Nokia showed off broadcast mobile TV in its booth at CES, as new TV provider Modeo trumpeted that their 10-channel video system is "coming soon to your N-Series."
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That refers to Nokia's new high-end line, none of which have release dates in the US. Nokia's Modeo demo ran on an N92 handset, a little mini-laptop of a phone with a big, bright screen. We watched razor-sharp segments of CNN and Cartoon Network on the N92 at Nokia's booth. Channel changes took about five seconds.
The N92 and Modeo use the European DVB-H standard, but the mobile TV service may launch in the US before it launches in Europe, said Modeo's Matt Sturgill. The existing N92 needs two tweaks to work with Modeo's system: It must run on Modeo's 1.6 Ghz frequency band and play Windows Media Video format.
Modeo's system will go up against Qualcomm's MediaFLO, a similar broadcast TV system we saw demoed in LG's booth on a much more phone-style handset. Verizon Wireless has committed to delivering a MediaFLO-based TV phone later this year, but they haven't given concrete details. For more on Modeo's plans, pricing and strategy, see this Reuters story.
Nokia had several other non-US phones in their booth, but the one we zoomed in on was the mid-range 6103, which could be a best seller. It's an update to their solid 6101/6102 for T-Mobile and Cingular; they're durable, workhorse, good-looking flip phones with VGA cameras and Nokia's famously easy Series 40 interface. The 6103 version adds Bluetooth at the same price.
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