Nokia N97: First look

After using the Nokia N97 for a few days I can say that I’m both impressed and disappointed. I am impressed with the styling, the slide-away screen, the screen, and the amount of features they’ve managed to pack into this device. That said, I am also disappointed in the keyboard, the touch functionality of the interface, and the interface overall. The camera produces very high-quality photos and it records video. With 32GB memory you can store whatever you like and have space left over, and the screen is bright and clear. However, the interface is the same old S60 we’ve seen on 5800 and other phones and it doesn’t work very well for touch. I find myself reaching for the small stylus that Nokia ships with the N97. It’s so tiny that you feel that Nokia is almost apologizing for the problems just by including it. Personally I like the idea of a physical keyboard, that’s one reason why I still carry a Blackberry, but the N97’s keyboard is a few steps too far in compromises. Having to press essentially a shift key to produce digits and a period, what’s up with that? Perhaps it’s something that I could get used to but I don’t feel I should have to.

Nokia N97, it’s not bad but it’s no iPhone. No doubt a lot of people will buy the N97 but there are better alternatives out there for most of them.