Motorola ZN5

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R
RishiGuru
PZL
12 Dec 2009

Exceptional mobile phone. Actually I consider it to be the Motorola’s MASTERPIECE.

Motorola is known to manufacture mobile phones with rock solid built quality using top notch & expensive materials like steel, aluminum, mineral glass rather than glossy plastic commonly used by Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Samsung, LG. The ZN5 is no exception either; it is almost built in metal & has a thick mineral glass over the TFT display matrix which is excellent. The set looks a feels like a monolith.

Actually a very famous website www.smape.com did a durability test on ZN5 and in one of their tests they rode over the ZN5 lying in the road on a Honda CRV weighing 2.5 tones. The ZN5 passed with flying colors. Only the mineral glass cover over the display was broken but the mobile phone operated normally receiving calls, playing music etc.

The display in ZN5 is way ahead of the European contenders like Nokia & Sony Ericsson. Actually mobile phones which are manufactured in Japan by Japanese companies have exceptional displays & generally are way better than the European counterparts. Just think about top LCD screen manufactures of the world – Sharp, Sony, Panasonic, Toshiba, JVC,etc all reside in Japan. Whereas European mobile phone manufactures use TFT displays manufactured by local European companies, Motorola uses TFT display manufactured by Sharp Corporation of Japan.

The phone is all about the camera and it does not disappoint on that ground. Believe me, it is currently the BEST 5 MP camera available today, make no mistake about it. Only the Nokia N82 comes close. Motorola ZN5 is also the industry first to introduce VARIABLE APERTURE technology in the camera unit of ZN5.

The hardware found in ZN5 almost represents the hardware of a stealth fighter plane i.e. built to kill its opposition. Running on a Freescale MXC275-30 platform having 532 MHz ARM11 processor speaks for itself. Also it has two Image Processing Units (IPU) instead of one and thus can handle image & video much better than its opposition. Internal memory is 512 MB which is huge, also you can extend it up to 4GB with a microSD card.

Audio sound quality from the music player is awesome. Believe me some of the renowned Russian websites like www.smape.com, www.mobile-review.com, etc known for their thorough review have told that the ZN5 can challenge the mighty Apple iPod on this ground which, literally speaking is phenomenal for any mobile phone. After using Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Samsung I have to accept that ZN5 is the best when it comes to sound quality.

This mobile phone is capable of playing videos of very high bitrates (Higher bitrates means better quality) due to its 2 IPU’s & 208 Mhz DSP. Bitrates as high as 1100 kbps can be played easily.

R
RishiGuru
PZL
12 Dec 2009

Some technical details of Motorola ZN5

HARDWARE

Platform : Freescale MXC275-30, using patented Mobile eXtreme Convergence (MXC) Technology

Applications Processor : 532 Mhz, ARM11

Width of Machine Word : 32 bit

Level 2 Cache : 128 KB

Digital Signal Processor(DSP) : 208 Mhz . Handles digital audio (MP3), video data. Includes Symphony Audio Processor.

Image Processing Units : 2 instead of 1 resulting to zero shutter lag & high bit rate video playing capability.

RAM : 64 MB, SDRAM

Internal Memory : 512 MB, Flash EEPROM

ROM : 128 MB

User accessible memory : 512 – 128 = 384 MB

GRAPHICAL SUBSYSTEM

Display Manufacturer : Sharp Corporation (Japan)

Display Type : Color, Transflective TFT display, Transmissive Micro Reflective(TMR)

Display Color Depth : 18bit/pixel (262144 scales)

Display Diagonal : 2.4 inch

Display Resolution : 240 X 320 (76800 pixels)

Dot Pitch : 166.6 pixel/inch

Video Out : NTSC/PAL resolution, Proprietary connector

BUILT IN DIGITAL CAMERA

Sensor Type : CMOS

Sensor Diagonal : 7.1 mm

Lens Manufacturer : Carl Zeiss

Lens Material : Plastic

Lens Diameter : 3 mm

Lens view angle : 62 degrees (diagonal), 52.6 degrees (horizontal)

Focal Length :5.56 mm

Aperture : Variable Aperture (Industry First for Mobile Phones)

Aperture mechanism : Automatic

Aperture range : f2.8/ f5.6

Focussing Technology : AutoFocus

Focus Range : 30 cm to infinity, Macro – 10 to 40 cm, Landscape – 5cm to infinity

Shutter Type : Mechanical shutter

Shutter Speed : 1/60 – 1/1000 seconds in Auto mode

Zoom : 4x

Max Resolution : 2592x1944 pixels on the sensor, 2560x1920 on a JPEG file (the difference is due to image processing algorithms).

