Nokia N97

[Digitalx]

Just been keeping up with news on Nokia N97 and it got me to thinking maybe how many people on neowin are interested in it and will probably buy one now they are shipping to 75 countries during June ?

Since features and whatnot are all out and known and stuff and having followed it since announcement I quite honestly think this will be a killer phone/mobile device. Why do i think this ? well to sum it up pretty much starting with hardware.. It has good quality touch screen along with a really nice designed keypad which is well spaced and easy to use. Now kudos to HTC no doubt for nearly matching it with the Touch Pro 2. Next I believe the hardware features mixed with Symbian S60 5th edition which a lot of people possibly dislike in comparison to mobile OSX, Winmo, android etc I just see it as being great software as it has all the incentives of good quality mobile entertainment and things while also retaining quality and features for doing business stuff it's also bringing the widget approach which will be interesting alongside the Ovi store and services. It also lacks multi touch which i can understand some people would be dissapointed in but imo for mobile phone management/operation multi touch isn't exactly necessary.

Over all imo though, I believe it's the best phone so far to 'nail it' so to speak in terms of use, quality, features etc

If anyone here gets one very soon or already has got an early one would be good if could do a neowin review. Personally i'll be trying to get hold of one once they come down here (hopefully they can get hold of white/silver one) it will sure as hell be a good upgrade from the rubbish nokia 6101 I have now and be first step into high end phones.

So what are your guys views on it in comparison fairly to other competitive devices and things ?

[PT 13]

I thing for what it is, it's just too overpriced...

It's just a 5800 with physical keyboard (which IMO is useless), and a 5MP camera :|

But it's still a great phone

[troist]

Have we got a release date?

[Digitalx]

I thing for what it is, it's just too overpriced...

It's just a 5800 with physical keyboard (which IMO is useless), and a 5MP camera

But it's still a great phone

I can understand why some people may see it that way but to me personally the keypad is a huge addition because at the end of the day i hate typing on my ipod touch and traditional numeric keypad is just a pain in the bum specially for things like email and SMS and whatnot. The 5800 has a resistive touch screen and the N97 is using a capacitive touch screen which improves its general use quality so don't need to use a stylus too.

Have we got a release date?

It's dependant on carriers and their deals but as you can see in video and latest news it's shipping now to them so it'll be during June just specific dates will be arbitrary based on carriers choice of launch or could be even longer if they choose to stock pile and build up marketing and things.

[PT 13]

I can understand why some people may see it that way but to me personally the keypad is a huge addition because at the end of the day i hate typing on my ipod touch and traditional numeric keypad is just a pain in the bum specially for things like email and SMS and whatnot. The 5800 has a resistive touch screen and the N97 is using a capacitive touch screen which improves its general use quality so don't need to use a stylus too.

Yeah the physical keyboard is good for some people not so useful for others :( I type very well and with no mistakes on the "digital" keyboard of my 5800.

If you like physical keyboard than the N97 is definitely a great phone :)

[Unto Darkness]

I thing for what it is, it's just too overpriced...

It's just a 5800 with physical keyboard (which IMO is useless), and a 5MP camera :|

But it's still a great phone

Actually, it should also feature an improved interface over the Nokia 5800. The Nokia 5800 was somewhat a guinea pig for Nokia to test their touch interface. The interface for the N97 may be a refined version.

Have we got a release date?

You could get it from the official Nokia store on June 19. You could pre-order it now.

Edited June 3, 2009 by Unto Darkness

[starburst1980]

physical keyboard (which IMO is useless

You have no idea what a keyboard on a mobile phone feels like do you? :rolleyes:

For me its this vs Nokia E75 ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nokia_E75 ). I have its predecessor which is the Nokia E70 which Ive had GREAT results with (except low RAM) But not sure which to get. The N97 pretty much whips its ass in every area EXCEPT the E75 has GPS. It wouldnt be a major problem as I dont use GPS much and I have a Bluetooth GPS module which I currently use with my Nokia E70.

[troist]

Physical keyboards are soooo much better! I currently have a Blackberry Bold, and I absolutely hate having to type things in on my iPod Touch or the predecessor to my Bold (a BB Storm which was taken back after a week :p). Touch screens are ok for typing the odd word, but try typing a 100 word text, or even just a sentence and I'm sure it'll be easier on a physical keyboard. Physical is just better...

Edit: The N97 doesn't have GPS? As the next step from the N95/96 surely it must have GPS?! :(

[Digitalx]

Yeah the physical keyboard is good for some people not so useful for others :( I type very well and with no mistakes on the "digital" keyboard of my 5800.

If you like physical keyboard than the N97 is definitely a great phone :)

That's one of the big upside to it as it's got the use of both/either or sort of thing. That's one of the big things when it comes to as i say nailing it.

Actually, it should also feature an improved interface over the Nokia 5800. The Nokia 5800 was somewhat a guinea pig for Nokia to test their touch interface. The interface for the N97 may be a refined version.

