Nokia N97 Review

[deletedxyz]

No. It's an expensive toy that tries to pass as an all-in-one.

Camera/PMP/Internet browser/Phone + Small form factor = All-in-one cellphone.

[SojIrOu]

I'd say that if you have to get it, get it with a plan. Don't buy it outright like what I did because you'd have a huge hole in your pocket. I would say its worth it to me because I like the form factor (and slider), the build quality, the memory capacity and nHD screen. Also, I wanted a physical keyboard instead of a digital one (which is frustrating to type with lots of typos and makes it horribly slow as well as tiring when you only can type with your index finger), the benefit of predictive text when you input with the touch screen, the familiarity of Symbian OS and as a bonus, the Ovi Suite is a really nice piece of software (especially the 2.0 beta).

[badrobot14]

I M thinking of buying 1 but is it true that the N97 camera shutter scratches the lens cover below it??? I mean do u have problems with it??

N97 Scratch Lens cover

Nice review by the way. :)

[asim0]

Nice, thanks for the review. I've been looking to get this myself and wish that it would come out on Three!

I've heard about some problems with the lens cover scratching the lens too, wonder if it's just the unlucky few. Also hope that this can upgrade to Symbian^2 when it's released.

[phend-one]

Thanks for the great pics :) Good review.

Maybe I should trade my N82 + cash for this.

What's the screen material made from? Glass/plastic?

[SojIrOu]

I believe the screen is made of plastic since you have to push down on the screen for it to respond but it doesn't scratch easily (as some videos have proven). However, I'd still buy a screen protector just to be safe.

Also, the camera lens scratching thing seems to be a very common problem. However, I haven't had a single scratch yet. It might be because I slide it from the back of the lens rather than pushing down from the top and also I keep it dirt free by putting it in a pouch all the time. I've heard the N86 has the same sliding lens cover but is free from this problem because they cut a small groove in the middle.

[Bioran]

The biggest downside for me with the N97 is that it likes to hang a lot and never remembers my wallpaper/theme settings etc. Does anybody know whether this is a common problem and/or if there is a fix for this? It's a great looking device, but makes me want to rip my hair out at times.

[san.W10]

The biggest downside for me with the N97 is that it likes to hang a lot and never remembers my wallpaper/theme settings etc. Does anybody know whether this is a common problem and/or if there is a fix for this? It's a great looking device, but makes me want to rip my hair out at times.

yeah.

my dad's N97 used to hang a lot, the Nokia personnel gave some instructions, - close all unused open apps., from "main screen->Options->Shown open app.-> <close whatever unused app.>.

this method did solve the frequent 'freeze' problem.

btw, even "contacts" is shown in that 'open apps.' :p

now recently, the N97 started popping msg - "memory full" when trying to open "message inbox".

the "hang" (red) button should close such open apps., like music player, games... by pressing 'hang' button for 3secs. just like old nokia phones :D

[SojIrOu]

try switching the memory for the message inbox to the main 32gb memory rather than use the phone memory. it's a huge pain to keep the phone memory free since its only 70mb. i'm already dreaming of the N900. :D

in fact, you can do it for ovi store as well as uninstall the widgets and re-install them to the 32gb memory to get more free space.

[powerade01]

I hope someone reviews the Nokia N900 as well.

[san.W10]

try switching the memory for the message inbox to the main 32gb memory rather than use the phone memory. it's a huge pain to keep the phone memory free since its only 70mb. i'm already dreaming of the N900. :D

in fact, you can do it for ovi store as well as uninstall the widgets and re-install them to the 32gb memory to get more free space.

thanks, will try that.

[lt8480]

Hmmm think the N97 is great phone, but I didn't get a case!? I had to buy it but the same official one was only ?6 off ebay.

[Dext3r]

Great review,Thank you!