Mobile Review N97 review available!

[NZtechfreak]

Well, a typically huge Eldar review is up - check it out in all its google translated glory

Oddly although he sounds relatively positive overall it just sounds like he didn't fall in love with it, apart from its Facebook integration....

[Qualain]

Good review!

[Micky]

Thats one thing I love about Eldar, he goes into extreme detail, and gets loads of great photos using professional methods. Superb review. Looking forward to the English version.

[93tid]

Originally Posted by NZtechfreak

Oddly although he sounds relatively positive overall it just sounds like he didn't fall in love with it, apart from its Facebook integration....

The Google translation gave me a headache halfway through the first paragraph, so I went to the original...

I have to say that I have never read anything from Eldar so far where he sounds so underwhelmed. "didn't fall in love with it" is a huge understatement, he is positively cold and unmoved about it. Heck, I have the feeling that if he didn't want to jeopardise his relationship with Nokia it would read much worse.

Whatever little doubts I had about owning a N97 are completely gone - not a chance of me even considering it further. The overall impression is again of the usual half-assed rush job by Nokia in an effort to release a product with most of the functionality of the phone related to services and apps to follow in about 6 months or more. They've even compromised on the hardware in order to get it out quicker.

I don't have the time right now to do a proper translation into English, I hope the official version conveys accurately the tone and content of the original.

[fldude99]

Originally Posted by 93tid

Whatever little doubts I had about owning a N97 are completely gone - not a chance of me even considering it further. The overall impression is again of the usual half-assed rush job by Nokia in an effort to release a product with most of the functionality of the phone related to services and apps to follow in about 6 months or more. They've even compromised on the hardware in order to get it out quicker.

I don't have the time right now to do a proper translation into English, I hope the official version conveys accurately the tone and content of the original.

I also have huge doubts about owning the N97, especially since it follows what I've owned and been happy with for 2 yrs now..the 95-1. The lack of a SIP client is a little troubling for me as I use it frequently for int'l calling on wifi. But the pre order price for the NAM was impossible to pass on..so for $500 and a decent BT headset, if it's not what I think it should be..it will go on ebay or on this forum for a good price and I'll head over to the 3rd gen Iphone and succumb to the slavery under AT&T

[Micky]

I don't have any doubts about pre-ordering mine, inparticular after listening to the latest AAS Podcast which detailed the N97 processor, and mentioned of additional hardware in the N97 that no other Nokia handset has ever had fitted. This extra hardware helps the ARM11 to do more, and still retain battery performance.

[93tid]

Originally Posted by Micky

I don't have any doubts about pre-ordering mine, inparticular after listening to the latest AAS Podcast which detailed the N97 processor, and mentioned of additional hardware in the N97 that no other Nokia handset has ever had fitted. This extra hardware helps the ARM11 to do more, and still retain battery performance.

According to the review the only additional, or rather new hardware is the music player chip. The ARM11 is the old one with optimisation only for the fancy widgets on the screen, i.e. Facebook et al. All other operations are at the same speed, or occasionally even slower in comparison with the 5800 - and that is a direct quote from the article.

As for battery performance - another direct quote:

"For those who actively use email, watch videos, browse and also leave the widgets on standby (i.e. constantly checking for updates), the battery life you can count on is one working day (not 24 hours, but a day). On average one could count on two days of operation but it's possible the battery will die around lunch time on the second day. I found this handset one of the most power-hungriest I've come across."

Don't shoot me, I am only conveying what Eldar has written based on several weeks of hands-on experience.

[fldude99]

I'm not sure my doubts are as much on the performance of the 97 as much as the "useability" of it. The 95 is so user friendly that the transition may be more than I really care for at the moment..altho 2 yrs with any device makes it user friendly I suppose

[Micky]

Originally Posted by 93tid

Don't shoot me, I am only conveying what Eldar has written based on several weeks of hands-on experience.

With second version prototypes I may add.

[93tid]

Originally Posted by Micky

With second version prototypes I may add.

I sincerely hope the final(?) production release that you get will be better.

I've just had a look at the russian forum postings after Eldar's review came out - a lot of venting going on now, people are seriously disappointed.