Yeah it's a slightly more refined version of S60 5th over 5800 that's true it was pretty much true i think that's where they learned the harsh reality of resistive touch screens like blackberry did.

I was tempted to just go and get a 5800 now but i really do want a good keypad so much i've waiting since december for it.

Another big up side to it i believe is it will be the largest capacity in terms of storage for any mobile SSD device i think which will eventually max out at 64GB. (32GB internal + 32GB MicroSDHC support eventually - will support 16GB MicroSDHC from release with 48GB capacity.)

Edit: The N97 doesn't have GPS? As the next step from the N95/96 surely it must have GPS?! sad.gif

N97 has full A-GPS support and nokia maps included + Ovi store downloadable maps. :)

[starburst1980]

Thank god it has a standard 3.5mm headphone port. And (from what I see) a standard USB cable connector?

[PT 13]

You have no idea what a keyboard on a mobile phone feels like do you? :rolleyes:

For me its this vs Nokia E75 ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nokia_E75 ). I have its predecessor which is the Nokia E70 which Ive had GREAT results with (except low RAM) But not sure which to get. The N97 pretty much whips its ass in every area EXCEPT the E75 has GPS. It wouldnt be a major problem as I dont use GPS much and I have a Bluetooth GPS module which I currently use with my Nokia E70.

Yep, I had a E61... It was just a personal opinion, but it just takes up space. I can type perfectly on the "digital" keyboard of the 5800. And usually I even use the handwriting recognition which works great :)

The N97 has GPS...

[starburst1980]

A-GPS and GPS are NOT the same thing. GPS is the actual tech. A-GPS just emulates it using cheap things like GSM tower calculations. AFAIK, it does not have GPS while the Nokia E75 does.

(I may be confused so please someone clear it up for us :) )

[Digitalx]

Thank god it has a standard 3.5mm headphone port. And (from what I see) a standard USB cable connector?

Correct and Micro USB standard connector charger yes and comes with an adapter to use legacy nokia both larger and small pin chargers to micro USB to charge on hand.

A-GPS and GPS are NOT the same thing. GPS is the actual tech. A-GPS just emulates it using cheap things like GSM tower calculations. AFAIK, it does not have GPS while the Nokia E75 does.

A-GPS is cell tower assisted GPS. In nut shell it uses Cell tower cordinates to help speed up GPS location which is same as traditional GPS just faster :)

Yep, I had a E61... It was just a personal opinion, but it just takes up space

Fold away keypad ftw ;)

[starburst1980]

Just for a sneak preview: http://www.gsmarena.com/nokia_e75-review-342.php

[PT 13]

A-GPS and GPS are NOT the same thing. GPS is the actual tech. A-GPS just emulates it using cheap things like GSM tower calculations. AFAIK, it does not have GPS while the Nokia E75 does.

(I may be confused so please someone clear it up for us :) )

No they are not the same thing...

A-GPS = GPS + Assistance via network

From wikipedia:

Assisted GPS, generally abbreviated as A-GPS, enhances the startup performance of a GPS satellite-based positioning system. It is used extensively with GPS-capable cellular phones as its development was accelerated by the U.S. FCC's 911 mandate making the location of a cell phone available to emergency call dispatchers.

So A-GPS is just like a "faster" GPS

[starburst1980]

Correct. My mistake for the confusion.

Then **** the Nokia E75 :p Problem now is how to sell my Nokia E70 to buy this...

I wonder why vendors dont make the jump already to 802.11n.

[Digitalx]

Just for a sneak preview: http://www.gsmarena.com/nokia_e75-review-342.php

The E75 does look like a great mid to high end phone. I do much prefer personally the larger screen with touch support over smaller screen with keypad and traditional numeric keypad as i understand it can be a great thing to have as a mobile phone you can quickly use but also use for business typing features and things but yeah my personal preference is to have the full portable multimedia experience with the ability to do business operations :)

[PT 13]

Fold away keypad ftw ;)

Yep you are right ... I was tempted to get a N97 because I can hide the keyboard :D, I just didn't wait for it, because I didn't think it was worth the extra money.

The camera is better, but I hardly use it because I have a Digital Camera which goes with me everywhere (when needed), so the only difference was the keyboard (which I honestly still prefer "digital") and the internal 32GB...

[Digitalx]

Correct. My mistake for the confusion.

Then **** the Nokia E75 :p Problem now is how to sell my Nokia E70 to buy this...

I wonder why vendors dont make the jump already to 802.11n.

It's still draft status and not cheap or small enough i imagine to implement easily enough and at the end of the day 54Mbps local speed is plenty I imagine. Nokia are working on WiMAX devices though I do believe but won't be released till more wider adoption of the technology.

Yep you are right ... I was tempted to get a N97 because I can hide the keyboard :D, I just didn't wait for it, because I didn't think it was worth the extra money.

The camera is better, but I hardly use it because I have a Digital Camera which goes with me everywhere (when needed), so the only difference was the keyboard (which I honestly still prefer "digital") and the internal 32GB...

