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Why Does the N76 Have 40MB of RAM?

By The Guru on August 6, 2007

40mb
This is something that’s really been bothering me, and I finally came up with a conspiracy theory this evening, admittedly after a few beers. Before presenting my theory, I want to confirm some things with you.

First off, let’s make one thing clear. Nokia only produced the N76 to have an entry into the slim-flip competition. They were deathly slow to even enter the flip market at all, and have been even slower to adopt the slim formfactor. Powerhouses like the N93, N95, and E90 are anything but trim. Thus we have the N76, and honestly, I see it mostly as Nokia’s saying "Ok, here you go, here’s your stinkin trim flip phone. Now enjoy it!" So it’s obviously aimed at the masses. You might even say it’s designed to introduce new users to the whole S60 thing. You might also, like me, find it highly doubtful that we’ll see another like it from Nokia.

Apologies in advance for the courtroom-like presentation, I’m into my 3rd episode of Law and Order SVU tonite…

The feature set, well, it’s lackluster, frankly. No WiFi, 2MP cam w/o
Autofocus, piss-poor video recording, and no powerful graphics
processor. It’s not exactly something a high-powered user would bring
home to mom. But it sure is purdy.

Let’s look at the features it DOES have. 3.5mm adapter, music playback
buttons on the outside and A2DP. All things to make listening to music
easy. And 40MB of RAM.

So where am I going with this? The fact is that the N76 doesn’t have
the hardware to really need 40MB of RAM. If the N95, which has all the
extra RAM sucking hardware you could think of, got out the door with
the same 20MB of RAM that most of the other recent S60v3 devices have.
So if every other device only has 20MB of RAM, how come the N76 gets
laden with all this RAM?

Follow me to this step: What’s the biggest complaint about S60v3
devices from nearly everyone? Out of memory messages and randomly
closing apps. More specifically – RAM. So, if you have a device that
you’re pretty sure is going to be a hit with the masses, what’s the
biggest thing you want to cover? User Experience. What’s the biggest
complaint from users in your other devices? RAM. Hence, 40MB of RAM. 20MB extra to ensure that people who dump their RAZR for the N76 get that great user experience.

My question is why just one device? Why the N76? I realize this is a moot point, since Feature Pack 2 uses OnDemand Paging, which means that code is loaded into runtime memory only when it’s really needed. But given that there aren’t any Feature Pack 2 devices even rumored/leaked yet (both the N81 and N82 are FP1 devices), it’s likely we’ll have some more come out.

Does anyone else have any ideas as to why such a hardware-lacking device like the N76 gets double the RAM of the N95? Questions, comments, please leave them below.

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The Guru

The Guru, aka Ricky Cadden, started Symbian-Guru.com in November 2006, out of his excitement for the S60 3rd Edition version of Symella. The Guru has used Symbian devices since the Nokia 6620, and is known for his perspective as a power user. You can follow The Guru on Twitter at @Rcadden

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  • OmniWired

    I think that there is no conspiracy, this phone has the about same RAM of other N-series phones but as it have less features it needs less modules (or services) of the Operative System to be running.
    “No WiFi, 2MP cam w/o Autofocus, piss-poor video recording, and no powerful graphics processor.”
    ie: It doesn’t need any of those drivers or services or modules present in memory.

  • OmniWired

    I think that there is no conspiracy, this phone has the about same RAM of other N-series phones but as it have less features it needs less modules (or services) of the Operative System to be running.
    “No WiFi, 2MP cam w/o Autofocus, piss-poor video recording, and no powerful graphics processor.”
    ie: It doesn’t need any of those drivers or services or modules present in memory.

  • John

    I am not sure why Nokia chose the N76 and 6290 to finally increase the ram. Hopefully all future s60v3 devices will have the increased ram. I didn’t think the N76 supported A2DP? I doubt the N76 will sell to the masses though. The phone has been plagued with the chrome peeling off. Not sure why Nokia hasn’t resolved that issue. I can see them discontinuing the N76 very soon if people keep having to return it because of the chrome peeling. I guess I am lucky since mine has been fine.

