New good phone--N95!!!
Credit= http://www.laptopmag.com/Review/Nokia-N95.htm
And the kitchen sink award goes to….Yes, Nokia crams every feature you can think of--and then some--into its much-anticipated N95, including a 5-MP camera, GPS, and Wi-Fi. You'll be hard-pressed to find a more stacked smart phone, or a more expensive one. This unique slider costs a whopping $749. (For those scoring at home, that's two Samsung BlackJacks with enough left over for a 7-MP digicam.) So is the N95 worth the sticker shock, or is it just a textbook example of convergence gone too far?
Given all of the technology inside, the N95 weighs a surprisingly light 4.2 ounces, although it's plenty thick at 0.8 inches. Another pleasant surprise is the dual-sliding design; sliding the top of the phone up reveals the dialpad, while pushing it downward brandishes a set of backlit playback buttons, ideal for enjoying music or video on the go. The dialpad itself is a bit cramped but relatively easy to use; the same thing goes for the five-way navigation control beneath the large and crisp 2.6-inch display.
The back of the N95 looks like a serious digital camera, thanks to the Carl Zeis optics, flash, and sliding lens cover. We like the soft touch finish, but some may not appreciate the metallic eggplant color. The camera launch/shutter button lines the right side of the phone, along with the zoom/volume controls and a launch key for the Gallery, while the left side houses a 3.5mm audio jack, microSD card slot, and virtually useless IR window. Dual stereo speakers flank both sides of the N95 toward the top and provided a decent amount of volume during music playback.
Because the N95 is an unlocked phone, you have to bring your own SIM card from Cingular or T-Mobile to use this handset in the U.S. Fortunately, a built-in set-up wizard automatically detected our T-Mobile SIM and configured our Internet settings. The fastest cellular connection this device supports stateside is EDGE, but on our tests we found the built-in browser quite speedy. We could start reading most sites within ten seconds, even though it took a while for the images to load.
Surfing is a joy on the N95, especially when you switch that big screen to landscape mode. We love the ability to see a map of the whole Web page while scrolling and that the N95 shows thumbnails of previous pages visited when you press the back button. The whole experience is supercharged when using the N95's 802.11b/g connection. A very helpful Wi-Fi utility is built right into the phone's home screen, which can display the closest access point at all times. From there you can connect with a click or choose to search for other WLANs.
There's a lot more you can do with Wi-Fi on this multi-talented device, starting with the N95's Video Centre application. We downloaded a few Reuters videos in seconds to catch up on the aftermath of the British sailors released from Iran, and playback was smooth as silk. Too bad we can't say the same thing for YouTube beta; on our home network the videos we streamed stuttered every other second. Theoretically, you should also be able to make VoIP calls over Wi-Fi, but we couldn't get the downloadable Gizmo VoIP client to work in the office or at home. (We'll update this review once we get that service up and running.)
As a camera, the N95 takes pretty sharp 5-MP photos, but it doesn't capture them quickly enough. We used the phone as our primary camera over a weekend, and we were generally impressed with the quality of the images, which exhibited good color accuracy but appeared a little fuzzy when displayed on our notebook's 14.1-inch screen. Our biggest complaint is the slow shutter speed; it took too long for the N95 to take photos, even with the auto-focus locked. On the plus side, the VGA videos taken with the N95 looked excellent when played back on our notebook using QuickTime. Zooming in and out was a bit jarring, but otherwise the N95 is a good camcorder stand-in.
One of the N95's most compelling features is its GPS functionality, accessible through the Maps application or GPS data under the Tools menu. Nokia says acquiring a signal can take from a couple of seconds to several minutes. We say the latter, as it took close to ten minutes to locate our position in midtown Manhattan. Subsequent acquisitions were much quicker, and we like how the Maps app zooms in your location, Google Earth-style. You can also customize the map to make it show or hide everything from restaurants and parking locations to museums and ATMs. From within the map view, you can plan a route, save your location, or send it via text message. You can even search by address, name, or business category.
The bundled plan-a-route feature will spit back turn-by-turn directions, but if you want to hear them instead of just see them (and get 3D maps) you'll need to splurge for the Navigation upgrade. That costs $91.93 for a one-year license or $11.81 for 30 days. Frequent travelers can also purchase city guides for $10.69 each. Overall, we prefer the BlackBerry 8800 for GPS because of its faster performance--and much lower price--but the N95 should get the job done.
The N95 excels as a music player. The playback buttons aren't very tactile, but they provide more feedback than the touch-sensitive controls on the Samsung UpStage and LG Chocolate. Even better, these buttons work when you're performing other tasks, like surfing the Web, checking e-mail, or waiting for the GPS receiver to pinpoint your location. When you pause the music, the song title briefly displays on top of whatever application you have open, a nice touch. Other music-friendly perks include a 3.5mm audio jack for plugging in your regular earbuds, stereo Bluetooth, and support for WMA, AAC, and MP3 files.
Like all Series 60 phones, the N95 can sync your contacts, calendar, and tasks with your PC. The bundled Quickoffice program lets you view Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files. And the integrated FM radio delivered very good reception in Manhattan. Last but not least is support for Nokia's Lifeblog, a service for showing off your latest videos, pictures, and text blog entries.
Even with all of the N95's talents, the software makes the phone easy to use, despite a few "Memory Full" messages and occasional delays when multitasking. And the device worked well as a phone. We like the camera, music player, and Web surfing capabilities. However, the N95 doesn't last very long on a charge. The phone conked out after a day of heavy usage, which means you should expect to recharge at least every other day.
The N95 is sort of like the anti-RAZR. It thumbs its nose at thinness in favor of functionality and yet the device doesn't weigh down your pocket. Those who have money to burn and who want to stand out from the crowd may want to consider this slider. But if you can afford the N95 we say wait until the iPhone debuts, so you can compare these two feature-packed solutions.
-xun bin
