US version of the Nokia N95: what we know

We contacted Nokia in the US about the rumored US N95, but they told us that "Nokia does not comment on unannounced products". But that hasn't stopped some of the information about the supposed upcoming version of Nokia's flagship N series from leaking out, and Symbian bloggers Darla Mack and Symbian Guru seem to have one of them already, and have a taken an number of side-by-side shots showing the differences. So, based on the information released so far, here's what we know so far about the US N95. However, bear in mind that this information is unconfirmed until we get the definitive details from Nokia.

- The US N95 is a GSM phone, and will support the HSDPA category 6 standard, which means it could download data at up to 3.6 megabits per second on AT&T's network (T-Mobile, the other national GSM carrier, have not yet rolled out their high-speed network). It won't work with T-Mobile's high speed network, though; they went straight to the even faster UMTS standard, which isn't compatible.

- Unfortunately, they seem to have taken out the HSDPA 2100Mhz support, so if you use it in Europe, you'll only get EDGE data access, which is slow.

- The US N95 will have a larger battery than the existing N95; a 1200mAh battery replaces the 950 mAh one on previous models. Given the lackluster results in our review (with a music playback battery life of just 5 hours and 40 minutes, that's a good thing.

- The RAM in the US N95 has apparently been increased to 128MB.

- The US 95 has a slightly redesigned case, with larger media buttons.

- There is no longer a sliding cover for the bigger camera, but the lens has been recessed. We'll reserve judgement on this until we get one in to test, but the concern is that this will make the lens more prone to scratching and getting grungy.

-Symbian Guru also claims that the US N95 will come with a 1GB MicroSD card; a welcome increase from the 512MB one that was sent with previous models.

- There have been no announcements of carriers, so it looks like Nokia will  be selling the phone as an unlocked phone that can be used on AT&T's network. So, don't expect it to be cheap; without a carrier subsidy, we would anticipate that it will cost at least $600.