Pop port
The Nokia Pop-Port was a proprietary hardware interface introduced by Nokia from 2003 to 2007 for the wired connection of external accessories to a mobile phone and for their data synchronization with the PC.
Until the introduction of the Pop-Port, Nokia - like competing manufacturers - had little continuity in the accessory connections. Devices that can be connected to the mobile phone, such as hands-free kits , headsets or data cables, are usually not suitable for another model. Even if the accessories had not evolved like the mobile phone, they had to be bought again when changing the mobile phone due to purely mechanical connector incompatibility. This fact was correspondingly cost-intensive for the customer, and the retailer also had to spend a lot of time with assortment.
For data communication with the PC, the Pop-Port connects the RS232 signal lines on older models and connects to the Universal Serial Bus on newer devices . In addition, the Pop-Port serves as an interface for the Accessory Control Interface (ACI), which is not publicly documented by Nokia, with its own protocol for bidirectional communication with accessory devices such as a multifunctional headset or an external digital camera. In a few models, the TV-out was implemented via the pop port using the Enhanced Control Interface (ECI). Accessories without their own battery can be supplied with energy from the cell phone's battery via the connection port. The use of the Pop-Port for the power supply of the mobile phone was not enforced at the expense of the hollow plugs with 3.5 mm or 2 mm outer diameter for newer devices.
Although the Pop-Port is equipped with a pin for the power supply of the cell phone or battery charging, there are no USB data cables available that would supply the cell phone with a data connection via the Pop-Port. Instead, USB data cables are offered as original accessories for connection to the barrel connector power pack socket, with which charging current is drawn from the USB host, but led out separately with a second connector. Nokia does not document the charging current with which it is charged. Unlike the equipment of such data cables associated with a power supply plug, not every USB host can deliver as high a current as the power supply unit belonging to the mobile phone, and even that only after special negotiation with the USB host controller.
The Pop-Port for analog audio (and video) has been replaced by standard-compatible jack plugs and for data transmission (and power supply) by standardized USB connectors, which Nokia has been equipping devices with in addition to or as an alternative to the Pop-Port since 2006. New Nokia cell phones are increasingly being fitted with a micro USB connector .
The Pop-Port name was registered as a trademark by Nokia Corporation Finland on September 3, 2002 (United States Patent and Trademark Office, Serial Number 78160116).