Sending back my N80, Disappointed.

26 replies · 4,009 views · Started 15 July 2006

SiBradbury 15 Jul 2006, 15:04

Well i've had it for a week and i've decided i can't live with this phone until my next upgrade in 12 months time.

I upgraded to the N80 for the 3mp camera and because i've always loved Nokia's, especially S60 ones.
The problems i have with the phone are as follows:

* unless your subjects are perfectly still your pics will be blurred
* battery life is pants
* i can't take the phone from my trouser pocket without the slider opening so i end up answering calls before i know who it is.
* i think the keypad isn't a great design, the 1, 2 and 3 buttons are tucked up too close to the upper slider and the 'C' button badly placed (too close to the red 'end call' button)
Also (and i know this is being picky) when you close the slide and you're asked "LOCK KEYPAD?", surely if you don't press anything it would make more sense if the phone defaulted to "YES"? Or at least have an option in the settings such as: "WHEN PHONE IS CLOSED: 'Always Lock' OR 'Always Leave Unlocked' OR' Request 'Lock?'

I'm gutted because on paper this looked like a phone i'd love, but i don't feel any better off then when i had a 3230 or 6600. If the camera was better i'd probably keep it but i'm gonna hold out for an N73 i think. Either that or i'll just get an N70.
Does anyone else feel like they'd have made a different choice from the N80 had they just been trialling it for a week?

Cash 15 Jul 2006, 15:25

I am extremely dissapointed with the camera to say the least, its one of the reasons I bought it because I like to take pics at night when out with my friends, but cant with the N80 camera 😞

I have a sony DSC-P1 3MP camera that I bought over 6 years ago, and that is still a far superior camera, in fact I have other higher MP cameras, but if I want real good clear shots I always use my old sony, its far better.

Anyway the point is I still have to take out 2 untits with me when I go for a night out, my cam and my phone, if sony can put a good 2MP camera and good flash in their phones, why cant Nokia's 3MP camera be the same quality or better

We all agree that the battery is crap and a complete design flaw, why have a phone with all the features if you cant use them without the battery going flat very quickly and thus not being able to use the phone at all, one of the other reasons I bought the phone was because of the wifi, where I live in Vilnius there are many bars and cafe's and restaurants with free hotspots and because I use email as the main communication of choice with the UK and all my business partners to keep costs low this seemed to be a perfect solution, but now I have to think twice about the way I use that in case the battery dies 😞.

I was originally going to get the N91, but I thought twice about that because I considered that the 4Gb hard drive would eat up the battery....Not sure if it does, but the N80 battery is pants.

Slider is not perfect, but not really an issue with me, I can live with it,

My keypad is a little hard to use with the 3 and 6 button, I have to press them down quite hard and they dont click nicely, and sometimes when writing a text it missed these key preses, but I will take it back to get that rectified.

,And everything else I am quite happy about.

To get the phone as I would expect and like it I would have paid a little more money for it and also would have been happy with the phone being a little fatter or a little longer to accommodate a higher capacity battery, or to have had the option of a slimline battery or a larger high power battery to use like the old 7110.

A great phone but stained by a couple of quite major points, the battery and the camera, especially as the camera was really hyped up as a selling point.

SiBradbury 15 Jul 2006, 15:28

Exactly! I would have kept my 3230 (which is a great phone in my opinion) if it wasn't for the fact that i was sold on having a 3mp camera! I'll be using my trusty fat little 6600 while i decide if i'm going to have an N70 or hold out for an N73 which will be perfect for me, non-slider, 3mp Carl Zeiss lense (no blurring hopefully), and, i'm guessing, better battery life.

fdxd 15 Jul 2006, 16:15

Compared to any other smartphone this is a god amongst men.

Good luck on better battery life and camera. The N80 is as good as it gets given the technology out. Only other way is to compromise features and size :tongue:

If you want the best camera on a phone go for the Sharp 903. Best battery go for one of those barebones crappy 2G phones that last two weeks on one charge. N80 is a smartphone and is made for us not some dumb SE, Moto fan who like buying the same architecture for several years.

