Series 40 characteristics

Series 40 is a size and cost-driven UI platform for the mass market. A wide range of devices incorporating the Series 40 platform are available for all the major wireless standards. For information about available Series 40 devices, see the Forum Nokia Device Specifications.

The following figure shows a selection of Series 40 devices.

Figure: Series 40 devices

Display

The Series 40 platform supports the following display resolutions:

  • 128 x 128

  • 128 x 160

  • 208 x 208 (only on a few Series 40 2nd Edition and Series 40 3rd Edition FP 1 devices)

  • 240 x 320 (since Series 40 3rd Edition)

  • 320 x 480 (since Series 40 6th Edition)

The minimum supported color depth is 16-bit. Newer devices support color depths up to 24-bit.

The Series 40 UI is not scalable between landscape and portrait modes, but it can be scaled between different-sized resolutions. For more information, see section Scalability.

Input

Non-touch Series 40 devices include the following input keys:

  • Two softkeys (SK1 and SK2)

  • Five-way navigation keypad (four arrows and a selection key)

  • Call handling keys (Call and End keys)

  • Alphanumeric keypad with digits from 0 to 9 and symbols * and #

  • Power key (some older Series 40 devices use the End key as the power key)

The Series 40 platform also supports the following extra keys from 3rd Edition onwards:

  • Camera key (not included on all devices)

  • Push-to talk key (not included on all devices)

  • Volume keys

For more information, see the Series 40 UI Style Guide.

From Series 40 6th Edition FP 1 onwards, the Series 40 platform supports touch interaction. The Series 40 touch UI replaces the navigation keys and physical softkeys.

Touch-enabled Series 40 devices include the following input keys:

  • Call handling keys (Call and End keys)

  • Alphanumeric keypad with digits from 0 to 9 and symbols * and #

The physical softkeys are replaced by virtual softkeys.

Touch-enabled Series 40 devices also support the following extra keys:

  • Keyguard switch

  • Media key

  • Messaging key

  • Volume keys

For more information about the touch UI, see section Touch UI and the Series 40 Touch and Type UI Style Guide.

Memory

Series 40 devices handle memory allocation by using static fixed heap memory for Java. For most Series 40 devices, the maximum heap size is 2MB for MIDlets running in the foreground and 2.5MB for background MIDlets.

Series 40 devices support a maximum JAR size of up to 2MB. For detailed information about each device, see the Forum Nokia Device Specifications.

Note: There might also be device-specific maximum download sizes, which define the maximum size of content allowed to be downloaded to the device. In many products the maximum download size (for any content) is smaller than the maximum allowed application size. This means that it may be possible to install applications via PC suite, for example, where they could not be downloaded over the air.

On Series 40 devices, applications can be saved either in the device memory or on a removable memory card, if one is available.

© Nokia 2010.