History tells us that Nokia launched the first model of its Communicator line in 1996, known as the 9000i. Its update had to wait two years, but the "Nokia 9110 Communicator" not only offered a lighter design to the public, but also made the leap from a 386 processor to a 486, swapping Intel for AMD. Today we come across Janus from the Janus Cycle channel, who decided to repair one of these phones…
A small detail from the world of cinema indicates that the first appearance of Nokia "smartphones" on the big screen was in the movie "The Saint", from 1997. In that story, Val Kilmer plays Simon Templar himself to foil the plans of a Russian oligarch and his son, and the Nokia 9000 Communicator (or 9000i) is part of his sophisticated gear.
Just a year after that film, Nokia decided to launch an upgrade for the 9000i, giving rise to the Nokia 9110 Communicator. The most important adjustments focused on reducing its weight (from almost 400 grams to 253), and the x86 processor change. That's right: the 9110 went from an Intel 386EX to an AMD Élan SC450 of the Am486 family, with a 33 MHz clock. Janus from the Janus Cycle channel managed to get one of these phones, with the goal of repairing it…
A Look at the 1998 Nokia 9110 Communicator
… but technology can be capricious, especially when it has 25 years on its shoulders. The first 9110 presented several failures that prevented a proper startup. Janus bet on a reflow process, seeking to restore the tin connections under the chips. Unfortunately, the phone did not respond positively to the "treatment", and all its previous signs of life disappeared completely.
Janus had his revenge by finding a second 9110 Communicator, working perfectly. The phone managed to boot all the way to its graphical interface and show the operating system, PEN/GEOS 3.0. If the name sounds familiar, it's because it has a very close link with GeoWorks, and Berkeley Softworks.
With an LCD screen of 640x200 pixels in 16 shades of gray and built-in backlight, the 9110 Communicator clearly aimed at a productive environment. This is reinforced by the presence of an MMC card reader (not SD), which simplifies transferring and installing software (as long as the card is compatible). The most impressive part is that the 9110 has a very hackable profile: entering its DOS mode is relatively easy with the help of an additional program, and Janus manages to play video… if we can call it that.
