The year 2004 was rich in innovations and brought a lot of new products that we will talk about today. We have collected the best phones exactly 20 years ago and continue to talk about the world of mobile technology until the Apple iPhone. Progress was unstoppable, mobile devices were becoming more affordable and functional, and smartphones were no longer something unattainable, penetrating deeper into the masses.
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This phone is undoubtedly the best budget phone of 2004. The Sony Ericsson K300 offered great features and excellent software for little money. The device was able to work with MP3/MP4 files, which could only be dreamed of by owners of similar Siemens.
The built-in memory was also not spared – 12 MB for an inexpensive phone at the time was quite good. Competitors like Nokia and Samsung offered half the storage capacity for the money and couldn’t boast of as good Java support.
With a built-in camera, fast gaming, an infrared port, compact size, excellent software, and the best multimedia support, the Sony Ericsson K300 is definitely worthy of attention, even though it was released at the turn of 2004 and 2005. You didn’t have to buy something premium to be completely happy, because the K300 gave you a «combine» feeling in your pocket.
The Sony Ericsson K700 was an affordable flagship killer with a built-in camera. It was this model that laid a solid foundation for the future hit and the best push-button phone ever – the SE K750i. The phone was one of the first to receive a high-quality LED flash and a large amount of built-in memory in its class.
The 41 MB was enough for several hundred VGA camera photos and a lot of videos, and you could also install video games and programs without any restrictions. Platform Sony Ericsson A100 offered incredible features that were close to those of premium smartphones of the time. The K700 was distinguished from its analogs by smooth operation with 3D games and background applications.
In addition to the functional software, Sony Ericsson K700 had a luxurious set of interfaces, namely Bluetooth 1.1, FM radio and an infrared port, which had almost no restrictions, unlike other manufacturers. Despite the lack of memory card support and a small 1.8-inch display, the Sony Ericsson K700 was one of the most successful phones of the first quarter of 2004.
Along with push-button phones, Sony Ericsson developed a series of Symbian-based smartphones. A successful continuation in the form of Sony Ericsson P910 once again showed a significant demand for devices of this class. The phone is maximally stuffed: a 156 MHz processor from Phillips, 64 MB of internal memory and support for memory cards up to 2 GB!
In addition to a 2.9-inch display with a resolution of 208×320 pixels, Sony Ericsson P910 finally got a QWERTY keyboard, which was appreciated by business people who often corresponded by e-mail. There was also support for handwriting with a stylus.
A built-in camera, a top-of-the-line memory subsystem, a full set of wireless interfaces, a large battery, support for MP4/MP3 multimedia formats, a functional HTML browser and a huge number of applications for Symbian 7.0 UIQ – all this led Sony Ericsson P910 to inevitable success.
There were few direct competitors for this model, which had a positive impact on sales and allowed the company to grow in this direction, developing a series of communicators based on the Symbian touchscreen shell. In a year, the ultra-top P990 will be released, which will be the last successful solution in this line.
The real flagship of the company was not the K700, but the unique Sony Ericsson S700 rotary. In addition to its top features, this phone had a special form factor, because the top part did not slide out but rotated 180 degrees. It immediately attracted the attention of surprised people and seemed like a guest from the future in 2004.
In addition to the amazing design, it is worth noting the high-quality display with a 2.3-inch diagonal and QVGA resolution. At the time, it was perhaps the highest quality screen among push-button phones. There were no problems with memory either – 30 MB of internal storage and a memory card slot.
The 1.3 MP camera was one of the best at the time, although autofocus phones would appear only a year later. Thanks to the large display on the Sony Ericsson S700, it was a pleasure to watch MP4 videos, surf the Internet, or play games, and the Swedish-Japanese phones had no problems with this.
The rotary phone form factor was supported for some time because of its image status. Only touchscreen models with a capacitive screen stopped this trend. The iPhone buried all types of multimedia phones, forcing the whole world to copy their concept of physical interaction without keys, bringing all manufacturers to their knees.
This phone showed that the majority of the population does not care about technical characteristics, and the main criterion when choosing is the appearance. The most popular phone in the United States in the early noughties, the Motorola RAZR V3 became a real hit and a fashion icon until the Apple iPhone appeared.
