Nokia N97 review: part 3 and conclusion

I am going to round up the Nokia N97 review today and also look at two of the main features of the device in more detail.

Keyboard

This has been a divisive area for many reviewers so far and I can see why. It is very different from other smartphones and the location of the space bar has been the main bone of contention for some.

Why is the space bar on the left when there is no reason for it to not be in the centre? It is also very small and quite easy to miss when you first start typing.

Why is the ‘alt’ key on the right when it is always on the left, or both sides, on any other device?

The way the keyboard flips does cause some problems because it only leaves room for 3 rows of keys, but that is no excuse for putting keys in that are almost completely flush to the surface and which have little physical feedback. It looks like a toy keyboard and it is surprising to see such a design in a top of the range smartphone.

Now here is the strange part- it is very, very quick to type on once you get used to it and the positioning of the space bar actually starts to make sense because I am finding it quicker than most other devices I have used. It looks dreadful and feels lifeless, but Nokia seems to have found something here and I for one am really starting to like the keyboard… a lot!

GPS / Nokia Maps

You get a generous 3 month trial of Nokia Maps with the Nokia N97 and I decided to finally let the software prove itself to me with a proper test. I signed up for traffic alerts and proceeded on a 2 hour drive which went without any problems. On the way back, however things started to go wrong- besides the GPS signal loss problems described yesterday the traffic side was less than ideal. I accepted a route change because of traffic ahead and was taken off a motorway at junction 5. After 50 minutes of following instructions I re-joined the motorway at junction 5 to be hit with over an hour of traffic ahead. AAAAARGH! In all my years using TomTom Traffic I never had this problem and it was a bad first experience.

Conclusion

The Nokia N97 could have been the best smartphone I have ever tested quite easily. The numerous software problems ruined the early experience for me and I spent far too much time setting up Wi-Fi, finding applications and learning how to quickly use the touch interface. In many ways it feels like a system which has been rushed to market and one which has little consistency throughout the design.

The hardware is exceptional and everything from the keyboard spring method to the screen and material quality is above average in the smartphone world. Even with Symbian 5th edition on board, which I am not a huge fan of, I would have rated this phone near the top of the pile, and in many ways it still is. If you understand how smartphones work and have no issues tweaking a new device to make it work for you, this could be the best smartphone you have ever owned. If you just want to buy, use and enjoy, the N97 could drive you insane. Four times I had to put the N97 down and walk away from it because it requires lots and lots of effort to set up properly- once things had settled down the potential started to shine through and the potential is great.

The N97 is like a classic car which needs some work- you spend a lot of time restoring it and making it work the way you want and the experience is then better than anything else. If Nokia makes the effort to tweak the software further, the N97 could be one of the best smartphones ever made…

Available from Clove for £469.20 with a free Bluetooth headset and case.