  • John

    I am not sure why Nokia chose the N76 and 6290 to finally increase the ram. Hopefully all future s60v3 devices will have the increased ram. I didn’t think the N76 supported A2DP? I doubt the N76 will sell to the masses though. The phone has been plagued with the chrome peeling off. Not sure why Nokia hasn’t resolved that issue. I can see them discontinuing the N76 very soon if people keep having to return it because of the chrome peeling. I guess I am lucky since mine has been fine.

  • http://dotsisx.blogspot.com/ Rita El Khoury

    OmniWired, even my 3250 that has basically no RAM sucking hardware has nothing more than 18-20 free MB RAM…
    so Ricky, you might be up to something here (i)

  • http://dotsisx.blogspot.com Rita El Khoury

    OmniWired, even my 3250 that has basically no RAM sucking hardware has nothing more than 18-20 free MB RAM…
    so Ricky, you might be up to something here (i)

  • Viipottaja

    Another theory is that is simply a matter of “product development and launch life cycle, logistics and supply chain” -issue, and that we will see same amount of RAM in pretty much all N-Series phones and perhaps most S60 phones from now on.

  • Devin Balentina

    I think they just started working on the N76 after the N95. And it was their plan all along to increase the RAM and the N76 just happens to fall in this period. The N93i was just a minor update to N93, usinng most of the same parts so no extra RAM for that.
    If this is the case all coming devices announced will have plenty of RAM

  • Devin Balentina

    I think they just started working on the N76 after the N95. And it was their plan all along to increase the RAM and the N76 just happens to fall in this period. The N93i was just a minor update to N93, usinng most of the same parts so no extra RAM for that.
    If this is the case all coming devices announced will have plenty of RAM

  • http://profile.typekey.com/cchubbuck/ Craig Chubbuck

    As a recent convert to S60, I take the RAM issue with a grain of salt. Yes, S60 devices are plagued with small amounts of RAM, and yes, I too have seen out of memory issues, but at least in S60 it is easy to shut down apps and see what is running on your device. Even without HandyTaskman or something similar, you can hold the menu key down and kill an app in seconds. My usage patterns seem to fit S60 very well..I typically use an app for just a few minutes, then shut it down…look for movie times in the browser, then I’m done, read my mail, then I’m done,etc. It’s only when using Maps or the Podcasting app that I really just leave something running for any amount of time. I like that S60 actually lets you SHUT THINGS DOWN easily.

    In Windows Mobile, you had to go to TaskManager, and then it was still a 3-4 click process to kill a program. I think a lot of people’s issues with Windows Mobile freezing, rebooting,etc. are caused by WM5′s poor memory management above all else.

    Like others have said, perhaps this is a sign that Nokia will include larger amounts of RAM in future phones. Remember that Apple has cornered the flash RAM market (using about 25% of worldwide flash supplies) and other companies may not get such favorable deals from the Asian flash market as Apple does.

    I think Nokia does listen to these blogs, and we will start to see better things on the memory issue in this year’s devices.

  • http://profile.typekey.com/cchubbuck/ Craig Chubbuck

    As a recent convert to S60, I take the RAM issue with a grain of salt. Yes, S60 devices are plagued with small amounts of RAM, and yes, I too have seen out of memory issues, but at least in S60 it is easy to shut down apps and see what is running on your device. Even without HandyTaskman or something similar, you can hold the menu key down and kill an app in seconds. My usage patterns seem to fit S60 very well..I typically use an app for just a few minutes, then shut it down…look for movie times in the browser, then I’m done, read my mail, then I’m done,etc. It’s only when using Maps or the Podcasting app that I really just leave something running for any amount of time. I like that S60 actually lets you SHUT THINGS DOWN easily.

    In Windows Mobile, you had to go to TaskManager, and then it was still a 3-4 click process to kill a program. I think a lot of people’s issues with Windows Mobile freezing, rebooting,etc. are caused by WM5′s poor memory management above all else.

    Like others have said, perhaps this is a sign that Nokia will include larger amounts of RAM in future phones. Remember that Apple has cornered the flash RAM market (using about 25% of worldwide flash supplies) and other companies may not get such favorable deals from the Asian flash market as Apple does.

    I think Nokia does listen to these blogs, and we will start to see better things on the memory issue in this year’s devices.

