This article is about the smartphone. For the mobile gaming service, see N-Gage (service)
The N-Gage is a smartphone combining features 🍐 of a mobile phone and a handheld game system developed by Nokia, announced on 4 November 2002 and released on 🍐 7 October 2003.[2] It runs the original Series 60 platform on Symbian OS v6.1.
N-Gage attempted to lure gamers away from 🍐 the Game Boy Advance by including telephone functionality. This was unsuccessful, partly because the buttons, designed for a telephone, were 🍐 not well-suited for gaming. The original N-Gage was described as resembling a taco, which led to its mocking nickname "taco 🍐 phone".[4][7][8]
Nokia introduced the N-Gage QD in 2004 as a redesign of the original "Classic" N-Gage, fixing widely criticized issues and 🍐 design problems. However, the new model was unable to make an impact, and with only 2 million units sold in 🍐 its two years, the N-Gage and its QD model were a commercial failure, unable to challenge their Nintendo rival.[9]
The N-Gage 🍐 was discontinued in February 2006, with Nokia moving its gaming capabilities onto selected Series 60 smartphones. This was announced as 🍐 the N-Gage platform or "N-Gage 2.0" in 2007, carrying on the N-Gage name.[10][11]