Nokia N96 gets put through its paces

We've already seen Nokia's new N96 up-close and unboxed, but if you're looking for a bit more information before your potential purchase, you may want to head over to All About Symbian, which has a few first impressions of the phone. Among other things, its contributor found the screen to be "great," even outdoors, and the overall build quality is described as "good," if a bit "plasticky." He also found the music quality to be especially good over Bluetooth/A2DP, and from the built-in speakers as well, which are apparently "very loud." On the downside, the camera shutter key proved to be a bit stiff, and some of the third-party applications like ProfiMail were to be a bit buggy, as was Nokia's Switch app when attempting to transfer data from an E90 to the N96. Hit up the link below for a few more details, and some sample photos taken with the N96's camera.

[Chad @ Sep 5th 2008 2:34PM]

General feeling..... eh....

[Anthony @ Sep 5th 2008 4:21PM]

No kidding. As a big fan of the original N95, then "upgrading" to the N95 8gb only to settle on the N82 I just don't see the need for this phone. It's like lipstick treatment. I'm not impressed. Tube or 5800 could reignite my interest, but we'll see.

[iPhoner @ Sep 5th 2008 6:24PM]

Lame get an iPhone http://www.iphone-hacks.com

[Mark Anderson @ Sep 5th 2008 7:05PM]

@iPhoner

Kill yourself.

Thank you.

[doomster @ Sep 5th 2008 2:42PM]

As this is a phone article I assume we'll be getting a bunch of apple retards pretty soon. So just for them:

http://www.theonion.com/content/news/local_idiot_to_post_comment_on

[chickenator @ Sep 5th 2008 3:14PM]

*yawn*

[Apple Rep. @ Sep 5th 2008 3:48PM]

*yawn*

[huh @ Sep 5th 2008 2:50PM]

As a current n95 owner, I have just one word: Yawn. Nokia's products and approach to products are past its sell-by date. An expensive mobile computer is not a fashion trendy disposable item, it and its consumers should be maintained seriously. Hopefully they will learn from their shrinking market share, but from what I've seen, I doubt it.

[Apple Rep. @ Sep 5th 2008 3:49PM]

you forget to mention nokia stock is down like 20%..

i ranked you up anyway :)

[DaveHimself @ Sep 5th 2008 2:54PM]

Headline by Toki Wartooth

[Randy @ Sep 5th 2008 3:07PM]

This device might have been a hot item a year ago.

[L.Rawlins @ Sep 5th 2008 3:18PM]

You speaketh the truth...eth.

[kittenman @ Sep 5th 2008 3:54PM]

u really mean 2 years ago?

[dvsbstrd @ Sep 5th 2008 3:28PM]

At first glance, I thought the LCD was cracked.

[Apple Rep. @ Sep 5th 2008 3:47PM]

anyone else think this screen quality looks like junk? maybe its the camera...

unless... it took a picture of itself... and then space and time would eat itself... o0o0o

[Mark Granger @ Sep 5th 2008 4:14PM]

I love the sample pictures on these phones. They are always showing locations where it would be absolutely impossible to get a digital cell signal. This one takes the cake. They may as well show a picture of the Mars rovers.

[AJC @ Sep 5th 2008 4:13PM]

Such a nice set a features. Its just not very fun to use :/

[diego cruz @ Sep 5th 2008 4:21PM]

the picture is from chile

[BFish @ Sep 5th 2008 4:28PM]

According to Nokia press release this phone was supposed to cost 550€ + VAT.
In Finland VAT is 22% and Nokia sells n96 @949€ in their finnish internet shop:
http://kauppa.nokia.fi/nokia-fi/product.aspx?sku=3881443&culture=fi-FI

Not the first Nokia model having completely different prices what they keep announcing, scammers....

[Jubei @ Sep 5th 2008 4:36PM]

It is of no wonder that many financial publications are reporting market share loss for Nokia.

[Poom @ Sep 5th 2008 4:56PM]

I do not know why someone would get this phone when the N85 has been announced... It has less battery, so much bigger, and the only advantage is the DVB-H that can only be used in some countries and 16GB flash memory.

[Cryogenicstudios @ Sep 5th 2008 4:58PM]

This plastic-y build quality is upsetting. I had an N78, and hated the horrible plastic-y feel to it, and it squeaked when I tried to type on it, it felt like a child's toy that might shatter into pieces if i dropped it.

[Shinigami @ Sep 5th 2008 5:07PM]

Did anyone else notice that scary face on the screen behind the mountains? Is it a build-in thing that comes with the phone? No, thanks, I don't want a phone that creeps me out.
Just kidding xD the face is between the mountains, you can clearly see an eye near the left mountain on the blue sky.

[Mark Anderson @ Sep 5th 2008 7:07PM]

Six months too late. No-one cares anymore.

[iphonerulez @ Sep 5th 2008 9:32PM]

The end is near. Gobbled up market share and overpriced products are not going to help Nokia. It's a nice product, but there may be a dearth of buyers in this economy.

[Imran @ Sep 6th 2008 6:41AM]

Oh well, I'm sure these potential buyers will go for one of the many other N Series devices instead, nice thing, choice.

[willyboy @ Sep 5th 2008 9:45PM]

Too many buttons.

[Michael Scrip @ Sep 6th 2008 2:02AM]

Yet... no QWERTY keyboard!

[Aditya @ Sep 6th 2008 9:09AM]

Damn!!!
As Apoc said...

Two years of pointless developing? What they did? It looks like they treated N95 with some cheap Chinese steroids and therefore we got a strange mutant a hybrid between the N95 and N81!???? Do you know what you get when you try to mate horse and donkey!???? Horse dam + donkey sire = MULE!!!!

So the n96 is a mule

[KRIS_C_123 @ Sep 6th 2008 11:11PM]

if this phone looked and was the same size as a nokia N85 (and same price as) then it would be a must buy for me,
but since it isnt any of those 3 im going to get the N85.

it has pretty much the same features apart from screen size and that freeview built in thing but its like 200 pounds dearer (pound sign wont work)

[arni @ Sep 7th 2008 6:15PM]

everybody, STOP making everyone of your new flagship models look like the iphone. first, it is not very original, second, who even said that it looked good at all?
i think its by far too much glamour with that silverish outline. just stop beliving that the iphone is so successful because its black.
THIS IS SO F*ING SAD.

[KRIS_C_123 @ Sep 9th 2008 3:15PM]

it looks nothing like the iphone, at all