Phone: Nokia N95 Vs London! Video Samples

It’s hard to gauge just how many will use the video recording function of the N95. I would hazard a guess that far less than 20% will take videos regularly and possibly less than 5% will bother to watch those videos on anything other than the phone itself. It other words, this blog post will only be of real interest to quite a small number of people.

As a former N93 user, I can give a accurate account of how video recording on the N95 compares to the N93. There are three main differences, all other differences are so minor as to be of little consequence.

Nokia N95 raw video Footage of London MP4 format
Blip.tv Flash version

First, there’s no optical zoom on the N95. The digital zoom on the N95 does not (especially on video) compensate for the lack of optical zoom. If you find yourself using zoom regularly on your N93 or other camcorder, you might find N95 video recording a frustrating experience.

Second, the audio track is simply not as detailed as on the N93 or even the N93i. This is not just because it’s a mono soundtrack - it’s just not as clear, perhaps because of the postion of the mic.

Third, the N95 is more proficient in low light situations.

Video recording is still spoilt by an inconsistent frame rate (somewhere between 27fps and 29fps is the norm), and strange frame warping when the phone is moved too rapidly.

With a little bit care and attention it might be possible to capture and edit some footage that would pass for a standard entry level camcorder, this would especially be true if you were viewing the final cut on a CRT standard def TV. I know quite a number who have managed to do just that on the N93.

N93 final edited video sample.

As today is the day when thousands of people get their first chance to play with the N95 (in the UK at least), I’d love to know your thoughts on the video recording abilities of this amazing device.

Phone: Nokia N95 Vs London! Video Samples

Monday, 2 April 2007