Compare Nokia N97 Mini Contract Mobile Phone Deals
The Little Phone That Packs a Punch
It’s portable, with lots of cool features and one major downside; only a quarter of the original N97’s memory.
Nokia’s latest offering is a down-sized version of its fantastic Nokia N97. With all the features of its big brother, such as a three-row QWERTY keyboard and 5-megapixel camera, can it really match up to its success?
To start with, the phone’s appearance is very impressive. Compared with its slightly obese predecessor, the N97 mini looks slim and portable. Although the phone is encased in plastic, the battery compartment is metallic, which takes away the feeling of cheapness and resists scratches and marks.
The image quality and touch-screen resolution are exactly the same as the original, but as with all small phones, the quality has deteriorated. However, when viewing pictures and videos, the contrast and brightness (not to mention the impressive nHD resolution) seem to hold their own. The resistive touch screen requires the use of the stylus, but it is very responsive and very simple to work.
One clever extra is the proximity sensor, which makes sure the display is switched off when you are making a phone call, in order to not waste battery. Joining the sensor on the side of the phone is the microUSB port that disappointingly doesn’t have a protective cover, making dirt and dust a threat to the input.
Inevitably, the QWERTY keyboard is smaller, but still very easy to use, even for those with bigger hands as the keys are still big enough to use. The only problem is the three-row layout, which does overcrowd the keys a little bit and slows down typing speed.
The S60’s user interface really isn’t the most fluent of interfaces, and yet Nokia have inexplicably chosen to include it in the N97 mini. However, the updated version included on the phone enables easier kinetic scrolling and a simple widget display. Up to five widgets can be displayed on the home screen (you can choose from widgets such as music controls and Facebook). The four themes it comes with are very nice, with more themes and widgets available for download.
As far as image galleries go, this phone’s gallery doesn’t impress. Although the resolution does make your photos look good, the zoom and panning features of the phone are quite slow to use. The music player serves its purpose, supporting most major formats of music and playing them back with excellent quality.
The big disadvantage to this skinny version of the N97 is the lack of memory and smaller battery capacity of the original. This is only to be expected but compared to its competitors; it really is quite a letdown.
Nokia have created a stylish, slim line phone that does the job of its bulky predecessor, with only a small list of disadvantages. If you’re after a compact phone packed with the features you’re used to, then it’s definitely worth considering this phone.
You might also be interested in: Nokia N97 free gift and contract mobile phone deals or just compare free Nokia mobile phone contract deals