SiBradbury 15 Jul 2006, 16:25

Charming.
As you can see, my last five phones (including that awful Sony Z600) have been symbian phones. I know what to expect from them.
Basically my phone requirements were, good picture quality and

Cash 15 Jul 2006, 16:28

fdxd wrote:Compared to any other smartphone this is a god amongst men.
Good luck on better battery life and camera. The N80 is as good as it gets given the technology out. Only other way is to compromise features and size :tongue:
If you want the best camera on a phone go for the Sharp 903. Best battery go for one of those barebones crappy 2G phones that last two weeks on one charge. N80 is a smartphone and is made for us not some dumb SE, Moto fan who like buying the same architecture for several years.

I hear what you are saying, and this debate wil keep going round in circles, but the issue is why release a product, any product that cant do what its supposed to do because the power runs out.

Its designed as a smart phone, and smart phones use power, therefore the power unit should be designed so as to be fit for the job with normal smartphone use,

Dont forget Nokia thenselves say that the phone has a standby time of 8 days...rubbish, my friend has an N80 but doesnt use it at the moment because he cant use his lithuanian sim in it so I aked him to do some battery tests, he got 4.5 days of standby, never using his phone and in a strong signal area.

the battery is just not suitable for the phone and thats it

Its maths

High power phone + low capacity battery = unhappy customers.

SiBradbury 15 Jul 2006, 16:49

Charming.
As you can see, my last five phones (including that awful Sony Z600) have been symbian phones. I know what to expect from them.

Basically my phone requirements were, good picture quality, Symbian OS and preferably Nokia-made. The N80 fitted these requirements. The functionality of the phone itself is excellent, as i've come to expect from Nokia Smartphones. But I don't think it's too much to ask for the camera to be a bit less blur-prone and the battery life to be slightly better, and lets face it, i'm not the only one with a gripe regarding battery life! You're right in saying that given the technology you can expect low batt life but since i'm not using the WLAN or web browsing on this phone that doesn't really cut it.

I was really really dying to love this phone but after giving it a fair trial it doesn't agree with me (or my big hands).

I'm sorry if you took my disappointment with the handset as a personal insult ( i can't help thinking the comments at the end of your post were pointing in this direction) but it's not like i was saying "the N80 is rubbish and so is everyone who owns one"!!! The N80 is an excellent phone let down in two main areas, one of which is its main selling point, the camera. And it was the camera which many people will buy this phone for, as i did. I can't help thinking lots will be disappointed.

Again, hopefully the N73 will be an improvement in the areas i've outlined.

fdxd 15 Jul 2006, 18:06

Cash wrote:
Its designed as a smart phone, and smart phones use power, therefore the power unit should be designed so as to be fit for the job with normal smartphone use

Get over it. For 'normal smartphone' use the battery is an improvement over other S60 phones. No argument there.

As you can see, my last five phones (including that awful Sony Z600) have been symbian phones. I know what to expect from them.

The Z600 is not Symbian. You clearly did not know what to expect.

nj7 15 Jul 2006, 18:30

SiBradbury wrote:Charming.
As you can see, my last five phones (including that awful Sony Z600) have been symbian phones. I know what to expect from them.
Basically my phone requirements were, good picture quality, Symbian OS and preferably Nokia-made. The N80 fitted these requirements. The functionality of the phone itself is excellent, as i've come to expect from Nokia Smartphones. But I don't think it's too much to ask for the camera to be a bit less blur-prone and the battery life to be slightly better, and lets face it, i'm not the only one with a gripe regarding battery life! You're right in saying that given the technology you can expect low batt life but since i'm not using the WLAN or web browsing on this phone that doesn't really cut it.
I was really really dying to love this phone but after giving it a fair trial it doesn't agree with me (or my big hands).
I'm sorry if you took my disappointment with the handset as a personal insult ( i can't help thinking the comments at the end of your post were pointing in this direction) but it's not like i was saying "the N80 is rubbish and so is everyone who owns one"!!! The N80 is an excellent phone let down in two main areas, one of which is its main selling point, the camera. And it was the camera which many people will buy this phone for, as i did. I can't help thinking lots will be disappointed.
Again, hopefully the N73 will be an improvement in the areas i've outlined.