  • http://profile.typekey.com/symbianguru/ Ricky Cadden

    I think ya’ll have a good thought, that maybe it’s just product life cycle and that future devices will have more RAM. Afterall, look at the E90′s RAM. Monstrous. However, IIRC, the E61i and E65 both came out after the N76, and their RAM is nothing to write home about.

    I think the true test will be the devices that are announced in London later this month. We know the N81 will be announced, and I’ve been trying desperately to figure out how much RAM is in that puppy.

  • http://profile.typekey.com/symbianguru/ Ricky Cadden

    I think ya’ll have a good thought, that maybe it’s just product life cycle and that future devices will have more RAM. Afterall, look at the E90′s RAM. Monstrous. However, IIRC, the E61i and E65 both came out after the N76, and their RAM is nothing to write home about.

    I think the true test will be the devices that are announced in London later this month. We know the N81 will be announced, and I’ve been trying desperately to figure out how much RAM is in that puppy.

  • http://raymasky.blogspot.com/ Ray

    what baffles me is ..despite knowing that the N95 is gonna be a memory hungry device with the 5mpx cam , gps et al…and yet Nokia goes ahead and launches it with a stinking 20 mb ram . I mean…even considering the product lifecycle and all…couldnt they make a last minute change and double the ram or something ?? If apple can increase the battery life of the iphone days before the launch ..i’m sure nokia can pull off something much bigger.

  • http://raymasky.blogspot.com Ray

    what baffles me is ..despite knowing that the N95 is gonna be a memory hungry device with the 5mpx cam , gps et al…and yet Nokia goes ahead and launches it with a stinking 20 mb ram . I mean…even considering the product lifecycle and all…couldnt they make a last minute change and double the ram or something ?? If apple can increase the battery life of the iphone days before the launch ..i’m sure nokia can pull off something much bigger.

  • http://technoblabber.abhishta.net/ Abhishta Paranjpe

    The development cycle theory sounds plausible, but then why hasn’t this applied to the 5-6 phones announced and released after the N76?

    My second guess is that the N76 was designed and released to penetrate into a different market segment and they had hopes that the razr-loving people would embrace this phone. That being said, the phone needed RAM, since fashion phone users would not really be aware of multitasking and maybe (i’m only speculating here) their focus group tests showed that people had the tendency to simply press the red key after using the app, minimizing it, but not killing it. With more such apps going into the background, test users were frequently seeing low memory errors and bein non-smartphone users, they wouldn’t really know what the deal was, other than thinking that this phone is loco. And that’s why Nokia decided to add tons of RAM.

    My third guess: Someone at Nokia seriously made a design mistake when adding ram. May be he messed up on the IC number or something. :D

  • http://technoblabber.abhishta.net Abhishta Paranjpe

    The development cycle theory sounds plausible, but then why hasn’t this applied to the 5-6 phones announced and released after the N76?

    My second guess is that the N76 was designed and released to penetrate into a different market segment and they had hopes that the razr-loving people would embrace this phone. That being said, the phone needed RAM, since fashion phone users would not really be aware of multitasking and maybe (i’m only speculating here) their focus group tests showed that people had the tendency to simply press the red key after using the app, minimizing it, but not killing it. With more such apps going into the background, test users were frequently seeing low memory errors and bein non-smartphone users, they wouldn’t really know what the deal was, other than thinking that this phone is loco. And that’s why Nokia decided to add tons of RAM.

    My third guess: Someone at Nokia seriously made a design mistake when adding ram. May be he messed up on the IC number or something. :D

  • http://s60tv.com/ Jake

    Now I get why the N76 has 2x the RAM. Because Nokia (finally) understands that the lack of RAM on their S60 devices is BAD.

    And because they didn’t want the masses to cope with this.

    Smart move. :)

    Now bring on the RAM to ALL the other S60 phone Nokia!!!
    And LOTS OF IT.

    Actually I can tell how it feels using a S60 phone with lots of RAM: when at the Evening with S60 in Helsinki I tried out the E90 it was Fast. Then when I was switching apps (using the press and hold Menu button) I noticed about 7 apps Open. I was like this is Crazy! It was fast even with 7 apps open.

    And the apps weren’t just calculator etc. The browser was open, gallery…

    I can’t wait for the day I can get myself a phone with “too much” RAM.

