Product Listing

Nokia N96 - Revealed and Reviewed

By Seow Tein Hee - 26 Aug 2008

Features

Thou Shalt be Empowered

Consumers were definitely awed and impressed with the myriad of features that were presented on the N95 when it was introduced more than a year ago, and this time round, the N96 will have all the things that made its predecessor a success, with a few added tricks up its sleeves. On the general aspect, the N96 comes with a full suite of connectivity options that's commonly found on upper tier devices, and this includes the following: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.0, USB 2.0, HSDPA and finally GPS with A-GPS. It's apparent that these are common features as seen on the N95, but what gives the N96 the edge, is the launch of the various services under Nokia's banner, namely Nokia Music Store, Share on Ovi, Nokia Maps 2.0 and finally, N-Gage. And adding in as a brief mention, is the N96's DVB-H ready capability. Given for a fact that the DVB-H standard hasn't picked up in this region, this would probably be an under-utilized feature as of now, so we won't be expanding too much on this point, but do note that when the DVB-H standard is passed, the N96 would officially have its full feature set unleashed.

For one, the 16GB of internal storage would provide ample space to store any music tracks that you download from the Nokia Music Store, and with Wi-Fi and HSDPA connection thrown in the list of features, it makes music downloading swifter and easier on the N96. The file sharing site, Share on Ovi, would also benefit from the above mentioned internet connection options, and of course, the 5-megapixel camera with its dual LED flash (another topic we'll be exploring further soon) will be heavily utilized if one were to snap, upload and share your experiences immediately. And yes, you can access both Nokia Music Store and Share on Ovi on the N96, which have been preloaded onto the device.

Wi-Fi or HSDPA, either one of these wireless connectivity options will bring you to the Nokia Music Store, as preloaded on the N96.

As we have seen, the first half of 2008 on Nokia's roadmap was dedicated to the launch of its various services, and with most of them fully functional, it is definitely the right time to have the N96 feature most, if not all, of the services that are currently available. In our opinion, having a GPS chipset on a mobile device is still a bonus feature, and not a necessity. But that's not to say it's not wanted in a device, and judging by the number of devices supporting GPS with A-GPS, Nokia was right in keeping the GPS function intact (not that we expected them to remove this feature, anyway). Unlike the N95's positioning of its GPS antenna that requires one to keep the slider up, the N96's antenna won't require one to do so, allowing you to slide the display down without losing your satellite lock. And of course, the N96 is preloaded with the latest Nokia Maps 2.0, with up to 3 months of free navigation bundled in the package for new purchases.

Nokia Maps 2.0 will be prominently featured on the N96, and with the addition of the hybrid mode that downloads satellite map imagery to the N96, there's more use for the Wi-Fi and HSDPA connection than ever before.

N-Gage, the dedicated gaming platform from Nokia, plays an equally important role in the N96's features. The N96's positioning as a multimedia device includes music, video and gaming, and it's evident that by following the design focus of the N81, the N96 is also well suited as a gaming platform with its five-way navigation pad and the dedicated gaming buttons which are actually the middle two multimedia keys at the top. Multiplayer capability has a strong presence on the N-Gage platform, hence you'll find yourself utilizing the wireless connectivity options quite often. This brings into contention on the battery performance of this powerhouse device, as we'll discuss in the next page.

By now, you would have realized that the bulk of the features are focused on what Nokia is delivering with its service front, and the hardware features are more of a complement to the plethora of Nokia services that'll be coming your way.

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