This of the N80 is always the same, the battery was not made for it. How much to the 3230, also I have and taste very. Is, still, until the a coming of the 5500 the smallest and lightest Symbian of the Nokia. Also have the N70, therefore currently he seems well more balanced me than the N80. The battery, also is not shining, but still a little better that the N91 (of a friend). It comes the N93, therefore the battery is bigger and can remodel my DSC. At least is my hope. If not, I keep the N70 as main choice.

Cash 15 Jul 2006, 20:42

fdxd wrote:Get over it. For 'normal smartphone' use the battery is an improvement over other S60 phones. No argument there.
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I will get over it when Nokia correct the problem and I can use my phone the way its supposed to be used without the worry of it dying if I use the smartphone functions.

SiBradbury 15 Jul 2006, 22:57

fdxd wrote:Get over it. For 'normal smartphone' use the battery is an improvement over other S60 phones. No argument there.
The Z600 is not Symbian. You clearly did not know what to expect.

Sorry fdxd, you are right and i am wrong. The Z600 is NOT Symbian. I am an idiot. But then it WAS a few years back.

It doesn't make my points less valid tho, the N80 camera is blurry and the battery lasts much less than any other S60 phone i've used/owned including the 3230, 6600 and 7650. Do you disagree?

Like i said, it's not like i'm insulting your mother, or even your choice of phone for that matter.
Its my first day on this forum and i'm hoping everyone else here is more open to peoples opinions than you are. Maybe it'd be more constructive to just disagree factually rather than disagree rudely.

By the way if you google the words "nokia n80 poor battery life" you get over 52,000 results so it's not just me and you may have also noticed there is an entire thread written by people who are unimpressed with the N80's battery life.
You'll find it here: http://www.allaboutsymbian.com/forum//forum/thread/48408/&highlight=n80+battery

But just remember this: I'VE ALWAYS HAD NOKIAS. I LIKE THEM!

nj7 15 Jul 2006, 23:13

SiBradbury wrote:Sorry fdxd, you are right and i am wrong. The Z600 is NOT Symbian. I am an idiot. But then it WAS a few years back.
It doesn't make my points less valid tho, the camera is blurry and the battery lasts much less than any other S60 phone i've used/owned including the 3230, 6600 and 7650. Do you disagree?
Like i said, it's not like i'm insulting your mother, or even your choice of phone for that matter.
Its my first day on this forum and i'm hoping everyone else here is more open to peoples opinions (and thats all it is) than you are. Maybe it'd be more constructive to just disagree factually rather than disagree rudely.
By the way if you google the words "nokia n80 poor battery life" you get over 52,000 results so it's not just me and you may have also noticed there is an entire thread written by people who are unimpressed with the N80's battery life. You'll find it here: http://www.allaboutsymbian.com/forum//forum/thread/48408/&highlight=n80+battery
Jut remember this: I'VE ALWAYS HAD NOKIAS. I LIKE THEM

Good idea. *Googlit* the things...!

fdxd 16 Jul 2006, 00:02

You guys would have a point if battery technology was magically better and there were other phones like the N80. As it stands N80 performance with the battery is fine, its the only smartphone of its type(highest one hand). Ofcourse if you intend to use a feature like Wifi all day what do you expect? 🙄

My previous phones the N90 and 6630 didnt last a day(24hr) with heavy usage. Its only slightly better with the N80 but given the feature bump its impressive. At the end of the day the only way to get better battery performance would be to ditch smartphones or compromise. The enterprise phones are a good alternative(buffed up batteries) but they are no N80 in features. You could even compromise to say a N73 which may work abit better but all smartphones have this battery balance issue at the end of the day.

_Dx_ 16 Jul 2006, 01:41

fdxd wrote:You guys would have a point if battery technology was magically better and there were other phones like the N80. As it stands N80 performance with the battery is fine, its the only smartphone of its type(highest one hand). Ofcourse if you intend to use a feature like Wifi all day what do you expect? 🙄
My previous phones the N90 and 6630 didnt last a day(24hr) with heavy usage. Its only slightly better with the N80 but given the feature bump its impressive. At the end of the day the only way to get better battery performance would be to ditch smartphones or compromise. The enterprise phones are a good alternative(buffed up batteries) but they are no N80 in features. You could even compromise to say a N73 which may work abit better but all smartphones have this battery balance issue at the end of the day.

