Nokia finally did what operators around Europe and the Far East have been clamoring for this past two years, introduced a DVB-H phone worth having, and one for the masses. It will, of course, never make much of an impact in some countries like the US, which uses different mobile TV technology, and the UK, where there is not yet, and may never be, a DVB-H mobile TV network due to a lack of spectrum, but the existence of this phone (the previous Nokia DVB-H phone cost around €500 for the N97) has certainly brought the price way down.
The new 5330 Mobile TV Edition will come with a recommended retail price of €155 around a third of the price of any others in its range. Samsung and LG have tended to be the lead mobile TV phone suppliers in DVB-H markets like Finland, Indonesia, Vietnam, Philippines, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Austria and Italy and many operators have complained to Nokia about this, which virtually sponsored the standard.
In other areas of new technology such as Near Field Communications for fast touch and go ticketing, Nokia has always offered a cheap phone in early markets, almost as a ‘practice’ for the real thing, but in DVB-H Nokia has often asked for €700 for each DVB-H phone.
A DVB-H network is a separate broadcast only, one way, network for sending TV signals in a format that handsets can accept without battery degradation. It involves broadcasting at high power in short bursts, and relies on advanced error correction mathematics and coded OFDM to make it resilient against multipath and Doppler effects. DVB-H is the European standard for mobile TV. Having a separate broadcast network keeps large video files off the cellular network and stops it becoming congested.
Places like South Africa and India are contemplating using DVB-H for mobile TV, but were always worried that Nokia, which commands a majority market share in both places, would not deliver on its promise for cheap DVB-H handsets.
It is these considerations among others which has meant that the majority of South America has opted to use a Japanese originated system called ISDB-T to deliver mobile TV, which is already working in Brazil and Nokia had to make a move to preserve DVB-H’s chances.
Nokia vice president Mark Selby said, ‘The introduction of the Nokia 5330 Mobile TV Edition responds to the arrival of DVB-H broadcast mobile TV networks in new markets and offers an affordable device for new and existing customers alike. Customers are increasingly watching a variety of programs on their mobiles, such as drama programs, news and sport, for a longer period of time. The Nokia 5330 Mobile TV Edition has the sound and image quality to hold audiences captive.’
The original 5330 was launched as an ExpressMusic phone for use with Nokia’s Comes With Music program which offers free music for a year from the Nokia Music Store, and that’s the version currently on sale in the UK. It comes with a QVGA 2.4 inch colour screen and accepts traditional 3.5 mm headphones and Nokia claims the battery life gives up to six hours of DVB-H usage; enough time to watch three football matches – or six episodes of a soap opera – before recharging. It is not a touch sensitive screen.
Franklin Selgert, Chairman, Broadcast Mobile Convergence Forum said, ‘It is essential for DVB-H service providers to have a variety of devices capable of serving the mass market. Having a complete portfolio of handsets is pivotal for the commercial success of mobile TV. The new Nokia DVB-H enabled mobile phone, the Nokia 5330 Mobile TV Edition, is a great addition to the current portfolio of broadcast TV-capable handsets.’
The Nokia 5330 Mobile TV Edition comes with direct connections to Ovi, Facebook, MySpace and YouTube and offers Windows Live Messenger, Google Talk, Yahoo! Messenger, ICQ and AOL messaging. It also has a 3.2 megapixel camera with 4x digital zoom and LED flash.
Nokia says that there will be more commercial DVB-H launches during the next 12-18 month in more than 20 countries. Many people had thought that Nokia had all but given up with DVB-H because it promised so much in Europe and has yet to become widely used. Both Germany and France are now considering launches of DVB-H networks, but no firm decision has been taken in either.