Lack of memory on N8?

Looking at the AAS reviews of the C7 it shows the RAM figure as 250MB in the DeviceInfo screenshot which is the same as my N8. The C7 has a bigger C drive but this isn't the same as RAM.

I agree with JayTay.

I think you may be confusing RAM with ROM. 😃

ironass wrote:I agree with JayTay.

I think you may be confusing RAM with ROM. 😃

Yes, you are right... 😃

I'll rephrase the question:

Is the lack of RAM an issue? Other S^3 have twice as much.

stewart01 wrote:Yes, you are right... 😃

I'll rephrase the question:

Is the lack of RAM an issue? Other S^3 have twice as much.

Which ones? :con?

ironass wrote:Which ones? :con?

C7 has 350MB ( before boot up ).

still the wrong point here. all current Nokia S^3 phones have the same amount of RAM.

stewart01 wrote:C7 has 350MB ( before boot up ).

RAM comes in multiples of 128MB.

So I'm at a loss to understand where your figure of 350MB comes from.

See C7 spec's here:-

http://www.gsmarena.com/nokia_c7-3394.php

stewart01 wrote:C7 has 350MB ( before boot up ).

I am given to understand that RAM comes in multiples of 128MB.

Therefore I cannot see where you obtained the figure of 350MB from for the Nokia C7 which I have showing as 256MB on its spec's.

The same as the N8! 😃

Spec's for C7:-

Maximum User Storage
350 MB
Mass Storage Memory
8 GB
NAND Memory
1 GB
SDRAM Memory
256 MB
Memory Card type
Micro SD
Maximum Memory Card Size
32 GB
Maximum Heap Size
Unlimited
Maximum JAR Size
Unlimited

My guess, again, is that you are still confusing RAM with the User Storage Memory.

He's looking at the "Maximum User Storage" which on Wikipedia is described as "up to 350 MB internal memory"

JayTay wrote:He's looking at the "Maximum User Storage" which on Wikipedia is described as "up to 350 MB internal memory"

That would be my guess too JayTay.

Still, I'm sure we've all made that mistake once upon a time. :laugh:

How is it that the C7 has twice the NAND memory of the N8? Is it because the N8 has twice as much flash memory?

N8Owner wrote:How is it that the C7 has twice the NAND memory of the N8? Is it because the N8 has twice as much flash memory?

You're having a laugh N8Owner. :rofl:

No, really. The C7 has 1GB of NAND memory and 8GB of mass memory. The N8 on the other hand has 512MB of NAND memory and 16GB of mass memory. Why the difference?

At a guess, I'd say it's due to the long leadtime on the N8 from announcement to availability - the hardware has been ready for a long time whereas the C7 is a more recent phone, hence the CBD screen and the increased NAND memory.

That makes sense, def a possibility. So here is another: why do Nokia limit the amount of RAM they make available to only 256MB? Whaqt would be the additional cost at mass buying rates of an extra 256 or even 512MB?

I can't imagine it's a huge price difference but only Nokia can really answer that question. They're not the only ones that have been accused of skimping though - the iPad "only" has 256MB of RAM as well.

N8Owner wrote:No, really. The C7 has 1GB of NAND memory and 8GB of mass memory. The N8 on the other hand has 512MB of NAND memory and 16GB of mass memory. Why the difference?

The confusion was because NAND is flash memory.

in regards to n8owner, i would think that nokia isn't really planning long term availability for these handsets prior to announcing S^4 backward compatibility with the N8. 256MB of RAM may seem paltry by today's standards, but the OS manages it well, as it uses a relatively low ram footprint for its processes. Apps that are created, however, do not adhere to this, are often not optimised for both ram and battery usage, and often bring down the value of the handset (ala N97).

More ram = more battery usage, same as a higher cpu clockspeed, larger screen, etc.

I would think the E7 comes with 1GB die to the fact that it's targeted primarily as a business phone, and we all know Nokia's email simply loves being on the C drive. So, it's catered more for that part; attachments, downloads, C drive installs of office products (quickoffice, office communicator, etc. and the OS itself has some other enhancements security-wise which may or may not take up more space on the C drive itself.

jerm wrote:More ram = more battery usage, same as a higher cpu clockspeed, larger screen, etc.

I too have my doubt that why not 512Mb RAM(not flash) but so far I have no problem with few tasks together. This was not the case with N97. The sluggishness I've experienced occasionally is the apps network access to sites which connection are slow.

So we might like higher numbers but so far the N8 on the ground has proven no sweat.

Hi

Nokia C7 has 1GB NAND, compared with 512MB in Nokia N8. When the various allocations for services, applications, operator needs etc are taken into account, this leaves 350MB available to the user in Nokia C7, as shown in the spec earlier in this thread. The smaller memory in Nokia N8, combined with different allocations leads to less memory being available to the user.