The only technical strength of the Motorola RAZR V3 was the display, or rather two displays. A large diagonal and a fairly high-quality TFT matrix are good, of course, but fans of numbers in the specs table were not surprised by this. Apart from the VGA camera, 6 MB of internal memory and Bluetooth 1.2, there was nothing outstanding in the V3.
The main trump card of the Motorola RAZR V3 was its incredible design with a metal body. The aggressive style and 14 mm thickness did the trick – the device was swept off store shelves, because no monoblock gave such a cool effect as opening the Motorola RAZR V3 with a sharp wave of the hand.
It was after this clamshell that other companies, such as LG and Samsung, started promoting thin phones. Despite the presence of a lot of beautiful competitors, the Motorola RAZR V3 confidently holds the title of the best image phone of 2004 and for a long time afterwards it remained a desirable purchase.
The American company was aggressively attacking all market segments, so the emergence of a youth music phone with maximum functionality for a moderate price was inevitable. Motorola E398 is considered to be the TOP-1 music phone of 2004 and there are several good reasons for this.
The device had the best stereo speakers on the market, a functional music player, MP3/MP4 and memory card support. In addition, it was one of the first phones with a micro SD slot. It was loved not only for its excellent musical potential, but also for its balance in all other aspects.
The Motorola E398 boasted a VGA camera with flash, a fairly good 1.9-inch TFT screen, an HTML browser, and functional firmware that, although inferior to the Sony Ericsson A100 platform, offered more features than LG or Samsung software.
In the smartphone segment, Motorola also had its trump card in the form of a superflagship with the best features. The capabilities of the Motorola MPx impressed even the owners of the best Nokia smartphones. At the beginning of 2004, the functionality of this model was head and shoulders above the competition.
It was one of the first phones with an infrared port, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi at the same time. Communication capabilities are backed by the Microsoft Pocket PC 2003 SE operating system, and a 200 MHz processor is responsible for performance. There is 16 MB of internal memory, and an MMC/SD slot is available for expansion.
The Motorola MPx was distinguished from most typical PDAs of the time by its unique design and a top-of-the-line 1.3 MP camera with built-in flash. The form factor of the clamshell is no less interesting, and especially the method of its realization. It was the engineers of the American company who hinted to the Finnish ones to create the future flagships of the Nokia N Series.
The phone opened vertically like a classic «frog» and horizontally like a laptop. The combined keyboard allowed working in both modes, and it was complemented by a 2.8-inch touchscreen display. The Motorola MPx can be confidently considered one of the best Windows smartphones of 2004, which literally replaced a laptop on the go.
The incredible success of Nokia 6600 made engineers work hard to develop an updated version, which became Nokia 6630. In just a year, technology has leaped far and the new Symbian flagship received the latest OS 8.0, an updated interface, a twice as powerful processor and better multimedia capabilities.
There is only 10 MB of built-in memory, but it can be easily expanded using RS-MMC cards. The 1.3 MP camera is a major improvement over the VGA camera of its predecessor, and the trans-reflective display remains unchanged. It makes no sense to describe the capabilities of the Nokia 6630 because it could do literally everything imaginable in 2004.
Console-level games that Sony Ericsson owners could only dream of with their optimized Java machine, an open file system, and the simplest possible interface. The Nokia 6630 is not just a functional smartphone, but the most beginner-friendly computer in your pocket with the best gaming capabilities of the time
Symbian 8.0 was much easier to learn than Windows Mobile, Palm OS, or Blackberry OS, so Nokia 6630 became extremely popular. Moreover, Symbian 8 is considered to be the benchmark and the peak of the company’s strength because with the transition to the new kernel, things went downhill for this wonderful OS, but more on that in the next issue for 2005.
The Nokia 6260 laid the foundation stone for the future N series with a swivel display, as it featured a screen that could be rotated 180 degrees. The smartphone could be rotated to any position, including the shape of video cameras of that time. Shooting video in this way is quite convenient, although the camera itself was not surprising.
The manufacturer installed a VGA matrix with the ability to record video. Inside the smartphone is 6 MB of memory + a slot for RS-MMC cards. The rest of the multimedia features were on par with the Nokia 6600. Despite its poor performance, Nokia 6260 received a lot of attention from demanding fashion lovers. This stylish and cute smartphone spawned a whole trend and is considered the father of the legendary Nokia N90, N92, N93, N93i.
