Tech Blog: As technology evolve – N95 a revolutionary device?

I once said, “I always get mesmerized when technology advances.” When great minds work together, they are able to build a grand invention. How these infiltrate our lives is when people think about convenience with the aid of modern-day technology. We gain access to the world through Internet and we can continue to keep in touch (as often as we like) with our families and friends through mobile phones. We are able to capture great moments in a flash through digi-cams or camera-phones (which majority carries with them), and finally we get to enjoy our favorite songs via our MP3 players and watch videos in our PMPs.

Now, combine all of ‘em and you get something like this amazing device from Nokia.. the N95. (Though it may not actually meet the quality you’d expect in separate devices, convenience is a good trade-off having them in a single device)

I have put together below some details and a straightforward review of my new gizmo. Please note that these are just my personal evaluations based on my day-to-day usage and experience playing around with my device (I’m saying “my device” because any flaws I find may not be present in another (if you’ve purchased one), you get what I mean? Alrighty then..

The N95 Basics..
> The Phone
> Digital Camera
> Entertainment (MP3 player, Media Player, FM stereo, Java-based Games)
> GPS Receiver
> Mobile Office / PDA-like features (Word, Excel, Powerpoint, PDF viewer, Zipped, Email, Internet Browser, some Tools)
> With various Connectivity options and Storage flexibility


Some details..

1) Let’s look at the aesthetics and design first

STRENGTHS:
- Unique dual-slider phone (slide down for media keys, slide up for the phone keypad)
- Simple yet professional-look design
- Sharp LCD screen (which automatically changes orientation to landscape or portrait when you slide up/down)
- Very lightweight considering it has lots of features. The size is just enough for a power pack device
- Alphanumeric keypad is perfectly outlined, so it’s not difficult to do speed-texting, hehe
- Well-positioned in-built speakers and with dedicated shortcut button for Gallery

WEAKNESSES:
- The Menu key and Media Key (placed side-by-side 4-way navigation key) is touch-sensitive. If you have huge thumb you’ll accidentally press ‘em while using nav-keys
- Attracts finger-prints
- Comes in 2 colors only, i.e. Plum&Silver and Gold&Silver (it would’ve been great if it comes with Black&Silver, hehe)
- Plasticky (non-robust) feeling
- Touch-screen? Nope!


2) Now the main function of this device

This is still a mobile phone! (‘though the finnish company would like to call it a multimedia device). It performs well on its primary functions. If you own a series-60 mobile phone before, e.g. 6600, you wouldn’t find it difficult to use this one

STRENGTHS:
- Loud and clear audio during calls, either through handset or loudspeaker
- Quad band enabled, meaning you will be able to use it in different continents (ideal for travelers)
- HSDPA (3G) enabled for faster download speed
- Uses S60 3rd edition UI in a new version Symbian OS 9

WEAKNESSES:
- No auto-search function using numbers (I find this really useful in my PDA-phone when I had 1 contact number unintentionally recorded twice in my phonebook on different names, e.g. 9100-1234 as Jonh Doe and 9100-1234 as J.Doe. For duplicate numbers, the names will not be displayed if this person calls me or send me an SMS since the device is confused which name to display, hehe. This function will save time in determining if you have already recorded such number in your contacts or not)
- Phone hangs on some occasions when there’s an incoming call (I've been using this phone for a month now and I have already experienced this twice. Perhaps I left other applications open or this is just simply one infuriating flaw of my device – 'hope this will be the only one I’ll discover overtime, hehe)


3) Lets look at the Digital Camera and Video Recorder

STRENGTHS:
- 5 MP Autofocus DigiCam using Carl Zeiss optics for the lens (with 10x digital zoom)
- Typical digicam features. i.e. color effect, scene modes, white balance, light sensitivity option, flash for low-light condition, and self-timer
- Better than any camera-phone to date as it produces good quality images esp. during daytime or indoor with good lighting
- Records crisp and stable video with DVD-like quality
- Strong flash light compared to other camphone, and with compact-cam-feel when taking pictures because the trigger button is perfectly positioned on top in landscape shot
- Protective lens cover which functions as camera on/off slider button
- Long video-recording (this is dependent on available memory) and you can zoom-in or out while capturing video

WEAKNESSES:
- The self-timer is useless for landscape photos since the phone could not stand on its own on flat surfaces
- Shutter sound cannot be turned off (although you have the option to lower down or select the less noisy shutter sound)
- Still not comparable to any 5mp DigiCam as there are noise in the images taken in low- light conditions (or when zoomed-in) and capturing images is a bit slow than typical compact digicam of the same specs


4) On the multimedia aspect

STRENGTHS:
- Music player, which can support MP3/AAC/M4A/eAAC+/AAC+ formats with playlist and equalizer feature. It also support WMDRM for music files
- Music can be played in background while other application is running. Even if the GPS voice is activated, the music volume automatically reduces when voice navigation announces guided directions
- Video Player, which can support 3GP and MP4 formats. With pre-installed RealPlayer (I loaded an episode of Heroes and it played the video well with no play gap or delay)
- Voice Recorder, which support AMR audio format
- Dedicated button for quick access to multimedia content
- FM stereo with Visual Radio feature
- You can attach a standard 3.5mm speakers or earphones (that’s awesome!). This slot also function as TV out (using the supplied cable)
- You can install and play various Java-based Games
- The dual built-in speakers delivers good-quality audio even on high volume

WEAKNESSES:
- When visualization is used during music playback and random option is on, there’s a noticeable play gap. But at normal playback everything is smooth
- Easily juices out the battery (doesn’t even last the entire day)
- When installing rich Java-based games in microSD, the application runs very slow (you wouldn’t want to install this in main memory as this will surely eat up storage space, so better use maximum capacity microSD)


5) And what about the GPS receiver..
Well this is new to a non-PDA phone. And applaud for Nokia for being the first to put it in a symbian-based mobile phone. I have not tested this further yet but I’d say it’s quite cool having this in your device and the application is pretty stable.

