Nokia N97

For readers of the past two installments of the Nokia N97 review, the conclusion we’ve been heading towards has probably been quite clear. For those of you who are impatient and are just reading our final thoughts (Tut tut), put simply; we love the N97.

The design of the N97 is spot on. By no means a small phone, the subtle design and classic colours (black and white) ensure the N97 never comes across as bulky. The build quality is excellent, with no creaks or give in the materials and a premium feel all round with nice touches such as the metallic rim. If you were given the N97 without knowing anything about it, you’d guess that it was the manufacturer’s flagship phone straight away. The slide mechanism is also reassuringly robust and opens up to reveal a well made and extremely user friendly QWERTY keyboard. From a design point of view, the N97 hits all the right notes.

For those sceptics who were unsure as to whether Symbian would work on a touchscreen platform, the N97 puts your mind at ease. The N97 combines the user friendly approach and intuitive controls of a touchscreen phone with a tried and tested operating system that has an ever growing catalogue of downloadable applications, set to be expanded further with the launch of the Ovi store. What’s more, applications such as the Facebook widget are perfect for the N97, taking advantage of all of the phones strong points. As for the display itself, aesthetically it’s hugely impressive pulling off great levels of clarity, sharpness and vivid colours and thankfully these great looks are matched with a responsive and intuitive touchscreen experience. Navigating menus and browsing through the gallery is effortless, typing using the on-screen alpha numeric keyboard is easy and the handwriting recognition is among the best seen on a mobile phone. Our office was divided between those who preferred using the iPhone and those who were won over by the N97.

In terms of features, web browsing on the N97 is a joy thanks to a brilliant web browser and support for websites that other top of the range phones just can’t offer. 32GB of internal memory should provide more than enough for most, though for those with a passion for music and movies, the addition of a memory card slot will be a welcome one. As for the camera, at first I was dubious of a 5.0 Megapixel camera considering that this was no more powerful than my 15 month old N82 and hardly cutting edge but the N97 still manages to produce some stunning photos. Perhaps it’s the fact that you’re looking at your photos on a brilliant 3.5 inch display but everything looks crystal clear and the ability to upload them to your Facebook with a few touches of the screen is a masterstroke.

Obviously, as with any phone there are drawbacks and so it’s no surprise that the N97 does have a few minor niggles that we would have liked to see ironed out. Multi touch on the screen (as implemented so well on the iPhone) would have been a nice addition as at times it does get a bit fiddly zooming with the zoom bar when in the web browser. Video capture could also do with an overhaul, though this is the case with the whole Nseries range, not just the N97. Would have been good to see HD video capture, slow motion video capture or some other premium video recording features.  Lastly, if we’re really being picky we could question why Nokia didn’t consider overhauling the camera and upgrading it to an 8.0 Megapixel sensor but this is really nit picking as the 5.0 Megapixel camera is more than sufficient and does produce some excellent photos.

Having used the phone for just under a week, I can honestly say the N97 won me over in every department. The fact that they had to prise the phone from my fingers to get it back just goes to prove what an impressive job Nokia have done. The design of the phone is impressive and hits the right balance of feeling sturdy without being too bulky and simplistic without being boring. The slide mechanism feels reassuringly well made and the QWERTY keyboard is useable to the point that I could picture myself whiling away hours web browsing using the excellent combination of touchscreen and keyboard. And on the subject of the Internet, this is easily the best online user experience I’ve ever encountered on a mobile phone. Nokia’s absence from the top of the range touchscreen market has been a curious one, much to the advantage of Apple, Samsung and co., who have all had huge success with touchscreen phones. Thankfully Nokia haven’t left it too late. The N97 takes the power and performance of the Nseries and puts it in an excellently designed touchscreen phone that is sure to be a huge success. Nokia’s strap line for the N97 as a ‘True Mobile Computer’ is right on the money; theN97 is the closest effort yet at putting a PC in your pocket.