The Nokia Communicator series continued to develop in parallel with compact smartphones. The Nokia 9500 model was an excellent and compact update, followed by the cheaper 9300 version. The principle of the device’s operation has not changed, and it represented two separate platforms working simultaneously.
For calls and basic needs, the Nokia 9500 was used as a classic phone when folded, and when unfolded, the device turned into a mini laptop. The Symbian OS 7.0 interface in these models was modified and optimized to work with the ultra-wide 4.5-inch display.
The resolution of 640×200 pixels was equally impressive. The rest of the features were also on point: 80 MB of internal memory expandable by MMC cards, a built-in VGA camera, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, an infrared port, an HTML browser, and a powerful battery.
The Nokia 9500 did not claim to be a mass-market device, but it was in great demand among business and wealthy people. The mere presence of a device of this class in 2004 said a lot about its owner, namely the status, size of the wallet, and level of technical awareness.
The cheaper version, the Nokia 9300, had several technological differences. The smaller display, lack of a camera, and weaker battery did not become an obstacle, and the company later released the updated Nokia 9300i, which was in greater demand than the flagship Nokia 9500.
The phenomenal touchscreen flagship with the best screen on the market deservedly appears on today’s list, as it was literally ahead of technological progress. The Nokia 7710 appeared at the end of 2004 and had a space price, so it could not become a popular favorite.
The Symbian 7.0 touchscreen interface was modified to work with a large widescreen and was called the Series 90. Later on, this direction was almost not developed, so Nokia 7710 can be confidently considered the first and last successful smartphone of this class.
It could be controlled with a stylus or the navigation key. The system interface is small, so you can immediately forget about the comfort of working with your finger, as in modern smartphones, but it held a lot of information. At that time, touchscreen phones with large displays were valued among serious people, not among young fans of vertical videos on TikTok, as they are now.
In addition to the 640×320 3.5-inch display, the device’s hardware was no less impressive. At the heart of the phone is a 168 MHz TI OMAP 1510 processor, 90 MB of ROM, and an MMC memory card slot. A 128 MB card was already included. The multimedia capabilities had no limits — Nokia 7710 allowed you to watch movies, listen to music or FM radio.
The browser was one of the best on the market and supported Flash 6. The pre-installed office suite and a full set of useful utilities were used to view and edit documents, and the 1 MP camera produced good quality pictures for the time.
The Nokia 7710 was a compromise solution, as it didn’t have Wi-Fi, was expensive, and had a far from low entry threshold. The device competed with serious OS-based solutions from Microsoft and Palm, and after unsuccessful attempts to move into this segment, Nokia focused on push-button phones, which was a big mistake before the advent of the most popular device in history — the Apple iPhone.
German Siemens phones remained the real national favorites, as they offered the best functionality for the money. Unstable software, mediocre performance, and other nuances did not matter because Siemens CX65/CX70 were the kings of their price segment.
They decided to combine these models because they were almost identical functionally. The phone had 10 MB of memory, a large 2.1-inch screen, and a VGA camera that could record videos up to 30 seconds. Functionally, it appears to be nothing wonderful, but there is one serious advantage that made the Siemens CX70 a popular favorite.
The phone’s firmware was as open as you could imagine. The device has a built-in file manager, a generous set of pre-installed programs, and the best infrared port capabilities on the market.
The fact is that the Siemens CX70 (and other models of the manufacturer) were able to wirelessly transfer already installed programs and games. Even Sony Ericsson could not boast of this. It was the ratio of characteristics to price that became a decisive factor in the massive popularity of the Siemens CX65 and its improved version, the CX70.
A year later, the phone received another update in the form of the CXV70 with a dedicated key for the browser, and also had a version of the M65 with a protected case. All of them were popular among young people for obvious reasons — an affordable, functional phone that didn’t suit only MP3 music fans.
Phones with QWERTY keyboards were becoming more and more popular, but this made them too wide. Siemens engineers decided to outsmart the system by creating the Siemens SK65 with a rotary split keyboard. This unique design didn’t become a breakthrough or popular, but the courage of the developers deserves respect.