Dot size - 2.2um.

Camera viewfinder : 2.4 inch 320 x 240 pixels 262 k colors at 30 fps.

Flash Type : Zenon

Flash module length : 8mm

Red Eye Reduction : Yes

Video Capture : 176X144 pixels @ 15 fps

Image Capturing & Video recording software provided by KODAK.

OPERATING SYSTEM

OS Name : MOTOMAGX

OS Version : LJ6.3

Latest Firmware Version : R6637_G_81.03.0ER (as on 12/12/2009)

Firmware obtaining Website : www.opensource.motorola.com

VIDEO PLAYING CAPIBILITY

File Type : MP4 (most efficient)

Maximum Bitrate : i) Maximum of [ 1000kbps @ 29.97fps, 320 X240 video & 128 kps audio, NTSC]

ii) Maximum of [ 1100 kbps @ 25fps, 320X240 video & 128 kbps audio, PAL]

This mobile is capable of playing video files having 3 times the bitrate (350 kbps is the standard) than its competition. Thus the video quality is exceptional almost like High Definition Movies.

BATTERY : 920 mAh, BX50

R
RishiGuru
PZL
12 Dec 2009

The most recent firmware is 0ER & not 0DR. I am an member of opensource.motorola.com i asked this question to Dennis Deng(Administratior).

Which is the latest firmware?

Currently a month ago i updated my ZN5 (not the T-Mobile version) firmware by Motorola Software Update. After updation i found version to be R6637_G_81.03.0ER. I also found my bootloader version being 06.2A. Currently in opensource.motorola.com a newer firmware R6637_G_81.03.0DR is available. But when i again use software update it says no new updates are available. Also 0ER comes after 0DR so logically 0ER should be latest version but the realase date of 0DR is later than 0ER.

Answer : R6637_G_81.03.0ER is later software.The date the OSS source of R6637_G_81.03.0DR is posted to opensource.motorola.com is not the same as R6637_G_81.03.0DR software release date. In this particular case, R6637_G_81.03.0DR OSS source was posted later than that of R6637_G_81.03.0ER.
Dennis

c
cuong nguyen
vNX
11 Dec 2009

Anonymous, 10 Dec 2009which are the best firmware?0DR or 0ERI'm using 0DR firmware, which replaced an 0ER. I think the current one is much better, due to its image quality, speed and stability. but the audio quality is a bit worse (through headset)!

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Anonymous
LaA
10 Dec 2009

which are the best firmware?0DR or 0ER

M
MOTOFAN.IR
nsC
09 Dec 2009

cuong nguyen, 08 Dec 2009not sure, but motosurf a3100 is much better! sure!ZN5 is very good phone and great camera and with new firmware is pefect with faster speed

and a3100 is realy without any predilection is great phone

c
cuong nguyen
vNX
08 Dec 2009

MGV, 07 Dec 2009Is this a better phone than the HTC Touch Viva?not sure, but motosurf a3100 is much better! sure!

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Anonymous
nq3
07 Dec 2009

MGV, 07 Dec 2009Is this a better phone than the HTC Touch Viva?if u want camera phone zn5 is great
if you want winmobile full touch get a3100

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Anonymous
nsC
07 Dec 2009

MGV, 07 Dec 2009Is this a better phone than the HTC Touch Viva?zn5 is very very beter

m
motomen
ftx
07 Dec 2009

best of 5mp phone

0FR
07 Dec 2009

MGV, 07 Dec 2009Is this a better phone than the HTC Touch Viva?zn5 is camera phone and HTC Touch Viva is low smartphone with poor feature like 2mp or 200MHz cpu !!

zn5 have 530 MHz cpu and best 5mp camera phone and very good sound quality , radio , ...

my choice is zn5

but if you want get smartphone i recommend you buy moto a3100 or even a3000 very beter than htc viva with very beter features and design and realy great material and Assemble

M
MGV
P9a
07 Dec 2009

Is this a better phone than the HTC Touch Viva?

