My N97 review
I had the chance to get my hands on the Nokia N97 which is supposed to come out in June. I am not reviewing the phones insides but mostly how it feels and how the phone performs. The firmware is the latest one so I had a good idea at what the phone will be like at launch. Although the firmware is the latest the case itself is not, you can see that the send/end keys have lighting problems and that will be fixed in the release version of the phone.
Phone design:
The phone itself is smaller in person. Having seen videos on youtube and comparing it in real life, you will clearly see a difference in the size factor. This makes it easy to put and pull out of almost any pocket (I wouldn’t expect you to put it in your back pocket for such a device). The phone is sleek and appealing, so expect some eyes looking in your direction when you have it out.
On the left of the phone you have the micro USB connector which is used to transfer data and also used to charge the phone so you can charge it while synced to your computer making it more convenient for business people always on the go with their laptop. You also have the lock switch situated in the middle of the side.
The right side you have the volume rocker and the camera button. Both easy to use and easy to press.
Top you have the 3.5 mm headphone jack so you can plug in your favorite headphones right in the phone.
Screen:
The screen is nice, at 3.5 it is bright and colorful. Now if you know this screen is resistive and not capacitive, so the screen feels pressure and not electricity like the Iphone. This could be a problem for people who have been used to the Iphones screen.
The N97 needs some pressure to recognize inputs and the plastic top of the screen makes it less smooth then the screen on the Iphone. But it needs less pressure then the Nokia 5800, which is good.
It is also slow when going through the menu which bothered me a lot considering how new of a phone it is. The processor is probably the problem running at only 434MHz
Interface:
The front screen offers a widget style homescreen were you can put your favorite app like facebook or the weather anywhere you feel like.
You can easily add and remove the app by clicking on the widget for a second and choose to delete it or replace it. This is a little like the Omnia HD but with a more user friendly interface and also a more organized homescreen.
From the main screen you can access to shortcuts like your alarm by pressing on the clock and access the network settings by pressing on the top right icons.
You can download more widgets and apps form the OVI store which just launched a couple of days ago.
The Menu is the same as on almost every N-series phone with the grid pattern organization. Easily changeable and has a cool animations.
GPS & Maps:
The Maps loaded quickly and goes to the last remembered spot you were at.
The GPS did not work because I was under a big roof. SRY
Navigating was easy and smooth, even when downloading unknown areas. It felt a little too much like google earth on the Iphone.
Camera:
The 5 mp camera feels a little improved over the N95. It takes the same amount of time to take the picture but the result seems to be more impressive.
The duel LED flash works great and will surely lighten up the scene. But Xenon flash would be the best and I don’t understand why high-end camera phones like the Omnia i8910 HD and the N97 don’t have it.
There seems to be some extra features on the side panel that I did not have the time to get to.
Keyboard:
The keyboard is awesome. A texters dream. The keys are easy to press and they are spaced apart enough for people with big thumbs.
The amount of pressure needed is a the right spot and you know when you pressed the key.
The space button is what bothered me at first. As you can see it is located at the bottom right. You probably can get used to it, but I couldn’t the time I was there, I always spaz out when I need to click space bar.
As you can see the lights on the send/end key is messed up and will be fixed on the final version of the phone.
Simple Conclusion:
The phone is great. A little slow, but feels good in the hand and the slide out keyboard is awesome. I would recommend this to people who like texting and want a Nokia phone that is sure to make a great depute when it is finally releases.
I have to add though that I haven’t had the chance to see the Omnia i8910 in person yet. But after reading some user reviews on the internet, it looks quite promising. And spec wise it looks much better then the N97.
You can check out more pictures that I took.
If you have any questions I will be in the Forum.
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smashed it lad! Good review
Expect all my reviews to get better. I just started this blog 1 and 1/2 months ago. I will certainly become a better writer and improve my video reviews.
is the keyboard backlit? and can you type(text) without using the qwerty keyboard?
Yes the keyboard is backlit when in the dark. The onscreen keyboard did not exist on the version I tried. But maybe that will be put in the final firmware, even if it’s kinda useless.
ahh so n97 seems like a disapointment, same camera, same os, crappy touch screen interface and tech, slow processor, no 3d chip no hD record
:(:(:(:(
good review straight to the point!
Wow nice phone.
yeah it’s probably as good as the n95 but 2 years late
I am wondering whether you reviewed an older version of the phone with old firmware because I have seen other demoes that used the onscreen keyboard. Also, I can't tell from the video that the phone is slow. In particular, the maps application starts up really quickly and switching between applications appears to be fast enough.