Both of these devices have 256MB of RAM.

Just to be absolutely clear, Nokia C7 does not have ClearBlack display. It has the same display as Nokia N8, which already includes the polarising layer. Of the announced products, Nokia ClearBlack is implemented in Nokia C6-01 and Nokia E7.

After using N8 for a day, I'm quite surprised at how fast the N8 runs low on memory and starts closing applications:

I have Nimbuzz, Best Profiles, and Opera ( with a web page loaded ) running and I'm already down to below 30MB.. Run Google / OVI maps and applications are going to start closing - which is a bit inconvenient, since don't want either BP or NimBuzz to close unexpectly...

stewart01 wrote:After using N8 for a day, I'm quite surprised at how fast the N8 runs low on memory and starts closing applications:

I have Nimbuzz, Best Profiles, and Opera ( with a web page loaded ) running and I'm already down to below 30MB.. Run Google / OVI maps and applications are going to start closing - which is a bit inconvenient, since don't want either BP or NimBuzz to close unexpectly...

How much do you have on boot? i also have 2 homescreens, 8 widgets and with apps running in background (apart from opera, its too ram intensive) i still have 123mb free ram, if i use opera and only browse with one tab ram stays around the 100mb mark, i did max it out once when i loaded 6 tabs in opera mobile.

With Gravity, Mail, Profimail, Web, Joikuspot and Ovi Maps running I have 51MB free. That's with 3 homescreens with 16 widgets between them.

stewart01 - How much free RAM do you have after rebooting the phone?

JayTay wrote:With Gravity, Mail, Profimail, Web, Joikuspot and Ovi Maps running I have 51MB free. That's with 3 homescreens with 16 widgets between them.

stewart01 - How much free RAM do you have after rebooting the phone?

I got the same as Biggzy - 123mb.

Coming from E71, I'm surprised the memory drops so much. I never noticed this previously - apart from when running Opera - which does consume a load of memory.

stewart01 wrote:I got the same as Biggzy - 123mb.

Coming from E71, I'm surprised the memory drops so much. I never noticed this previously - apart from when running Opera - which does consume a load of memory.

It could be Opera that's the guilty party here. It may be worthwhile looking at RAMBlow or Swiss Manager Pro which can both free up "stuck" RAM left after having used the phone for a while.

stewart01 wrote:AI have Nimbuzz, Best Profiles, and Opera ( with a web page loaded ) running and I':redface:m already down to below 30MB.. Run Google / OVI maps and applications are going to start closing - which is a bit inconvenient, since don't want either BP or NimBuzz to close unexpectly...

After playing with various phones for the past 12 months, I can tell you the reason why Android and iOS requires high specifications

1) Prettier OS's require memory for all the graphics and transitions - including live wallpapers. Yes.. Unfortunately Symbian still doesnt have this and having 2 other Android devices, I can tell you how much this sucks down memory bandwidth and ultimately battery. Transition effects require CPU power!

2) Both Android and iOS use sucky "multitasking" - Its not true multitasking but the OS will leave the program running in memory. Most applications do not have a true "Exit" button and just stays in memory in a "frozen" state to stop resource contention. Again, this is a battery sucker and because it needs to stay in memory, the competitors all require more memory. The up side is that if you want to retrieve a program that you previously used, then it comes up very quickly and requires little to no loading.

3) OS foot print as someone has said before - is so much more compact on Symbian. The competitors use a redesigned desktop OS (iOS based on Unix Darwin and Android is based off a Linux core). Symbian has been an evolution from a palm based OS built for the smaller devices using less resources.

4) Android's Java engine requires a lot more overhead - when executing code. Most Android apps are written in Java that is not "native code" to the underlying hardware. In essence, everything is run in a "virtual machine" that demands that level of overhead. Android 2.2 improved this through the use a a JIT engine (Just In Time) that boosted performance by 50% or more.

lack of memory = Opera and Gravity as the culprits

Opera is a known memory hog and will chew through ram like there's no tomorrow when you start opening any page, let alone a second tab

Gravity starts eating up ram when you load links, load pictures, search, etc. It's not efficient enough that it releases the ram after usage to get back to the 'minimum required' amount.

Besides these 2 software, i'm not aware of other apps who are ram intensive

What you refer to as the C: drive is not RAM, it's internal storage. 🙄

RAM is where programs get loaded when they are run, it gets cleared when your computer/phone is switched off.

So to answer your question, yes, the N8 does not have as much internal storage as the C7, but the RAM is the same for both - 256 MB. I also agree that this might be a problem as you install more apps or save more SMSes (you cannot change the SMS store to the memory card as you could on older Symbian devices)