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Nokia N97: Mini Version in the Works?

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Take a look at what I found on the web today! It's a rumored N97 "Mini", which looks frighteningly real! I would like to point out a few things that lead me to question this image, though... there is a slight deviation on the bezel at the top of the device, which is quite peculiar. Also, the menu button (silver button in the corner of the display surface) is apparently now much more oval-shaped. The send and end keys are also off-center, leaving me to question such a device (nobody has ever done such an asymmetrical take of these keys before). Last but not least, the lack of a Naviwheel seriously makes me doubt this as being real. (Nokia's not stupid... why would they throw the return key to the right-side of the arrow keys?) Also, the reflection on the display is rather bonkers, although it looks more "solid" as if it were capacitive (so perhaps it is real).

All-in-all, I have a lot of trouble believing this device. For one, it looks like one of the best renders I've ever seen... all of the lighting appears to be correct and so on. On the other hand, why would Nokia make a mini-device? The back of this miniature N97 supposedly has a steel battery cover... which would go in-line with an E-Series launch. However, the inclusion of a capacitive screen would strike me as being backwards... those in the business line of work tend to appreciate resistive touchscreen for their ability to use stylus and work with handwriting recognition (these same folks did, of course, grow accustomed to Palm Pilots afterall).

Anyways, just something I came across that I thought I'd share. Who knows... maybe I'll end up eating all of my words and this device will be officially announced in the next couple of months. (But I doubt it.)

Tomorrow I'll be getting my Nokia N97!

Nokia E75: Further Camera Tests

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I took this photo while avoiding the extreme heat outside... it's taken inside of UO's Lillis Business Complex, and features plenty of lines to inspect for lens distortion. Quite unusually, my Kodak Z812 IS actually will bend these lines but the E75... doesn't? The E75 does have a decent amount of noise, however.

Teach The Technophobe: 3rd Challenge Completed!

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Woohoo! He finally managed it! Eddy (my technophobe) has completed the third challenge:

The humble postcard: it carries on its front anything from a startling landscape, to a crudely rendered cartoon crab; on its back a heartfelt homesick ballad, or a list of what the weather was like over the last seven days.

These days, however, you don't need a postcard to let others know where you are and what you are up to. Email your coach a photo of yourself- and even a link to a map- showing them where you are. Maybe somewhere that will make them smile... remember, you're trying to outdo your fellow technophobes, so keep focus (with this, as much as with the photo).

Eddy's submission was quite... peculiar. For one there's his self-picture... I can tell that he's in his car, yet wearing a black hoodie, black cap, and dark black sunglasses. It certainly looks like he was up to no good. Which brings me on to his GPS "location". It would seem that he was quite literally outside of my house, even though his GPS-dot is missing. It's almost enough to send a shiver down my spine... Eddy's dressed rather suspiciously, and then he claims to have been outside of my house. Where was he when I received the message? Inside of my house? Gone home already? Nobody will know but Eddy, that's for sure.

I would like to bring up Eddy's comments which directly relate to his accomplishment of this task. (Or rather, his very slow completion of it.) He called Nokia Maps "garbage" (that's not a direct quote... his language was a bit more colorful), and called the entire process of getting a map screenshot to be "cluttered" (that is a direct quote). He claims he liked the Google Maps application a lot better, but it's lack of a screenshot feature denied him the ability to send me a map through it. He was almost frustrated to the point of taking a picture of a physical map and pointing to his location. (He's a technophobe, what can I say.)

Of course, I asked Eddy if the E75 was starting to annoy him and if these challenges were too bothersome, meaning I would find someone else to complete the fourth challenge for me... and he hastily put his E75 in his pocket, and with a sudden change of emotion, claimed he'd rather use it than his old phone. I'm guessing this means he's slowly exploring the features, and with a bit of time will be able to wrap his mind around the whole package, but as of yet it's still quite mind-boggling.

Now that we've got this out of the way, Eddy and I are looking forward to the fourth and final challenge. It's been a fun journey so far, and hopefully the fourth challenge will keep us on our toes! (On another note, I've seriously run out of ideas of what's left to include in an email short of a video or word document.) ((And, for reader's sake, I'm putting his email attachments at the end of this post.))

Dreading My Return to the E71

 

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The end of the Teach the Technophobe campaign is fast approaching. And with it, I shall be returning the E75 devices and resuming use of my E71. This is a bit of a sad moment for me... I have begun to adore the E75. It's capable multimedia features coupled with bulletproof business traits make it a rather perfect device for everything I ask of my handsets. It's side-slider isn't exactly my idea form-factor, but Nokia's take on this design style have certainly opened my eyes to many of the benefits to be had. It's true that I find the keyboard a little quirky, and don't especially appreciate the keys on the outside. But with the time I was given, I grew accustomed to the E75's peculiarity and no longer find myself frustrated to use it.

