8MB, and 16MB Multimedia Cards, Nokia said on its Web site Thursday.

The MMCs can also be used to store MP3 files, and the device has a built in FM radio, Nokia Executive Vice President Anssi Vanjoki said.

There will be no regional blocks on the cards, he said, so that a game bought in Japan can be played on, for example, a phone bought in Germany.

Get Connected

Bluetooth short-range wireless networking will allow gamers to play with others in the same room, while GPRS connectivity will allow multiplayer online gaming, Raiskinen said.

T-Mobile International is the first operator to agree to work with Nokia and the game console, it will develop online gaming services in time for the Christmas launch, Raiskinen said.

Nokia would not give pricing, saying only that the consoles will cost less than $539 and that pricing for the copyright-protected MMCs has yet to be decided.

The battery life of the device is not yet being announced, Vanjoki said "but batteries are a core competency for Nokia. We can say that there will be a full days' rich experience of games, music and calls."

High Expectations

Asked about sales expectations, Vanjoki said only that Nokia does not launch products unless it expects to sell millions of units. Buyers may choose to replace their existing handsets with the 4.8-ounce N-Gage, which measures 5.3 inches by 2.8 inches by .1 inches, "and of course we don't mind if they have another Nokia handset too," he said.

The phone itself is not the focus of the device, Vanjoki said. "[The N-Gage] has been optimized for games. The electronics, the software, all focus on gaming. The other functionality is secondary."

The N-Gage will be sold through game shops, general retail stores and also through the network operators' own retail outlets, Vanjoki said.