But i got a great performance on my battery, i use wifi like 6 and a half ours per day do like 10 texts and 15 mins on calls per day, i have bluetooth always on, i open lots of pdf and docs, all of my files are on zip, so i have to open them with handy zip, i listen music like 15 mins lol this is the time when i get lunch and when i get home i still have 2 bars on it, im might had luck with it, well i have to point out the fact that its not the one that came with the phone, i got one from nokia service center and the one that came with my phone its on my wallet lol.

Cash 16 Jul 2006, 07:15

SiBradbury wrote:
Its my first day on this forum and i'm hoping everyone else here is more open to peoples opinions than you are. Maybe it'd be more constructive to just disagree factually rather than disagree rudely.

Dont worry, the majority of people here are friendly and helpfull so I think you will enjoy your time here and get some usefull tips ideas and help when you need it ,

As allways everybody has an opinion and as you say that opinion should be based on fact or experience and comments shouldn't become personal.

Pop ocer to the nokia.co.uk forum about the battery petition and add your name, the more the merrier 😊

http://discussions.nokia.co.uk/discussions/board/message?board.id=smartphones&message.id=9047&page=12

SiBradbury 16 Jul 2006, 10:25

Cash wrote:
Pop ocer to the nokia.co.uk forum about the battery petition and add your name, the more the merrier 😊
http://discussions.nokia.co.uk/discussions/board/message?board.id=smartphones&message.id=9047&page=12

There's a petition?! Case closed your honour! :tongue:

SiBradbury 16 Jul 2006, 10:29

fdxd wrote:You guys would have a point if battery technology was magically better and there were other phones like the N80. As it stands N80 performance with the battery is fine, its the only smartphone of its type(highest one hand). Ofcourse if you intend to use a feature like Wifi all day what do you expect? 🙄
My previous phones the N90 and 6630 didnt last a day(24hr) with heavy usage. Its only slightly better with the N80 but given the feature bump its impressive. At the end of the day the only way to get better battery performance would be to ditch smartphones or compromise. The enterprise phones are a good alternative(buffed up batteries) but they are no N80 in features. You could even compromise to say a N73 which may work abit better but all smartphones have this battery balance issue at the end of the day.

I'm glad you agree that there IS an issue then.
If my battery life was as it is at the moment AND i was using wifi, office and web browsing then I wouldn't mind, but i've barely scratched the surface of the N80's potential and i'm already put off by the battery.
Its such a shame that such a good smartphone is let down by such a minor point. I mean, its not like people want the batt to last for a week or anything! Even just 30-50% extra would probably please the majority!

VskTommy 16 Jul 2006, 11:10

[QUOTE=fdxd]Get over it. For 'normal smartphone' use the battery is an improvement over other S60 phones. No argument there.

My 6600 and 6680 both has much longer standbytime than my N80!

fdxd 16 Jul 2006, 12:52

SiBradbury wrote:I'm glad you agree that there IS an issue then.
If my battery life was as it is at the moment AND i was using wifi, office and web browsing then I wouldn't mind, but i've barely scratched the surface of the N80's potential and i'm already put off by the battery.
Its such a shame that such a good smartphone is let down by such a minor point. I mean, its not like people want the batt to last for a week or anything! Even just 30-50% extra would probably please the majority!

lol. You guys are for a solution to which there is no solution right now. But feel free to carry on smoking whatever you do and pretend better technology exists without compromise.

Pop ocer to the nokia.co.uk forum about the battery petition and add your name, the more the merrier
http://discussions.nokia.co.uk/discu...9047&page= 12

There are so many things wrong with the way you guys are handling this.

Cash 16 Jul 2006, 13:39

fdxd wrote:
There are so many things wrong with the way you guys are handling this.

Better to be active in doing something, than inactive and doing nothing.

