Dual front
Encyclopedia
Dual front is a design concept which allows a device to have two distinctive sides, one for each function. It is most commonly used in camera phone
s.
For example, having a mobile phone with a dual front for the camera encourages the user to hold the phone horizontally which reduces the learning curve because the buttons and functions are located in similar places to a common digital camera
.
The dual front concept began in 2003 when Sony Ericsson
started its camera phone range with the T610 and T630 which could be held comfortably in the style of a real digital camera due to its side mounted shutter button; they also had rear designs which loosely resembled the design of digital cameras. Sony Ericsson described the design of the T630 as 'Putting an end to phones having a front and a back, the T630 has two sides. One for the camera... the other for telephony...'
With the announcement of the K700i and S700i, Sony Ericsson introduced a new marketing term, "Dual front" to refer to camera phone where the "back" of the handset is styled as the "front" of a digital camera, hence the term of "dual front".
The market responded well to this design and Sharp
was the next company to begin designing dual front products, by producing a clamshell phone with a dual front design (Sharp 902). This had not been done before on clamshell phones as it was difficult to find a convenient location to put the camera due to the physical limitations.
Nokia
, after observing the continued response towards mobile phones with dual front designs announced the 6111
and the 6270
/6280 in 2005, all of which had a dual front element to them. They had also previously created a new design which involved the twisting of the top flip in order to create a camcorder
like display (as on the 6260). Whilst not strictly dual front, it was later elaborated more to form the N90
, N92
and N93
.
Samsung
's UpStage, released in 2007, features a new form of dual front design, where one side is the phone side and the other side resembles an MP3 player.
Camera phone
A camera phone is a mobile phone which is able to capture still photographs . Since early in the 21st century the majority of mobile phones in use are camera phones....
s.
Advantages
The main advantage of using a dual fronted device is the enhanced ease of use by having distinctive functions for each side.For example, having a mobile phone with a dual front for the camera encourages the user to hold the phone horizontally which reduces the learning curve because the buttons and functions are located in similar places to a common digital camera
Digital camera
A digital camera is a camera that takes video or still photographs, or both, digitally by recording images via an electronic image sensor. It is the main device used in the field of digital photography...
.
Use in market
Sony Ericsson
Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications AB is a joint venture established on October 1, 2001 by the Japanese consumer electronics company Sony Corporation and the Swedish telecommunications company Ericsson to manufacture mobile phones....
started its camera phone range with the T610 and T630 which could be held comfortably in the style of a real digital camera due to its side mounted shutter button; they also had rear designs which loosely resembled the design of digital cameras. Sony Ericsson described the design of the T630 as 'Putting an end to phones having a front and a back, the T630 has two sides. One for the camera... the other for telephony...'
With the announcement of the K700i and S700i, Sony Ericsson introduced a new marketing term, "Dual front" to refer to camera phone where the "back" of the handset is styled as the "front" of a digital camera, hence the term of "dual front".
The market responded well to this design and Sharp
Sharp Corporation
is a Japanese multinational corporation that designs and manufactures electronic products. Headquartered in Abeno-ku, Osaka, Japan, Sharp employs more than 55,580 people worldwide as of June 2011. The company was founded in September 1912 and takes its name from one of its founder's first...
was the next company to begin designing dual front products, by producing a clamshell phone with a dual front design (Sharp 902). This had not been done before on clamshell phones as it was difficult to find a convenient location to put the camera due to the physical limitations.
Nokia
Nokia
Nokia Corporation is a Finnish multinational communications corporation that is headquartered in Keilaniemi, Espoo, a city neighbouring Finland's capital Helsinki...
, after observing the continued response towards mobile phones with dual front designs announced the 6111
Nokia 6111
The Nokia 6111 is a mid-level GSM mobile phone released in late 2005. It sold in Asia, Europe, Australia, Brazil and in Mexico, but was not taken by any carriers in the United States....
and the 6270
Nokia 6270
The Nokia 6270 is a late 2005 quad band mobile phone from Nokia. It is based on the Series 40 third generation platform, and features a 2 megapixel digital camera with 5x digital zoom and a flash, 7 MiB of storage plus the support for up to a two gibibyte miniSD Card, and a 240x320 QVGA screen with...
/6280 in 2005, all of which had a dual front element to them. They had also previously created a new design which involved the twisting of the top flip in order to create a camcorder
Camcorder
A camcorder is an electronic device that combines a video camera and a video recorder into one unit. Equipment manufacturers do not seem to have strict guidelines for the term usage...
like display (as on the 6260). Whilst not strictly dual front, it was later elaborated more to form the N90
Nokia N90
The Nokia N90 multimedia is a smartphone with two displays and Carl Zeiss optics . It has a 2 megapixel built-in digital camera with autofocus, 20× digital zoom, integrated flash, macro mode and the ability to record high quality video . The phone has no vibration feature...
, N92
Nokia N92
The Nokia N92 mobile phone is one of the Nseries mobile phones from Nokia. It is Nokia's first ever dedicated mobile television device.- Specification :*Manufacturer: Nokia*Type: Smartphone...
and N93
Nokia N93
The Nokia N93 is a smartphone by Nokia especially designed for multimedia use. It was introduced in April 2006 and released in July 2006.The N93 has improved camera capabilities compared with the earlier N90. The phone has a 3.2 megapixel camera, Carl Zeiss optics and 3x optical zoom as well as a...
.
Samsung
Samsung
The Samsung Group is a South Korean multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Samsung Town, Seoul, South Korea...
's UpStage, released in 2007, features a new form of dual front design, where one side is the phone side and the other side resembles an MP3 player.