Reviews4,313 Reviews

All Reviews > Hardware > Mobile phones

July 2, 2008

Nokia N96 review

Nokia is upping the ante in the mobile phone stakes again, this time with TV as the killer app. The Nokia N96 is a multimedia handset with a 5Mp camera and Mpeg4 video filming – and it's equipped for future live mobile TV broadcasts.

An HSDPA 3.5G phone with aGPS (advanced global satellite positioning), the Nokia N96 allows photos to be tagged with geographical information before being uploaded to an online gallery.

Getting online couldn't be easier – the Nokia N96 quickly locates wireless networks, and we were impressed by the critical internet access, call and messaging features.

While you can't yet make use of the Nokia N96's integrated DVB-H digital TV, you can subscribe to and download TV programmes, or stream them if you've a robust web connection.

Nokia has clearly done the groundwork, with Mobile TV in mind, and the Nokia N96 has a dynamic EPG (electronic programme guide) and Last Watched folder for downloaded content.

You can subscribe to online video feeds much as you would RSS for news and blogs. We found a choice of Reuters, YouTube Mobile, and Zoo Vision – a free streaming service. After watching preloaded content we can vouch for the quality of the Nokia N96's screen.

A two-way slider gives access to a concealed numeric keypad below and media playback buttons at the top of the Nokia N96. To aid static viewing, there's a nifty stand behind disguised as part of the camera lens.

We found the Nokia N96's screen very dark, and liable to dim further when any buttons are not used for a few seconds.

The Nokia N96 is a pretty responsive phone, with 128MB of RAM at its disposal.

Navigating the many features and functions is snappy, while the Nokia N96's 2.8in QVGA screen means there's enough room for large, clear icons in its S60 Symbian interface.

The Nokia N96 is actually 8g lighter than the iPhone 3G and has a similarly sized screen, but there's no denying that it's fatter and just not as desirable.

The Nokia N96's display doesn't auto-rotate from landscape to portrait and the keypad is nothing to write home about. We had to press awfully hard to select characters and craved the lightness of touch that's now possible on the best touchscreen phones.

Visit Mobile Advisor for the latest mobile phone news, reviews, tips & tricks, as well as PC Advisor's unique Apple iPhone 3G Spotlight

VERDICT >
1 | 2 | NEXT >

Independent customer reviews from

Nokia N96 scored:
7.4 out of 10 100% real reviews

The 2 most helpful reviews based on 338 reviews:

14 Oct 2008 Anonymous verified purchaser

9

Good Points

The N96 is so crammed with features that I'm still discovering new things 3 months on! It does almost everything and most things pretty well. The camera really impressed me as I wasn't expecting it to rival my compact digital camera but it comes so close that I don't mind when I forget to take my digi camera out with me. Videos are great too. Web browsing is also much better than I'd experienced previously with mobiles with the wifi working almost invisibly though is still a little slow for my liking. The GPS is really fast and very accurate. Other features like listening to music and watching videos (BBC iplayer is just genius) are generally a pleasure to use and it even makes calls! It's multitasking ability is superb. It's all packaged within the usual easy to use logic that I expect from Nokia - love it!

Bad Points

My biggest grip is the keypad. As it's a slide phone and the keypad is at the bottom, the weight of the phone is just not balanced when texting and the buttons are not the easiest to use. This is fine for a brief use of the keypad like pulling up your contact list or typing in a GPS location but generally for text messages I have to hold it with two hands or it's really slow going. Even with that design flaw, the phone is still pretty good. The battery life is not terrible but not outstanding either. Through my normal use (a couple of hours listening to music, 30 mins on web/GPS, a few calls and texts, watch a bit of video and maybe a photo or two) I'd normally get it to last 2-3 days between charges. Obviously more heavy use and I'm charging it up nearly every day but not usually and my record is 5 days (of very little usage!) so far. The worst bit I find is that the battery bars are not an accurate assessment of how much time you have left. The first 3 bars take forever to go down but the last 3-4 can go inside an hour or last another day of just being on standby with little usage - can lead to frustration at times. I'm aware the phone has only been out for 3-4 months but it does have that usual new phone tendency to hang or crash every now and again. This has become less and less as time goes on and with regular updates of firmware. Is now just an occasional thing and is rarely a disaster!

25 Sep 2008 Anonymous verified purchaser

6

Good Points

It's design is amazing, being a Graphic Designer, that means a lot to me! GPS Software could be better... The way it breathes is amazing :-D

Bad Points

Battery life is ridiculous, after a full charge I am lucky to get half a day out of it at moderate use, it's even worse than the Nokia N95. Software is still very under developed and very buggy at the minute, I'm sure a later software release will solve a lot of the issues though. It's very slow with the current software!

See more Nokia N96 reviews on Reevoo.com

null

User Reviews

Friday, 17 October 2008

Reviewed by shutternut

Star Rating: rating of 4

Duration of ownership: 2 weeks

Strengths:
5.0 megapixels, 16GB memory

Weaknesses:
battery

Overall Evaluation:
Nokia N96 is a great mobile. It has many useful features which N95 has. N96 also has 16GB memory, broadcast television and improved image and sound as well.

Keep up to date by adding PC Advisor Reviews to your iGoogle home page or Google Reader

What is this?

Subscribe to PC Advisor now and claim your FREE gift

Question of the day!

Does your smartphone replace your need for a laptop when on the move?

Question of the day!

Does your smartphone replace your need for a laptop when on the move?

% of PC Advisor readers agree with you

Yes
TBC
No
TBC

What tasks can your smartphone do that would have traditionally been done on a laptop?

119 characters remaining

Follow the conversation at @SmartphoneFocus

web browsing, search facilities, voip, email, word processing everything RT @Graham_D_C

Mainly email but getting better at spreadsheets etc, RT @IDGdan

Total reviews: 4,313

  • www.nokia.com
  • 0161 601 8908
  • Nokia
  • €550 (about £437) contract-free
  • From free with contract

See product specs

expert rating

Build quality

3.5/5

Features

4.5/5

Overall

4/5

expert rating

PC Advisor Reader Ratings

4/5

Nokia N96

READER REVIEWS


Google


Recent reviews

Reviews index


Latest reader reviews

Latest reader reviews


Top news

News index


Latest blog entries

Blogs index


Sponsored Content

  • Take the internet to new places with the Nokia N800
    Communicate how you want to, where you want to with instant messaging, email and internet calling. View movies, browse the internet wirelessly and watch TV on the high-resolution screen and listen through high-quality stereo speakers with headphone jack.
    Buy now