Is the Nokia N97
So it’s pretty clear that the consumer smartphone market and awareness belongs to the Apple iPhone 3GS
Meanwhile the flood on Android phones is increasing in pace – the current HTC Hero
So the iPhone has pretty much jumped the shark into mainstream awareness, the Blackberry marks you as someone who is emailing at 2am and doesn’t do anything else, and to be able to have geek cred on Android will mean swapping handsets every month and relying on the phone equivalent of trainspotters to recognise what you’re using.
Nokia N97 by William Hook on Flickr (CC Licence)
Enter the N97.
It’s got good hardware – 5.0 megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss lens, video capture, GPS, Wifi, Bluetooth, etc, etc.
But more importantly, the operating system takes time to learn (and indeed to operate!). It’s not easy to use, some things don’t work, and the Ovi Store has problems which have been discussed at length by consumers and developers.
And that’s what makes it the ultimate geek phone.
Ultimate geek stuff isn’t mass market, easy to use, or without character. I’m a big fan of Ubuntu, but I struggle to recommend it to a lot of people, and I’m not alone, due to some simplicity needed for everyday consumers. The same thing applies to Open Office, Gimp, and hand coding everything from scratch.
A while ago Robert Scoble asked on Twitter whether anyone could name someone in their geek circle who actually had an N97. I immediately thought of James Whatley and Corvida, both of whom are more credible phone geeks than me.
So here’s to the N97 and to geek cred for things which require more effort, persistance and curiousity to use than the average person has time or patience for.
View Comments so far ↓
1 James Whatley // Oct 8, 2009 at 9:21 am
Thanks for the name check buddy, but I think I need to update you…
Although I *have* an N97, I don't necessarily use it anymore.
Those in the know, use an N86
http://thereallymobileproject.com/2009/09/love-...
2 Joff // Oct 8, 2009 at 9:26 am
I'm still not convinced to be honest. I skipped the first wave of iPhone ownership in favour of the N95 and find that while it's now doing everything I want from a mobile device, the S60 OS is sluggish as hell.
What's changed on the N97 to alleviate any performance issues? I can't help thinking that Nokia feel forced into using Symbian (given their stake in the company) when other OS's (such as Android) would give them much more appeal.
I was looking forward to the N97 but I don't think it can cut it against the others – other than the keyboard, the hardware doesn't seem to have changed much from the N95.
For me it comes down to the iPhone with it's substandard hardware vs the HTC Hero with it's substandard app Marketplace and only 6 weeks to go until I need to decide!
3 Dabbl // Oct 8, 2009 at 9:34 am
Oh no, it's still a bit sluggish… That's the point! Personally, for what I want to do with a phone, I'd be looking at an Android handset – I like the Hero, but possibly something more towards photography/video capture/upload to web…
I know @pjeedai on Twitter has been hammering and testing his Hero to the extent he could write a great review of it, and still really rates it…
And an app store is probably an easier fix than the hardware itself…
4 Dabbl // Oct 8, 2009 at 9:37 am
True – I do really like the look of your N86, and think it makes a create content-creation phone, which is what I'm after, rather than iPhone/Hero content consumption.
But can you really go for uber-geek cred by taking the more evolved, easier option? I think realy we should just rewrite the entire user interface for the N97…
5 Dan Thornton // Oct 8, 2009 at 9:39 am
Oh no, it's still a bit sluggish… That's the point! Personally, for what I want to do with a phone, I'd be looking at an Android handset – I like the Hero, but possibly something more towards photography/video capture/upload to web…
I know @pjeedai on Twitter has been hammering and testing his Hero to the extent he could write a great review of it, and still really rates it…
And an app store is probably an easier fix than the hardware itself…
6 Dan Thornton // Oct 8, 2009 at 9:40 am
True – I do really like the look of your N86, and think it makes a create content-creation phone, which is what I'm after, rather than iPhone/Hero content consumption.
But can you really go for uber-geek cred by taking the more evolved, easier option? I think realy we should just rewrite the entire user interface for the N97…
7 Joff // Oct 8, 2009 at 10:02 am
My problem is that Google / Android have launched with their Marketplace that is so woefully inadequate compared to the Apple Appstore.
I think I'm right in saying that most users will be locking themselves into a handset for 18-24 months (I know I will be) so for me I need to try and look to what I'll want from the device in a years time. The apps I want to use are only on iPhone at the moment and I can't see the switch to Android happening for most app developers for a long time.
Maybe Google need to just bankroll a team of developers to recreate the Appstore apps for Android? Or offer incentives for developers to choose Android first over other platforms.
I'd like to use my mobile for everything – calls, camera, music, interwebs, connecting to cloud apps, all with great battery life, small form factor and a fast OS.
8 Joff // Oct 8, 2009 at 10:09 am
And don't get me started on Ovi – it took me about a day to work out how to actually VIEW the Ovi store! I spent all this time messing around with creating an account, but it was just some media-sharing tripe.
Why couldn't they just develop an Ovi S60 client app that I could install instead. (maybe they have now?)
9 pspezone // Oct 8, 2009 at 1:14 pm
the way you write is rocking,but really N97 has something..they brought it to the level it supposed to be via firmware updates now(after 4 months from launch). current firmware 12 is ok and 20 will be superb.
10 Dan Thornton // Oct 9, 2009 at 8:50 am
Hi – cheers for the comment. I'm not quite sure the firmware has sorted all the problems – but I do have hope that it can be improved immensely – and as with so many products now, if the hardware is right, the software can be sorted eventually.
The problem is the pain people have to go through in the meantime!
11 Dan Thornton // Oct 9, 2009 at 8:52 am
I do believe they're planning to overhaul the Android Marketplace, so that should be better soon – and to be honest, for all the things you want, and a reasonable battery life, the HTC Hero appears to be about the best option for you…
12 Joff // Oct 9, 2009 at 11:01 am
Cheers, lets see what Orange can offer me when my renewal is up!
13 Wayne Smallman // Oct 9, 2009 at 11:39 am
One of my mates has an N97, which is the first I've seen in person.
It's rather large (about the size of a case for a pair of spectacles), but it does have a good physical feel to it, that gives the impression of sturdiness, not unlike the iPhone.
He too cited some degree of finickiness, but he reckons it's the best smart phone he's owned to date.
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