The owner told me that the firmware is to its latest but the casing is not as you can see. In hands the phone felt exacly like the N95, speed wise.
would you say that 700$ for this phone is justifiable if you are comparing it to the n97? I mean i really like the style, but the touchscreen Interface looks weak, and spec wise looks similar except its touch, and has a qwerty keyboard, how does the music player work? does it auto classify the songs by Album, Artist, etc? tethering is possible right? and how would you rate the S60 OS over WM OS? and is the phone sturdy? by that I mean if you dropped it or opened it over and over, will anything get loose quickly? and hows the speaker sound? sorry that's a long list lol,
Yeah, for the price I would not recommend it. Compared to other phones coming out like the Samsung i8910 HD, the phone is just not up to date spec wise and is clearly expensive for what\\'s under the hood. If the phone was $499 I would say maybe but still. The phone itself is really nice though and it is sturdy, so don\\'t worry about dropping it and breaking it. I did not have the chance to see how the speakers performed, but they are probably the same as the Nokia 5800 which is good. The music side of the phone is the same as the Nokia 5800 which is basic interface were yes you can classify songs by Album, Artist and almost everything that the Ipod does. If you have a WM now you will love the S60 OS. Simply because it\\'s nice all around and not like WM were you are presented with a nice homescreen but a crappy backside. From my experience, symbian is the way to go (thats why they are #1 in the world). If you have any more questions you can go to the forum and ask some there ( I just created it and it needs members
)
Nice review. Would like to have it but i'll go for omnia hd. By the way, how much is omnia hd in the US right now?
The phone I think will sell for $699 + tax and shipping =$770 from this website (http://www.mobilecityonline.com/wireless/store/pr... But I don\\'t know when it will come out. And that might not be the final price, maybe it will be more expensive
. Let\\'s hope not.
Omnia HD is looking around 800USD, N97 is looking to be around 600USD, spec wise, its a bit weak i have to admit, but the reason why im hating the Omnia HD is that it can't handle north american 3G networks, Im not paying that much for a phone that cannot handle 3G, waste of life. I own the samsung omnia which is WM and it wasnt the greatest, and im not a big fan of TFT touchscreen, I much rather prefer the Omnia HD or Iphone capacitative touch screen but N97 failed to perform. I guess we will just have to wait for the release to see the final specs, cause like the Omnia HD, there is no more HDMI port, and horrible sound, and loss the fm transmitter, all when it was "released", so lets see whether nokia took away anything or added a few surprises in a few weeks.
The phone is scheduled to come out in the US with US 3G capability. The FCC said it was ok to sell it in the US. The phone has no definite price for it but for me I\\'m getting the European model only because I\\'m going to France for college next year. For the FM transmitter I think that they took it out because of Orange and that the unlocked version will still have it (hopefully, thats a cool feature). Yo join the Forum I need members and we can talk some more. So head up to the Forum and post what you like (it\\'s still under construction but it should work fine). See you there
I had a chat with a Nokia rep just yesterday and was told that all Pre-ordered NAM version of N97 will ship in July, I'm not sure if the will be the release date as well plus I also called the Nokia Flagship store in New York as they said don't have an exact date yet when will they receive it and when will it become available for customer.
Just wondering if the 3G capability of Omnia HD will work in the US since the phone supports tri-band 3g (900/1900/2100mhz)…T-Mobile uses 2100mhz and AT&T uses 850/1900mhz….any opinion?
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seems like the Nokia pushed their June 2nd release to June 22nd, eitehr they were dumb and forgot the two or its just a delay ><
Omnia HD will not support the North American 3G networks, it the same problem with the Omnia i owned, thats one of the biggest upsets to a great phone, and I dont think samsung intends to release a NAM version of the phone either.
Yeah but the weird thing is that it passed the FCC and got approved not long ago (1 month or 2). That means that the device is allowed to sell in the US.
@Andrew, are you talking about the Samsung i900? if so according to GSMARENA (http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_i900_omnia-2422.p... that phone only supports single 3G band 2100mhz, Omnia HD supports Tri-band 3G (900/1900/2100mhz)….I'm not sure but it might work with AT&T's 3G (850/1900mhz), that's why it would be awesome if someone who resides in the US and buy the Omnia HD and post some review…maybe Tristan?…lol…if it does work then I won't have a second thought to buy this phone and if it doesn't then I guess I have no choice but to buy the N97
Yeah I\\'ll keep you posted if it works.
at first i900 was suppost to be quad band, and i've read a few post saying it does not work in north america, AT&T works similar to Rogers Canada, and they need BOTH 850& 1900 frequencies to get 3G, I really hope I'm wrong, because if i am, I want to buy the Omnia HD over the N97, but if not, I need a phone by the end of this month. So N97 at least promises 3G.
I'm waiting for Tristan to post some review of his Omnia HD when he receives especially the 3G capability, he's still here in the US and he's already pre-ordered it….. I can't wait so that I can finally decide which phone will I buy, I've been waiting for like 3 months now and I need a worthy phone that I can replace my N95 with
tristan, have you heard of the new omnia2 si8000?
Yup and I am already against it because of Windows Mobile. The phone itself is really nice though and the specs are on the high-end side. But Windows Mobile just ruins it in my though.
hey well written buddy but as you quoted its slow in processing does that mean the widgets will be facing any kind of lag in performance
Yeah when you add a widget to the homescreen, it takes time to install and to update. The 400MHz and the low RAM is what to blame. Sad that Nokia didn't put in a better processor and more Ram in it. You only have 50mb left after booting.
Is it GSM too?
Yeah it works with 2G and 3G networks. Thats if you live in the US and buy the NAM version of the N97.
I've just bought th e n97 and I now wish I'd got the iphone!