Not going to start a debate about it, but I would prefer to try everyway possible, wrong or right to get a solution to a problem, if you dont like it simple, ignore it 😊

SiBradbury 16 Jul 2006, 21:57

fdxd wrote:lol. You guys are for a solution to which there is no solution right now. But feel free to carry on smoking whatever you do and pretend better technology exists without compromise.

Just because there's no solution doesn't mean there isn't a problem (i haven't disputed the fact that maybe there isn't a fix to this problem at this point in time).

Compared to virtually every other smartphone (is that too general or does anyone know a worse culprit?) out there the N80 battery life is very short. Fact.

Some people don't have a problem with the short battery life, some do. But the people that do have a problem with it certainly have the right to say so. Don't they?

At least, fdxd, you seem to be in agreement that a solution would be nice. Therefore is it fair to say you think the batt life is a little disappointing?

(By the way, what IS the best way to handle dissatisfaction other than express it to the manufacturer?)

PS lets not forget that this all kicked off because i basically said "i'm not happy with my N80 for these reasons, and therefore i'm sending it back. Anyone else unhappy with theirs?"
Its not like i broke into your house on Christmas morning and p*ssed on your kids 😊

fdxd 17 Jul 2006, 02:40

SiBradbury wrote:Compared to virtually every other smartphone (is that too general or does anyone know a worse culprit?) out there the N80 battery life is very short. Fact.

Quite the opposite actually.

murrayalex 17 Jul 2006, 07:50

fdxd wrote:Quite the opposite actually.

well. the battery life is pretty poor compared to my last smartphone - treo 650 - that thing would go on for days without needing charged. The battery on the N80 is poor but for me it's not an issue. I have a charger at home, at work and in the car which covers most eventualities. It's fairly simple to me, if you use the phone a lot and know you'll be somewhere where you can't charge it then charge it before you go there. At least it doesn't take long to charge 😊

Cash 17 Jul 2006, 07:56

fdxd wrote:Quite the opposite actually.

The N80 has a much shorter life than any other smart phone I have used, even shorter than my crappy sendo x, and that was a real sh*t battery.

I never ever in at least the last 10 years of owning phones (and I have been owning hand portable mobile phones since 1988), had to recharge a mobile on a daily basis, I also always, and have always purchased a new phone with the latest technology every time.

Even without using the wifi the battery has to be charged overnight otherwise my phone will be dead in the morning.

Cash 17 Jul 2006, 08:00

murrayalex wrote:well. the battery life is pretty poor compared to my last smartphone - treo 650 - that thing would go on for days without needing charged. The battery on the N80 is poor but for me it's not an issue. I have a charger at home, at work and in the car which covers most eventualities. It's fairly simple to me, if you use the phone a lot and know you'll be somewhere where you can't charge it then charge it before you go there. At least it doesn't take long to charge 😊

Yea, I find that I am actually thinking differently about the mobile phone now, instead of just picking it up and going out I find myself constantly looking at the battery indicater to make sure I have enough power in the phone.

Strange how something so simple like a sh*t battery can actually change the way you think and act

LesLesleyson 17 Jul 2006, 08:16

Cash wrote:Even without using the wifi the battery has to be charged overnight otherwise my phone will be dead in the morning.

I seriously think you may have a duff battery, mine lasts a good 3 days between charges with moderate use.

Cash 17 Jul 2006, 08:25

LesLesleyson wrote:I seriously think you may have a duff battery, mine lasts a good 3 days between charges with moderate use.

Hi Les,

I would actually be inclined to agree with you, but its the high number of others that have the same battery life as me (less than 24 hours) with what seems to be similar (not excessive) N80 use.

Unless there were some bad batches of batteries made.

In any case, today I am back to the Nokia shop to get a replacement battery, and will see what happens with that battery, keeping fingers crossed I get better battery performance.

Incedently, I bought my N80 from a nokia shop in Lithuania (its where I live now), and a friend of mine who also lives in LT and UK upgraded his orange contract to an N80 in the UK a couple of weeks ago, and we both get similar battery life, ok we both use different smartphone functions, but battery life seems the same.