Granted, switching back to the E71 will remind me of many things. Namely, the more tacticle keyboard, crisper performance, and more sleek design (making pulling the device out of my pocket a lot more smoother). But then I'll be constantly reminded of the E75's better imaging every time I take a picture, of the E75's newer icons every time I open a menu, and the E75 as a whole every time I see someone with an E71x (I like having a unique phone).

By this point, you're probably wondering why I've begun this post with a giant picture of an N97. Quite simply: I'm currently trying to get myself one. And by get myself one, I mean one to keep. The N86 is my dream device, this I know, but so was the N85 and yet I landed myself an E71. More importantly, it's because an N97 is the device that is available for me to obtain, while the N86 is nowhere to be found. (Although I just now set myself a goal of getting an N86 by this time of next year, which hopefully will be the time I'm travelling in Europe if everything goes to plan.)

Didn't I bash the N97 originally? Yes, I did. And do I still bas the N97? Yes, I still do. It's resistive touchscreen will be thoroughly bothersome. The fact that it has a touchscreen at all, actually, will bother me. But lessons learned along the way from my original N82 have gotten me to soften my original hard-lined requirements of a dream phone. Form-factor is not so much of an importance so long as it's not a (badly designed) flip phone. Xenon flash isn't important as it's more a bragging right since I tend to never use it. Megapixel count is important but more so is quality (think N96's photo quality). And a QWERTY keyboard is actually quite useful, especially with my recent trends towards increased-size messaging.

With reviews saying that the N97 has E71-like speed, and N-Series quality hardware, it sounds like a safe bet to tide me over until I can give the N86 a spin. Afterall, we're still talking about phones that easily trump even the most recent of iPhones, so any direction I go with a Nokia, even if temporary, is still leagues ahead of any Apple device.

Nokia E75: Intense Weekend Workout

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I took the Nokia E75 with me out to the coast this weekend. It even made it out into Netarts Bay with me on a kayak (put it in a dry-bag of course). I didn't make a phone call while out on the water (although I could have), and neither did I use it's GPS-nav functions for wandering about on Cape Lookout (we only stopped for a moment), but it still managed to do quite better than a flip-phone. (Flip-phones are impossible to use in a dry-bag, as they're designed primarily for candybar-style handsets.)

We then took a walk out on the beach, where I took a number of pictures, this one being among my favorite. You can see that the dunes came out rather quite well in this photograph. The noise levels of the image are low in the sand, but tend to jump a bit once it reaches the sky. This is probably because of the more pronounced contrasts to be found among the sand rather than the clear sky, and nevertheless I'm happy with this image. (Although I do wish it wasn't slanted slightly.)

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Next I came across a rather brightly-colored Mazda RX-8 while coming home from the beach. I want to point out what appears to be a tan-colored interior and a non-original paint job (I think). Relating to the camera, however, I want to point out the rather good shutter speed. The wheels are almost discernible, and the markings on the road are definitely frozen in time. It's a rather impressive job, really. The N82 would much more likely have taken a faster shutter speed and captured the RX-8 as if it were not moving at all, but this is still quite a remarkable achievement from a device such as the E75.

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Lastly, I thought I'd share this rather humorous picture with you. This was taken the same day as the other pictures, in yet another environment. This time, at the pool. You'll notice the water ripples are quite well frozen, once again repeating what I said about the car photo above. The color reproduction is quite good as well, and I'm quite happy to have decided to take this photo because I had a feeling it might turn out interesting. I apologize for ruining the photo with my own feet (far left), but for some reason I forgot to un-cross them.

Anyways, all-in-all, a rather good shakedown of the E75. It saw plenty of photo opportunities (far more than the above three, those were just the ones I decided to share), messaging, internet streaming, GPS navigating, and of course phone calls (a few of which were of the VOIP variety). The phone managed to attract a few interested inquiries, none of which are worth mention. Had I chosen to take my E71 on these same adventures, the pictures would have suffered but the inquiries about the device itself might have taken another turn entirely.

The Peek also accompanied me for the entire weekend, although it never made it out on the kayak. It served quite well in terms of reception at the coast, actually besting the E75 in a couple of traditionally tricky spots, making me wonder if T-Mobile's network has grown more substantially than AT&T's in the more rural areas.

Teach the Technophobe Update

Scoreboard

Sadly, I will be completing the third challenge on Monday, a full two days behind schedule. The DHL guy took his sweet time today coming by to deliver the challenge, and so I missed out on receiving it before I left for Portland. It's a shame, really, but what should I expect anyways... DHL doesn't even officially recognize a deliver center in Eugene. (I just looked it up... perhaps I am able to pick up undelivered packages myself and avoid a similar mishap next go-around?)

