Nokia has announced that it is going to release a N-Gage QD Silver Edition.
Look at the comparative picture above. In case you couldn't tell, the new "silver edition" is at the bottom of the picture. There have been a few cosmetic colour changes, but the announcement merely states that: "The new N-Gage QD Silver Edition game deck has all the smartphone functionalities and connectivity features as the original N-Gage QD game deck has, including calendar, contacts, e-mail, web browsing, Bluetooth connectivity and GPRS" suggesting that there are no new features, and that internally the Silver Edition is the same as the original QD.
Releasing a new QD would be a very strange move if there aren't any internal changes, however, because the Nokia Series 60 scene has moved on since the original N-Gage QD, and the QD itself is not selling very well at present. We do, therefore, expect changes, including:
1. processor upgrade - click here for a comparative chart of series 60 devices; the newest generation (3230, 6681/6682, 6680) is not yet represented, but clearly the N-Gage QD is nowhere near the top, which would be strange in a device to be released now.
2. stereo sound - this was a feature of the original n-Gage, and since it is common in the newest generation of phones (except the 3230), it should be included.
3. software upgrade - to current iteration of Series 60: 2nd Edition, with Feature Pack 3.
4. screen upgrade - the QD screen is 4K colours, and an upgrade to at least 65K colours (or even 262K) seems likely as all Nokia phones except the lowest-end have this.
We would also like to have wifi, a built in hard disk, a higher resolution screen, and a 2MP camera. (Ed: and a billion dollars.)
Do note, that there is a possible alternative explanation - it might simply be that the silver edition is a "false" release, meant simply to generate enthusiasm and press for the N-gage. This is made more likely by the fact that they are still calling it a QD.
We prefer the first hypothesis. :D
[news via Slashphone]
