Business | Telecoms
Nokia N97 makes a practical choice
Competitor of iPhone should appeal to people who go by features instead of image.
- By Scott Shuey, Chief Reporter
- Published: 23:25 July 3, 2009
- Image Credit:
Nokia's latest smart phone is a bit, well, duplicitous, but I don't mean that in a bad way.
On the one hand, even a cursory examination of the phones shows that the N97 is obviously Nokia's answer to the Apple iPhone. It has a large touch screen and is heavily geared towards anyone who is looking for a rich internet experience.
On the other hand, the phone has a number of features that seem geared to set it apart from the iPhone, including a sliding QWERTY keyboard, an FM broadcaster and an ability to recognise handwriting.
It's obvious that Nokia wants to compete with Apple without looking like a knock-off, and this phone should do that nicely.
The largest difference between the two phones is how you interact with them. The N97's touch screen is pretty standard (as far as touch screen can be called standard), but Nokia's version seems to cater to ease-of-use with simple interface and large on-screen buttons.
There is no digital QWERTY keyboard on the N97 - there is a digital number pad for dialling and old-school SMSing - instead, the faceplate slides back to reveal small keyboard and a pointer. This took quite a bit of time getting used to since Nokia has significantly altered where certain keys are located, such as the space bar, which is now located to the right of "M".
The N97 also comes with a small stylus that lets you write on the screen. The phone did a fairly good job of recognising my chicken scratch, provided I wrote slowly.
My only problem with all these features is that I do not have enough thumbs. When it came to web browsing, I wanted to use the stylus to click on links type while at the same time use the keyboard to type, a feat that doesn't appear possible without the digital - pun intended - dexterity of a gymnast.
However, I still prefer a physical keyboard to the digital ones, which usually require pin-point precession.
The nicest feature about the N97 was the ability to view content directly on the phone's home screen without having to open any applications.
The screen is broken up into a number of boxes which are regularly updated via the phone's data connection. It took some configuring, but after a few minutes I was able to view news feeds (AP), Twitter updates, my e-mails, and even photos of my "favourite" people to call.
The phone also has a number of built-in features not normally seen in others, such as an FM transmitter, so you can listen to music on your phone through your radio. This worked great in the car on the way to work.
In terms on the built-in camera, Nokia has the best out there. The 5MP camera provides great photos, while the video I shot played smoothly without any pixelation.
The only area where the phone was weak was in the number of applications available for it, although the issue will likely resolve itself over time. Nokia is adding applications to its online apps store (www.ovi.com) on a regular basis, and there are thousands available, but at this time it still seems to lack the variety or creativity you can find at the Apple Apps Store.
It will be interesting to see how the phone plays in the market. Nokia isn't known for style the same way the Apple is, but this phone should appeal to people who make their choices based on features instead of image.
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