K
K.
nUZ
07 Dec 2009

No, "the highest SAR value for this device when tested at the ear was 0.86 W/kg.
As mobile devices offer a range of functions, they can be used in other positions, such as on the body as described in this user guide. In this case,
the highest tested SAR value is 0.51 W/kg".

a
ahmed
ptJ
06 Dec 2009

it has high sar rate 1.59

M
Miguel
LFy
06 Dec 2009

Can anyone explain me why in Motorola site it says that this phone has wifi but "data transfers only"??
What does that mean? How am I gonna be limited?

M
MOTOFAN.IR
nsC
06 Dec 2009

M. Fraij, 04 Dec 2009hi, is this phone can view the office documents (word,excel... moresome firmware have this ability

symbiosis 4 firmware :

(support RAW, 0ER-camera and QVGA video shooting).
- "Intellectual" CPU overclocking
- SWAP (from file or partition)
- Mgxbox, PEManager, zTaskMan.
Java-applications
- Sudoku
- Diamond Twister
- UCWEB
- Opera 5.0 eng
- Gmail client
- Read Maniaс
- Text Editor
- DocViewer
and ............

Symbiosis is monsterpack which includes the best firmwares’ features and the most useful software for Moto Zn5 all-in-one!

The main criteria for monsterpack: usability, speed, quality of photos, bugs absence and stability.

------------------------------------------------------
Zine Evolution v0.5 firmware :

+ Fixed bugs of beta versions (many thanks BeZ'u
Camera + 05R + Raw + Binned Raw
Turbo (script continuous CPU overclocking to 532 Mhz) [by Neomoto]
Added icons for certain file types in the file manager [thx Bez
New version zSettings
+ New version zTaskMan
+ HSA
+ Changed items in the menu "Options
+ New icons in the file manager
and .........

--------------------------------------------------
magx reloaded firmware :
QVGA Camera with RAW | Binnaed RAW Support
CPU 532Mhz during power on
NEW MgxBox
FTP&Telnet
UnionFS
Swap Auto Enable
EasyThemes
SDL Preinstalled in /usr/lib
Run Scripts from FM Opera Mini 4.2
Tetris
Sudoku
Song ID
Motorola SETUP
Motorola BACKUP
Motorola TEXT
Several Games
Partition Scripts
Custom Menu
Applications Folder
HSA Icons

........

D
David
Trm
06 Dec 2009

The story of Motorola has always been one of "the phones that look better that they really are." Bought one last week, it ain't bad, but coming from a smartphone i do miss being able to toggle between open apps more easily (task manager please) and the menu structure isn't great - more customization would be nice. And i'd like a better place to put my own installed apps. I do like the phonebook and the call records are bigger than what it says on the spec sheet. Currently i got 28 answered, 29 dialed and 21 missed calls. And i just love having call duration on all those. Symbian s60 still cant seem to get any of that right. What you get with little Motozine is a beautiful looking mobile phone with a brilliant camera and a nice sounding music player. 2.4 inch display is smartphone Nokia N series and E series territory, so thanks for that addition, its absolutely lovely. The 3.5mm jack is most appreciated, and TV out - thats a huge deal sweetener. Radio sounds good but interface sux - no manual tuning so if signal is not strong enough for the auto tune to pick it up, no luck for you! Wifi without 3g is a compromise which i think more manufacturers should offer - you simply don't NEED 3g coz in places where high speed data is costly - (like the UAE where i live) you simply wont use it - but at the office/ airport/ coffee shop / shopping mall and home, you can hook up a bit of wifi action.

I am also wondering - is there any you tube app that will work with this? I'd love to put my wifi to work a bit more. Also - which IM apps work on this?

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Anonymous
0FR
05 Dec 2009

M. Fraij, 04 Dec 2009hi, is this phone can view the office documents (word,excel... morethere is no onboard ofrice reader
but you can install sofwere for view office documents (word,excel,pdf ..)

m
motofan.ir
nsC
05 Dec 2009

Anonymous, 04 Dec 2009hey motofan, where are these test results with the rmaa sof... moreyes

read the zn5 review on mobile-review.com/en/
and
smape.com/en/

M
M. Fraij
3EV
04 Dec 2009

hi, is this phone can view the office documents (word,excel,..)?? i want to bay this phone but need to know about this option!? thanks

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