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Technology's here to make your game better, not to confuse you. Here you'll find explanations of the trickier techie terms associated with the mobile gaming.
Bluetooth Wireless Technology
This handy technology can be used to connect two compatible machines and transfer information between them. The N-Gage platform uses a wireless Bluetooth connection in many of its games to enable multiplayer gaming. It doesn't cost anything extra to play games over a Bluetooth connection, and it works over a distance of up to 10 meters.You can also use it to send an image from one mobile phone quickly and wirelessly to another - as long as they both support the protocol. In order to use PC Suite for N-Gage, Bluetooth technology must be installed on your PC.
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Dual-band
A mobile phone that can operate on two different frequency bands, for example GSM 900 and GSM 1800, which means that you can use it in countries and regions where these networks operate. The N-Gage QD™ game deck is a dual-band phone. See also Tri-band phone.
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EGSM
Short for Enhanced Global System for Mobile Communications, EGSM is an expansion of GSM. The EGSM operating frequency extends to 10MHz lower than the GSM 900 band. This means if the operator has access to this extra bandwidth, it can expand the network capacity. For you, it means that a phone that supports EGSM 900 (for example) works in areas where this frequency is supported by the network.
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GPRS
Short for General Packet Radio Service, GPRS is a GSM connection that transfers data in "packets", making it fast enough to do things like browse the Internet and access the N-Gage™ Arena. When you connect over GPRS, you're charged for the amount of data transferred, not for time spent on the network. In theory this makes it more affordable than other connections. For availability and pricing, check with your local network operator.
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GSM
GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) is a digital system that allows you to make phone calls. Different regions of the world use different frequency bands. The N-Gage game deck is a tri-band phone, which means it can tap in to the 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, and 1900 MHz frequency bands, which in practice cover five continents around the world. The N-Gage QD game deck is a dual-band EGSM 900/GSM1800 phone.
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Hot Swap
A new design feature in the N-Gage QD™ game deck that allows you to change game or memory cards without taking off the back cover. Just pop a game in and it begins automatically, and then slip it out again when you're ready to conquer something else.
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Java™
A programming language developed by Sun Microsystems, it's commonly used to write applications that can be downloaded over the air directly to your game deck or mobile phone. Both game decks support the downloading and use of Java™ applications, which are available both from Nokia and from third-party vendors. Some of the more popular apps are games, travel and language guides, and converters.
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MMC
Short for Multimedia card, these are memory cards that use flash memory to make storage portable among various devices, for example in some mobile phones, PDAs, digital cameras, music players, video cameras, and personal computers. N-Gage games are stored on MMCs, which is why they're so rich in sound and video. You can also buy memory cards to store your MP3 and other files.
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Multimedia Message (MMS)
A multimedia message can contain text, an image or video clip, and/or a sound clip. Choose from preset or received pictures or create your own to send, then just add text and send it as you would a text message. Remember, multimedia messages can be sent and received only with phones that support multimedia message service (MMS for short). You may also have to arrange activation of the service with your operator.
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N-Gage™ Arena
The N-Gage Arena is an online mobile community for gamers that can be accessed from a game deck or via the Internet. The most exciting thing about the N-Gage Arena is that it opens the door to massively multiplayer mobile gaming with thousands of players, without compromising on graphics or sound. Some games have N-Gage Arena features built in, so you can chat while playing, challenge another player, download walkthroughs, and lots more. The N-Gage QD game deck comes with the N-Gage Arena Launcher pre-installed, to make it even easier to access. Check out the N-Gage Arena section for more details.
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OTA (Over-the-Air) technology
As the name suggests, over-the-air technology enables operators to transfer data over the air to terminals and remote sites. If you send a message to your operator and they send you back some settings for your game deck, that's OTA. When you order a ringing tone or game by mobile phone, it's transferred OTA. Simple, really.
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Symbian Series 60 UI
Just like Microsoft Windows is an operating system for a PC, Symbian is an OS for a mobile device. The standards set by Symbian allow different devices to share information more easily.
The Nokia Series 60 user interface is designed for one-hand operation and has a large color display of 176 x 206 pixels. It also allows you to customize some of the menu features, so you can find what you want easily.
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SMS
SMS stands for Short Message Service, and that's exactly what it is. Also known as text messaging, SMS lets you send a message to another mobile phone or sometimes to an email address.
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Sound files (AAC, MP3, MIDI, WAV)
The N-Gage game deck uses many different sound file formats. When you want to listen to music, you'll probably use MP3. When you use the recorder, your files are saved as AAC files, which provide basically the same sound quality as MP3 while using a smaller bit rate. MIDI and WAV files are used for ringing tones (although you can also use MP3 or AAC files for ring tones on the N-Gage game deck). The suffix on the file name (.mp3 or .aac) tells you what kind of file it is.
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Tri-band phone
A phone that operates on three frequency bands, for example GSM 900, GSM 1800, and GSM 1900. A GSM tri-band phone can be widely used in Europe, Africa, Asia, North America, and Australia, because the same phone can be used in different networks using different frequency bands. The N-Gage game deck is a tri-band phone. See also dual-band phone.
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WAP
Wireless application protocol: an open international standard for applications that use wireless communication. The main application based on WAP is Internet access from a mobile device, which can be used for things like banking, email exchange, ticket purchase, and news services. Check with your local operator for availability.
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XHTML Browser
XHTML consists of HTML elements combined with the syntax of XML - which makes it better for sharing information across mobile phones, PDAs, desktop computers, televisions, and pagers. Wanna see it in action? Point your game deck browser to mobile.n-gage.com and check out our mobile site!
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