  • http://s60tv.com Jake

    Now I get why the N76 has 2x the RAM. Because Nokia (finally) understands that the lack of RAM on their S60 devices is BAD.

    And because they didn’t want the masses to cope with this.

    Smart move. :)

    Now bring on the RAM to ALL the other S60 phone Nokia!!!
    And LOTS OF IT.

    Actually I can tell how it feels using a S60 phone with lots of RAM: when at the Evening with S60 in Helsinki I tried out the E90 it was Fast. Then when I was switching apps (using the press and hold Menu button) I noticed about 7 apps Open. I was like this is Crazy! It was fast even with 7 apps open.

    And the apps weren’t just calculator etc. The browser was open, gallery…

    I can’t wait for the day I can get myself a phone with “too much” RAM.

  • N76
  • N76
  • http://www.nokian-blog.com/ BeerBong

    This Screen wasn’t after Reboot, right Ricky?
    i got about 43 MB or something ..

  • http://www.nokian-blog.com BeerBong

    This Screen wasn’t after Reboot, right Ricky?
    i got about 43 MB or something ..

  • chris

    RAM uses power to maintain data. Add more and you get lower battery life. Considering the poor battery life of the N95, they could not before to see any more power drained by RAM. As others pointed out, the N76 has so few features that plenty of battery was left to add RAM. (Note that flash memory only uses power during reads and writes, not to maintain the data, but access is too slow to use as a RAM replacement.)

  • chris

    RAM uses power to maintain data. Add more and you get lower battery life. Considering the poor battery life of the N95, they could not before to see any more power drained by RAM. As others pointed out, the N76 has so few features that plenty of battery was left to add RAM. (Note that flash memory only uses power during reads and writes, not to maintain the data, but access is too slow to use as a RAM replacement.)

  • Viipottaja

    Abhista, has there really been that many S60 phones announced after N76?

  • Viipottaja

    Abhista, has there really been that many S60 phones announced after N76?

  • Viipottaja

    Oh and even if there have, it does not mean their product development cycle did not start even before that of N76

  • Viipottaja

    Oh and even if there have, it does not mean their product development cycle did not start even before that of N76

  • http://n95users.com/forum pseudofinn

    So, based on the comment that RAM uses more battery power… and the fact that the US N95 is coming with a larger battery, any chance we’ll find more RAM in this model as well?

  • http://n95users.com/forum pseudofinn

    So, based on the comment that RAM uses more battery power… and the fact that the US N95 is coming with a larger battery, any chance we’ll find more RAM in this model as well?

  • Serious 60

    The biggest consumer of RAM on a device is the RAM resident code copied from the NAND.
    Symbian introduced demand paging into it’s latest kernels (Symbian 9.3 onwards).
    http://www.symbian.com/symbianos/demandpaging/index.html

    Demand paging drastically reduces the s/w footprint allowing more of the RAM to be used for data structures and bitmaps etc.
    Since S603.2 is based on Symbian OS 9.3, then we would expect most 3.2 devices to require less RAM/make better use of 64MB RAM.
    You can’t go after the same market segment as the Razr with a bloaty 128MB or more RAM.

  • Serious 60

    The biggest consumer of RAM on a device is the RAM resident code copied from the NAND.
    Symbian introduced demand paging into it’s latest kernels (Symbian 9.3 onwards).
    http://www.symbian.com/symbianos/demandpaging/index.html

    Demand paging drastically reduces the s/w footprint allowing more of the RAM to be used for data structures and bitmaps etc.
    Since S603.2 is based on Symbian OS 9.3, then we would expect most 3.2 devices to require less RAM/make better use of 64MB RAM.
    You can’t go after the same market segment as the Razr with a bloaty 128MB or more RAM.

  • Viipottaja

    Another theory is that is simply a matter of “product development and launch life cycle, logistics and supply chain” -issue, and that we will see same amount of RAM in pretty much all N-Series phones and perhaps most S60 phones from now on.

  • Viipottaja

    Another theory is that is simply a matter of “product development and launch life cycle, logistics and supply chain” -issue, and that we will see same amount of RAM in pretty much all N-Series phones and perhaps most S60 phones from now on.

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