STRENGTHS:
- Built-in GPS receiver with pre-bundled application for Navigation is good (ideal for on-foot navigation as the receiver functions better in a clear view of the sky)
- The maps load up quicker than I thought
- There are 2 pre-bundled software for Map Navigation (NavFonePro Asia-maps and Nokia Maps). Though I don’t use them that often, it aid me a lot whenever I try to locate ATM machines within the area or when searching for the nearest establishments of the street I am are trying to locate
- Here’s a good feature of this GPS that I saw in one of the tech site review: “The GPS was able to indicate if a fixed-position speed camera was ahead (test was done in Singapore along the CTE expressway).”
- Voice-enabled navigation automatically stops when you receive incoming call and resumes after the call (similar to how music player in mobile phones is designed)
- Alternative routes is calculated as well if you opt to re-route
(Please note that GPS will only give you directions and locations, it will not be able to tell you the traffic condition)

WEAKNESSES:
- Easily juices out the battery (doesn’t even last the entire day when GPS is being used)
- Unable to lower down the volume of voice navigator (unless you use headset) as the loud voice may somehow irritate some people around
- You may want to save your favorite location when using Asia Maps, but there’s no option to delete them!


6) Now for its PDA-like functions

STRENGTHS:
- Pre-installed Quick Office, which enable you to browse (and edit, using advance version which you have to purchase) Word, Excel, and Powerpoint file types
- PDF viewer
- Standard Tools (Calculator, Currency Converter, Voice Recorder, Wireless keyboard enhancement compatibility)
- Internet Browser: I find the Internet browser rather fast than browsing through a PDA-phone. You can easily find the hot keys, input box, or links as the cursor automatically switches to hand when it passes them
- Mini-map feature. This when activated adds up to the browser’s flexibility and ease of use. You can easily swap or jump from one page to another (which is somewhat difficult task to do in a PDA) if you have opened several pages or websites
- Personal Information Management. Like what’s inherent in today’s phone, the address book, calendar (for special events and meetings), and to-do list is also present in this device

WEAKNESSES:
- The need to purchase a version of Quick Office if you want to edit above-mentioned file types
- The pre-installed BarCode reader is not functioning well, unlike the scanner in my PDA (though it scans only modern types of barcodes, hehe)
- It would have been better if the built-in scanner can also function as Business Card reader to capture names and contact information from a business card. (this is a great function I found in my PDA)
- The Zip Manager is able to Zip file folders only, not individual files
*********************************************************************
* 2007-05-21 UPDATE: Sorry, let me correct my statement here.
* The Zip Manager can actually do individual file zipping,
* you just need to create a new archive folder (name it
* anything u like) then add files to it, then viola!
**********************************************************************

- No Wallet feature?? I was surprised to know that this doesn’t have wallet feature. Although I never use this to purchase online using my mobile phone but I definitely find this useful in storing confidential information


7) Finally, for the connectivity options and other features I have not mentioned yet

STRENGTHS:
- This device has all the connectivity options you would look for in a device, i.e. Infrared, Bluetooth (with A2DP support), Wifi (B&G compliant), High-speed Mini-USB port, UPnP support, PC synch using PC Suite, SyncML for OTA synchronization
- Boast a whopping 160mb internal memory, with hot-swappable expansion slot for MicroSD (available currently up to 2GB)
- Soft keys and shortcut icon menu reassignment (but the multimedia icons are pre-defined)
- RSS-feed for web videos
- High-speed data transfer and page loading
- You can install 3rd-party Productivity Tools either in internal memory or MiscroSD memory card, the applications can still operate fast (except for rich java-based games when installed in memory card)

WEAKNESS:
- The battery life! (When this device is used as ordinary phone, i.e. sending sms and making calls only, the battery can last two days or so. BUT with its various features, it’s so enticing to use or play with them, and before you know it.. you’ll be hearing a beep prompting you to charge!)


These things I listed is what makes this a truly innovative gizmo. However, there are still flaws which I believe apparent as well on some mobile phones. But I’m sure Nokia will be (or should be) developing improvements to them. Personally, the only issue is the battery life (since most of the weakenesses I listed are application-based which can easily be enhanced). Longer-lasting battery will allow us to enjoy more of this without charging everyday (though I can always buy spare batt, better still if the battery could last longer despite simultaneous usage of applications)

Nonetheless, for me this minuscule multimedia device rocks! as I can do one-hand texting and the UI -- you'll find it easy to get acquainted with =)

That’s all folks! Ciao! c”,)