Yeah it's hard to choose sometimes specially at such a busy month like now for mobile stuff. Personally I've been dieing for a good quality camera my 6101 has a vga 640x480 which is terrible I would love to have a good quality camera on hand specially on handy device like that which also does good quality video too. 16:9 30FPS nHD video :)

[CCRATA]

A-GPS and GPS are NOT the same thing. GPS is the actual tech. A-GPS just emulates it using cheap things like GSM tower calculations. AFAIK, it does not have GPS while the Nokia E75 does.

(I may be confused so please someone clear it up for us :) )

A-GPS means assisted gps. The n97 (like my E71) has a full GPS and also uses the cell towers to help improve its accuracy even more :)

[starburst1980]

It's still draft status and not cheap or small enough i imagine to implement easily enough and at the end of the day 54Mbps local speed is plenty I imagine. Nokia are working on WiMAX devices though I do believe but won't be released till more wider adoption of the technology.

Not thinking speed but more like range. 802.11n has alot more range.

BTW People complaing that this will be expensive....Anyone has a estimated pricetag?

[Digitalx]

Not thinking speed but more like range. 802.11n has alot more range.

BTW People complaing that this will be expensive....Anyone has a estimated pricetag?

Straight from nokia it was on pre-order for $699.00/?499.00

Not cheap but worth it imo just better to get on contract or subsidised.

[PT 13]

The cheapest (unlocked) I found was $603 on Amazon

Twice the price of the 5800 ($339) that's why I didn't know if it was worth the difference in prince so I opted for the 5800 and very happy with it...

But let me just say (since the N97 runs on the same platform) Symbian S60v5 is very powerful :)

[Digitalx]

The cheapest (unlocked) I found was $603 on Amazon

Twice the price of the 5800 ($339) that's why I didn't know if it was worth the difference in prince so I opted for the 5800 and very happy with it...

But let me just say (since the N97 runs on the same platform) Symbian S60v5 is very powerful :)

Yeah haha well I would damn well hope so at that price i'm just hoping I can get a contract to subsidise it down cause that's like nearly $1,100 NZD :| but yeah i'm looking forward to experiencing symbian as it's only OS i haven't tried well except for up to date Winmo too

For those just randomly the scoping the topic too or haven't kept up with the N97 here's a list of specs:

S60 5th Edition, Symbian OS v9.4

434 MHz ARM11

32GB internal, 16GB Micro SDHC included (32GB Max MicroSDHC available in 2009), 48GB total (64GB max) and 128Mb RAM.

GSM frequencies 850/900/1800/1900 MHz

HSDPA frequencies 900/1900/2100 or 850/1900/2100 MHz

GPRS class 32

EDGE (EGPRS) class 32

3G HSDPA (3.5G), 3.6 Mbit/s

TFT Touchscreen, 16,777,216 colours, 360x640 pixels, 3.5 inches, resistive touch screen with separate touch foil and touch feedback

Camera: Front: VGA(640 x 480), 2x digital zoom Rear: 5 MP, 2584x1938 pixels, Carl Zeiss optics, autofocus, video (VGA@30fps), dual LED flash, f/2.8, 5.4 mm focal length Video: MPEG-4 640x480 @ 30fps, nHD 16:9 video recording, MPEG-4 SP 640x352 at 30fps (dvd quality)

MMS

Video calling

Java support MIDP 2.0

Bluetooth 2.0+EDR

Micro USB 2.0, Nokia AV 3.5 mm

Stereo FM Radio with RDS

Music player AAC, eAAC, eAAC+, MP3, WMA, wav,ogg,

Video Player H.264/AVC, MPEG-4, RealVideo 7,8,9/10, WMV 9 @ 30fps

Polyphonic tones 64 channels

Ringtones MIDI, AMR (NB-AMR), WAV, MP3, AAC2

HF speakerphone

Battery BP-4L 3.7V 1500 mAh

Talk time Up to 9.5 hours (GSM), 6.0 hours (WCDMA)

Standby time Up to 18 days (GSM), 17 days(WCDMA)

Weight 150 grams

Dimensions 117.2 x 55.3 x 15.9 (18.25 at camera area) mm,

SAR-Rating 0.5 W/kg

VOIP Support Skype

A-GPS support, Nokia Maps 3.0 Touch, digital compass, TV out, document viewer, Nokia Photo Browser

Edited June 3, 2009 by Digix

[Ohwhyme]

Still debating about the n97 or samsung omnia hd or the next iphone.

Samsung omnia hd - 16 gb, 8 mpixel cam, Good hd video recording, AMOLED screen, Faster CPU and Graphics, capacitive touch screen and I've seen the samsung for 800 dollars online.

Nokia - Slide out keyboard, 32 gb, 5 mpixel, resistive touchscreen. 603 dollars from amazon.

I'm wondering whats better for music. Still waiting for the specs of the iphone though.