Nokia's N97 gets sized up, felt up, and photographed
By Joseph L. Flatley 
posted December 15th 2008 10:05AM
posted December 15th 2008 10:05AM
You know what they say -- another day, another hands-on look at the N97. Although the folks at Mobile Review insist that this is not a formal review, they have been kind enough to post their extensive thoughts on the phone -- as well as more UI and comparison shots than you can shake a stick at. Overall, they seem to really dig the handset's design: sure, it's big (a shade larger than the iPhone), but it's well-proportioned, and doesn't seem bulky. And even though it's a slider, it doesn't have that "wobbly" feeling that sliders tend to have. Other features of note include a secondary camera that can serve as webcam and the 3.5-inch, 640 x 360-pixel screen, boasting 16 million colors, which they call "a true marvel." But that's not all! Hit the read link for thoughts on the new, improved music player, all those widgets that you crave, and comparison shots with the HTC Touch Pro, Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1, Nokia 5800 XpressMusic, and the Apple iPhone. Video after the break.
[Thanks, Imran]
[Thanks, Imran]
I played with this phone a fair amount over the weekend, its pretty responsive, the speaker quality is exceptional for such a small device.
But the user interface is rather poor. Does not even come close to the iPhone interface. Its the same complaint I have with the WM6.1 on my HTC touch.
I hate living in the North Eastern United States. The best coverage is Verizon, and no good phones support CDMA. This phone almost makes me consider putting up with AT&T. Oh well, living with crappy phones is the price you pay for being able to go to Engadget's shindig on Friday.
Don't you have to pay for a data plan whether to phone is subsidized or not?
at&t data plan for their smartphones is $30 and typically mandatory
at&t data plan for unlocked phones is $15 and is not mandatory.
You're welcome guys, I've been waiting a couple of days keeping my eye on mobile-review, I knew he was in the process of writing that review :D
Engadget's comments continue to endlessly deteriorate. The rating system has ruined the comment section. There's no discussion, only rank fights between fanboys of one company or another.
Stop crying about Engadget being for one phone or against another and just read the fscking article for a change. And please, go ahead and prove my point by low-ranking me.
I'm so definitely looking forward to this phone. I was already thinking of upgrading to an iPhone but was hesitant because I'd rather have a physical keyboard. Hopefully Nokia irons out the S60 on the N97 though.
www.jabjab.net
That video is such a scam! It is blatant false advertising as the fake computer generated phone interface is obviously not representative of the actual experience. The animations and transitions on the display are way too fluid and smooth.. Those couldn't even be rendered in real time on a PC!
Hm... Actually mobile review is a very nice and informative web site. If they take all this Cyrillic crap out of it, it would be really big!
Too bad there will be a new iphone out by then. And it will be ahead of everything else once again. People seem to forget that they started this trend and will pioneer many others.
....looks cool.......I'm hoping that with this series it will be able to use its USB port for recharging... Any word on that feature? .. current N82 owner....
We are all excited to grab this. Why is Nokia such a tease? Oh well, since we all have to wait, I don't mind waiting for the unlocked wihte version that is going to be released soon at http://www.puremobile.com/Nokia/Nokia-N97-White-GSM-Phone/ Don't worry Nokia N97, you'll be in daddy's hands soon.
I can't wait for this phone. One thing they can change before its official release is the camera pixel. They better make it about 8MP. More phones are coming out now with 8MP camera. They don't want it to be the only phone in 2009 with 5MP.
I own an N95 and an N800 and this phone looks to be a perfect melding of the two. From what I can see it looks like it's based on Maemo, not Symbian which is good/bad but I'm willing to part with whatever funds they want for this thing... ^ drooling ^
N95 is one of the most amazing phones out there and had features that the iPhone never had or will never have. Podcast downloads over 3G, finally on iPhone (a year later) and no I don't hate the iPhone - I have one, use it daily.
I just hope if it is based on Maemo, that the community grows quickly - the N800 is lacking in some of the critical areas (datebook, contacts etc)