Nokia is touting its flagship N97 as a "mobile computer". Of course, we all know an OS like S60 with limited capabilties does not a computer make. Instead of discussing this further, we'll just leave Nokia to find a decent marketing angle while we dissect the rest of the actual handset.
Physically, the handset is very imposing, with a very stylish design and a nice finish. For a flagship device, though, it uses a little too much plastic, which pretty much sums up how many influential consumers in the US view Nokia's phones. Despite the unsettling love for the same material Tupperware uses, the N97 gets a very sturdy build, along with a hefty 5.29 oz weight. While heavy, I find that it feels good in the hand and the added gravity doesn't really get in the way.
The 3.5-inch TFT screen is clear, crisp and bright. Despite not being AMOLED (as is the case for the highest-end devices now), it looks gorgeous and is one of the best display panels around. It's important to note that the touchscreen is resistive, though both the accuracy and responsiveness more than make up for any immediate concern. Apart from the touch controls, the N97 also comes with a side-sliding QWERTY keyboard that felt a bit strange to type in at first (its arranged in three odd rows with the space bar on the right hand side). Using the QWERTY panel positioned the screen automatically at a 40-degree angle that, unfortunately, is fixed and cannot be changed.
As Nokia's second attempt at a modern touchscreen phone, the N97's interface feels a bit more mature than the 5800 XpressMusic. Home screen has now been "widgetized", which is a pleasant surprise. Unfortunately, there is a dearth of widgets for Nokia devices (both on the phone and at the Ovi Store), which makes the function more of a sideshow than a useful feature. The menu system is relatively the same as the 5800, which can be good or bad, depending on how you enjoyed the previous implementation.
For its phone functions, the N97 is pretty decent. Messaging, in all its various forms, is generally good. Email interface is exceptionally fast, able to render and switch between HTML messages in a jiffy. One notable disappointment, however, is the fact that this "flagship" device doesn't come with the highly-regarded Nokia Messaging (go figure). Voice calls, typically a great feature on Nokia phones, is surprisingly average here too, with the occasional sharpness being easily noticeable.
Touted as a powerful internet device, the N97 expectedly comes with a full HTML browser to go with fast connection speeds. Browsing is definitely a high point, with swift page loads and impressive handling of various Flash elements. Multimedia playback is very good (despite a boring interface) with a decent range of codec support. The built-in speakers deserve special mention and are probably among the best I've ever heard on a cell phone. Other features of the N97 include a very good GPS (with Nokia Maps 2.0) and a passable 5.0 megapixel camera (images are generally good, although some have color problems).
For a flagship device, I'm really not satisfied with the Nokia N97. It's hardly the "mobile computer" the manufacturer has made it out to be and barely makes the grade as a top-of-the-line phone at that. If you must get a Nokia phone, I highly recommend one of the E-series handsets (for enterprise users) or the 5800 (for multimedia fans) instead. This one's really not worth the hype.
Also check out these deals available on unlocked Nokia N97 phone.
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