The Siemens SK65 attracted the attention of others, and the owner enjoyed convenient message dialing. Since the model was aimed at the corporate segment, it was not equipped with a camera. The rest of the Siemens SK65’s characteristics were at an average level: 2.1-inch screen, 64 MB of internal memory, Bluetooth 1.2, and an integrated email client.
Toward the end of 2004, the German manufacturer surprised everyone with one of the most powerful smartphones of the time. The Siemens SX66 was ahead of its time and made all other smartphones look like children’s toys. At the heart of the device is an Intel Xscale PXA272 processor with an incredibly high frequency of 520 MHz.
At the time, owners of top-end Nokia models could only dream of such a powerful chip, although Finnish models used a much lighter operating system. There is 128 MB of internal memory + an MCC expansion slot. The set of wireless interfaces included Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and an infrared port.
The Siemens SX66 featured Microsoft Windows Mobile 2003 SE PocketPC operating system, a built-in document viewer, a full HTML browser, a QWERTY keyboard, and a large 3.5-inch screen with a resolution of 240×320 pixels. The phone could be operated using a stylus or the navigation key.
Despite these characteristics, the Siemens SX66 did not become a mass market device because it did not have a camera, required good technical knowledge to fully utilize the system’s capabilities, and was too expensive for the average consumer. A highly specialized, compromise, but mighty smartphone that became one of the last premium products from Siemens.
Until 2004, the Korean company felt weak against Nokia simply because it did not offer good flagships, but the Samsung D500 changed everything. This slider became a one-stop solution for those who were looking for an image phone with maximum functionality and a luxurious look.
A huge 96 MB of memory partially compensated for the lack of memory cards. In fact, this storage was enough for most users at the time, as typical memory cards rarely exceeded 32-64 MB, and larger capacities were expensive. In addition to a good TFT display, the Samsung D500 boasted a 1.3 MP camera with flash and support for popular media file formats.
The Samsung D500 gained popularity not because of its good features, but because of its luxurious design, well-built body, and elegant appearance. The popularity of sliders has been growing every year, and the example of this model clarified that this form factor is best suited for high-end premium devices.
Despite the peculiar limitations of the software, the Samsung D500 became a real hit, which allowed the company to earn good capital to invest in new developments. This legendary phone received a direct continuation a year later, as well as a reincarnation in the form of the Samsung X700, which we will discuss in the next issue.
The company did not forget about the parallel development of handheld computers, offering top-of-the-line PDAs for business people. The belated Samsung i700 model was released with a significant delay in the first quarter of 2004, but it did not look outdated.
It was a pleasure to work on the large touchscreen with a stylus, as the display held an incredible amount of information. The best Symbian smartphones couldn’t offer anything like that, except for the Series 90, so Microsoft’s system was steadily gaining momentum in the corporate segment.
The smartphone received a swiveling VGA camera, a powerful 400 MHz Intel processor, a gigantic display, 32 MB of RAM, 32 MB of ROM, and a memory card slot. Functionally, the Samsung i700 could replace a computer, as it had Pocket Office and an HTML browser on board, although there were some serious compromises.
The Samsung i700 lacked a Wi-Fi module, so only 2G communication was used for communication. This smartphone did not gain much popularity, but it laid a solid foundation for a whole line of future Samsung hits, such as the i710, i740, i900, i8000 and other Windows Mobile smartphones.
The Korean Transformer was released in early 2004 and immediately became a media sensation. The unique design with a swivel screen and a huge navigation key attracted the attention of the press and fashion lovers, but not only for its appearance. In addition to its unusual shape, the Samsung P730 offered flagship features.
Inside, there was 64 MB of memory + RS-MMC card slot, a megapixel camera with CIF video recording, a large main TFD screen and an additional OLED screen. It was one of the first mass-market phones to successfully use an organic matrix.
Overall, the Samsung P730 was not a super flagship, but its amazing design, photo, and music capabilities (thanks to the memory subsystem) made it popular among affluent young people. The phone became one of the first and one of the last successful examples of combining a rotary and clamshell in one case, so it definitely deserves a respectable place in history.
This budget model with MP3 support became a real hit for LG at that time. Listening to high-quality music was costly at the time because even a good player cost a lot, as did memory cards. The LG G1800 turned out to be accurately what music-loving students needed, as it offered everything they needed for a very reasonable price.
