Nokia N8 will be first phone with Dolby Digital Plus 5.1

A major player in the smartphone market in developing countries, Nokia has arguably been superseded by iPhone and Android in the west.

So its recently announced N8 is a direct response to the challenge mounted by its rivals, with the handset set to boast a 12 megapixel sensor for the camera.

Its specs have received a further boost, with Dolby announcing the phone will be the first to incorporate its Digital Plus 5.1 surround sound technology.

Nokia will integrate the technology into future devices too.

Sound partnership

"The collaboration between Nokia and Dolby brings cinema-like experiences to mobile," said Jo Harlow, Nokia's head of smartphones.

"The Nokia N8 is the first smartphone to offer a true home theatre experience with HD quality and Dolby Digital Plus surround sound by simply plugging the device into a home theatre system with an HDMI cable."

Offering up a superior visual and audio experience to its rivals appears to be the main aim of N8, with its OS Symbian^3 making both 2D and 3D graphics architecture its signature.

Defining HD

As a result, Nokia is billing N8 as the first true HD mobile entertainment device, the idea being to place the manufacturer at the front of the technology curve.

"Nokia is a market leader in mobile entertainment and we are delighted to be working with them to bring Dolby Digital Plus to the mobile market," added Dobly president and CEO Kevin Yeaman.

[source: Dolby]