In other news... this is the first post in quite a bit that I have composed on the computer. (I always put an end-note if a post is composed on a mobile device, just to let you know.) Also, WOM World has updated their scoreboard, and now it makes much more logical sense. As you an see, it's a rather close race coming to the finish... I'm not sure how my performance on it will be graded, so my ultimate goal is to finish first (of course). Once again, big bummer on this third challenge... I was so certain I would have it squared away by now.

Anyways, I've got some new pictures captured on the E75 to share, but will do so at the conclusion of the weekend.

Peek vs E71

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Teach the Technophobe: Delay in Receiving Challenge 3

Eddy's Monster

Sadly, I managed to miss the arrival of DHL this afternoon. It seems I was in-class at the time the deliery courier stopped by, meaning I shall be receiving the package (hopefully) tomorrow. This is quite a shame really, since I was quite looking forward to having this challenge tucked away neatly before heading home for the weekend. Now there's the possibility that this challenge might not even reach me before Monday, especially if another badly-timed delivery occurs.

At any rate, my technophobe appears to be growing restless, as he sent me the picture seen at the head of this post. If I had the third challenge to give to him, I'm sure he would have accomplished it by now. Sadly though I haven't, so it looks like he's going to have to entertain himself somehow. (I suggested he install and play around with Fring a bit, but I don't think he's very interested in that.)

At any rate, I'm hoping to capture some interesting pictures this weekend, and maybe even compose a video blog post while thundering southward on I-5 when I return on Monday. For now, I have no news to report other than I won a battle with an iPhone user simply by asking them how many megapixels their phone has. (It's a been-there-done-that sort of thing, that's why I'll spare you the details.)

(Post composed on the Peek "Classic".)

Comparison: E75 vs Peek Keyboards @ Night

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At a request, I took this picture comparing the Nokia E75 and Peek "Classic" devices at night. One will notice right away that the Peek device's display is heavily washed out... it doesn't feature an auto-dimming feature like the Nokia is equipped with. However, this was taken at the display's darkest setting regardless, showing that it would be a nice update to see the Peek's display become just a bit darker than it currently can. (Perhaps this is fixed in a firmware update.) The Nokia also manages to avoid a lot of glare with a darker theme... the Peek is equipped with very minimal themes, all of which shine rather brightly in a dark environment. (It makes for a rather good flashlight.)

The keyboards is something to pay attention to as well. Where the Peek keys are illuminated crisply, with no light leaking to speak of, the E75 is bathed in the exact opposite. The white keys aren't as brightly illuminated as the Peek. (In this case, I'd say the illumination on the Peek is perfect, whereas the Nokia is a bit weak.) However, in regards to the special symbols, the Peek barely manages to illuminate them where the Nokia, although still dim, does a much better job of making the keys discernible. And, of course, one can see that light leaks all over the E75, which is especially made clear on the alphanumeric keypad: only the four shortcut keys are illuminated, yet the amount of light leaking makes the dial keys appear to be illuminated as well.

Of course, is it truly fair to compare the two devices on such a detail? Not really... their different types of devices for different consumers. They'd never be compared on such a last-thought detail when they have so many other differences to be made known. Still have to say, though, that the E71 leaks nowhere near as much light as the E75. Same went for the E66, E90, N82, N85 (except for the faulty plate), N96, and N95. The E75 is by far the worst in terms of keeping it's illumination controlled. That's rather curious, really.

Thoughts: Nokia E75 Keyboard

I'll come out and say it. Initially, the E75 keyboard was atrocious for me to use. It was too spaced out, and the keys were too hard and seemingly unresponsive in regards to any physical feedback. Very good to look at, but an unhappy experience to use. That's still true in most regards, but having given it some time, I feel like things have changed just enough for me to alter my original opinion.

While the E75's keyboard is still ranked below that of the E71 in my mind, it has redeemed itself with extended use. It seems that the keyboard has something of a learning curve, and that it took my thumbs a significant while to get up to speed on this new type of input. Having recently acquired a Peek device, I realized that by comparison I'd choose the E75 keyboard over the Peek's any day. Most of this has to do with the feedback felt through my fingers... The E71 keyboard is laid out perfectly, and the buttons are "fun" to use. Meanwhile, the E75's keyboard is a little bit larger, and features keys with less travel perhaps to cut down on the illusion of long distances travelled by one's thumbs. Then we reach the Peek. I frequently "B" instead of "N", or "@" instead of "Z". Add to this very firm buttons and it's not my most ideal solution for composing lengthy emails.

Does this mean I would prefer the E75 keyboard over the Peek? Maybe... I'll have to see if I ever manage to become accustomed to the Peek's quirky keyboard. In regards to appearances, though, I still like the high-end appearance of the E75. In darkness, though, the Peek keys are much better lit. So it's tied, really.

(Post composed on the Nokia E75.)