The lack of a memory card slot was compensated by the built-in 64 MB of storage. The software was rather limited, especially disappointing was the lack of Java, although several built-in games were installed. The LG G1800 turned out to be a surprising compromise, but popular among music fans, becoming a real salvation in the period of expensive Flash memory and the inaccessibility of MP3 in the budget segment.
Basic functionality with mediocre performance was no longer a surprise at the beginning of 2004, but the Philips 755 had a serious trick up its sleeve in the form of a touchscreen with a proprietary stylus. The small size of the display did not prevent you from drawing accurately and sending your images via MMS, e-mail or infrared.
Before that, photos taken with the VGA camera could be edited by adding something like a signature, a mustache for a friend, or a heart for a loved one. The Philips 755 was a great budget solution with adequate functionality, ample internal memory, and incredible creativity — in addition to the drawing program, this model had a built-in music composer.
A few years would pass and resistive displays would become more popular, manufacturers would abandon keys in favor of a large screen area, and then the phone that changed the world, the Apple iPhone, would appear. The problem with the early «competitors» iPhone was that it was inconvenient to use a touchscreen display without keys, and the Philips 755 successfully combined the two input methods.
Despite the popularity of the notional Nokia 5800 (2008), it was terrible to use, which is not the case with the successful Philips series. For some time, the company produced models similar to the Philips 755, which were in demand among young people. Despite the mediocre performance, it was prestigious to have such a device at the time, and most importantly, not too expensive.
The Blackberry 8700c didn’t offer top multimedia features, but it was considered the best device for email. In 2004, QWERTY keyboards were rarely installed by other manufacturers, so Blackberry was confidently selling in this segment. At the end of 2004, Blackberry 8700c was released with a huge 2.6-inch screen with a resolution of 320×240 pixels.
In addition to the functions of an Internet communicator, the Blackberry 8700c was one of the fastest smartphones in its class, as it was equipped with a top-end Intel PXA901 312 MHz processor and 16 MB of RAM. 20 years ago, there was no device that could directly replace the Blackberry 8700c, especially the comfortable keyboard (except for Palm).
The incredible success of «Blueberry» made manufacturers reconsider their plans, so very soon there will be many analogues from well-known companies in a similar form factor. We’ll talk about Samsung i320, Nokia E61 and other QWERTY hits in the next issue, but for now, it’s worth mentioning another top device with a full keyboard.
This model is considered to be the most successful Palm phone of all time. After its predecessor Treo 600, it received an incredible performance boost, an improved screen, and a newer version of the operating system. The Palm Treo 650 had a few technical shortcomings, but was in demand due to the excellent combination of software and hardware.
The presence of a gigantic library of Palm OS software made the Palm Treo 650 a real multimedia combine and office machine in one. The smartphone digested any multimedia formats of the time, and watching videos on the 190 PPI screen was a real pleasure.
The built-in memory of 23 MB could be expanded up to 2 GB with SD cards, which allowed you to store thousands of photos and tens of hours of video from the VGA camera. The Palm Treo 650 finally got a Bluetooth module, which was so lacking in the previous model, but there was still no Wi-Fi.
The legendary Palm Treo 650 was distinguished from its Symbian and Windows Mobile competitors by the perfect combination of a QWERTY keyboard and touch screen. Most analogs did not offer anything like this, and Palm OS can be used as you like, with fast typing on the keyboard. It’s a pity that it never got a decent sequel a year later.
In a year or two, competitors will realize all the advantages of this form factor and bring their models to the market, which we will definitely mention in the next issue. The Palm Treo 650, along with its predecessors, gave rise to a whole class of devices that could have become dominant if not for the emergence of the Apple iPhone, but three years before its release, no one was worried about a potential threat from the apple company.
Back then, the market lived by different concepts, producing devices for a specific target audience based on consumer needs. It was a time when smartphones were truly smart devices for smart people, not for endless consumption of content on a large touchscreen that contributes to the development of attention deficit disorder, depression, and addiction to small doses of dopamine.
In the next issue of 2005, we’ll take a look at the most interesting models and talk about hard drives in phones, the reasons for Symbian’s collapse with the transition to a new kernel, and the revolution in mobile photography led by the best proprietary phone ever made.