Nokia breaks out N85 and N79

Nokia has expanded its N-Series with the release of two new handsets designed to raise the game for mid-range mobiles.

First up is the N85 slider, which bears more than a passing resemblance to the forthcoming flagship N96.

One of the obvious features of this handset is the 2.6 OLED screen, which has a faster response time, lower power consumption and faster refresh rate than LCD, which lends the screen to fast motion video and gaming.

Refusing to let the N-Gage platform die, Nokia has bundled in 10 games, including one of the users choice, to really get people interested in this handset as a gaming device too.

GPS with turn by turn navigation, a 5MP snapper with Carl Zeiss optics and an FM transmitter make this a possibly great mid-range device, with up to 28 hours music playback.

It also comes with an 8GB card in the box, so you can pack it full of media magic and watch it on the little kickstand in the idle moments.

N79 - for the 'stylish'

The N79 is a candybar handset which is similar in specs to the N85, though puts a little more emphasis on style over functionality.

This handset sees the return of Xpress-on covers, with two front and five back colours and styles to choose from.

The back covers also tell the screen what to display as well (through jiggery-pokery magic) so you can match colour scheme throughout your phone. Finally, the invention we've all been waiting for.

Other than that, the specs are similar for the camera, GPS, FM transmitter and video to the N85, though the battery life on this one for music playback is only 24 hours (boo.)

The N79 also comes with a free 4GB memory card in the box, so it's clear Nokia are feeling all generous with these launches.

The N79 will retail for around €350 (£279), while the N85 will cost €450 (£358), though you'll never see these in these shops, thanks to magic subsidies and the like.