Is it a taco? No, it's actually a cell phone.
Who remembers Nokia's failure of a gaming device, the N-Gage? Or, more accurately, who doesn't remember that ugly handheld.
Props to Nokia for attempting something new back in 2003 when they released the first N-Gage, which had an impressive list of features and capabilities. But the N-Gage failed to pick up because of poor design; the buttons weren't suitable for anything but dialing numbers, while using it as a phone gave the appearance of speaking into a taco or pita sandwich. Not very attractive.
However, the N-Gage is not dead, as Nokia drags its legacy from the ashes of a horrible defeat and tries yet again to impress us with that Finnish ingenuity. Though the N-Gage's (re)debut was delayed twice already due to software issues, the service has finally been opened up to owners of Nokia's N81 multimedia phones.
CCS Insight analyst Ben Wood spoke to The Washington Post on Nokia's decision to relaunch a previously unsuccessful project; he believes the company is taking its first crucial steps into the "Web 2.0 services space," and it faces the challenge of getting the word out about this service while competing with established brands like Google.
The N-Gage service may also be downloaded to other supported Nokia phones, though the N81 would be my first choice.
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