Nokia N96 - the ongoing test and questions invited

i want to know how is the sound quality through headphones.. is it comporable with the n91 in terms of sound quality and sonic experience..

Do we now know for sure whether it has hardware 3d acceleration or not? I've heard that it doesn't, that it does, that it doesn't, that it does so many times my head is spinning.

Nokia Media Transfer for mac - is still fairly betaish - whatever handset you have
but is at least usable now - i used to just remove the memory card and use a card reader to add music/remove photos.

what interested me is how well it handles video files

will it play back high-ish res video files
such as 640x420 etc. N95 would stutter and fail on larger than 320x240videos

also the N95 player is a pain in never remembering where you were watching last.

somethign the iPhone /iPod touch trumps it on big time as a UI experience.

for me being a 'play all video' phone is the only reason to get the n96 over an N85.

Hi nick, can u please tell me if the navigation wheel really works or not like in N81? or rather the N85 and N79?
and also..i'd like to know if N96 can rotate it's screen like the way the animation on N85 does..i'm sure u've seen it...
or maybe this will be updated in the future? with newer firmware of course..i hope it does, since if i'm not mistaken N85 also runs on the same feature pack as N96. thank you =)

Is the navi wheel enabled as some people are saying that it doesnt work. Also can you have the photo light pernantly on while video rec. Thanks

I had a similar video stuttering effect on my N95 8Gb. Seems to only happen when i've taken a lot of photos/uploaded a lot of mp3's to the mass memory. Not sure whether its a file thing or fragmentation of the drive but after downloading sai photos, the stuttering goes away.

Unregistered wrote:Also can you have the photo light pernantly on while video rec.

Yes, you can.

I also own a N96 (obtained through the facethetask donation thing).

Unregistered wrote:i want to know how is the sound quality through headphones.. is it comporable with the n91 in terms of sound quality and sonic experience..

I havent owned the N91, but my impression is that it has noticeably better sound quality than the N95.

Enfors wrote:Do we now know for sure whether it has hardware 3d acceleration or not? I've heard that it doesn't, that it does, that it doesn't, that it does so many times my head is spinning.

It seems like it doesnt according to the smape.com review, but it does have improved video hardware acceleration compared to older models.

billy k wrote:Hi nick, can u please tell me if the navigation wheel really works or not like in N81? or rather the N85 and N79?
and also..i'd like to know if N96 can rotate it's screen like the way the animation on N85 does..i'm sure u've seen it...
or maybe this will be updated in the future? with newer firmware of course..i hope it does, since if i'm not mistaken N85 also runs on the same feature pack as N96. thank you =)

The navi wheel does not work. It may (hopefully) be enabled in a future firmware update. The N96 does have auto rotation.

Also can you have the photo light pernantly on while video rec

Yes, you can turn on the flash leds when filming video.

Hi Nick,

i got as well a N96 , you said the Pictures are really amazing,

thing is when i make pictures , no matter if use the auto-fokus on the general mode the pictures look a bit milky & fuzzy---

You think somthings wrong with my lense---or that this hopfully will be gone with the next update ...

???! :-/

Thank you --

oh i see, thanks for your reply..
so in other words, there is no option to turn on or off the navi wheel in the setting menu?
about the auto rotation, yes i know it does have one, i think it's similar to the one on N82 and N95 8gb (with firmware 20 and above) i presume?
what i meant was the auto rotation like the one on N85, where it has that little animation..
thanks for the info by the way =)

Stereo mics or mono?

I'm planning to buy either N96 or Samsung INNOV8. I'd like to know which has better sound quality between those 2 phones. Can we have a comparison article of those 2 phones please?

This phone is a serious let down, Nokia needs to sought out its strategy.

Thanks for that Nick,

Would you try out Global Racer on the phone, Just to see what its like as thats a 3d game that works fine on the n95. 😊 Barry

Nope, it doesn't have the 'fade-out, rotate, fade back in' animation. It doesn't have any of the fancy FP2 animations. In fact, it doesn't even have the option to have animated icons as on my N82.

There is a Naviwheel menu, but the only option is to have 'breathing' on or off. I think 'breathing' is just the led pulsing when you get a message or when it's charging.

It's got a mono mic.

Haven't played with mine a lot, but I think they haven't really finished the firmware.

Unregistered wrote:Nope, it doesn't have the 'fade-out, rotate, fade back in' animation. It doesn't have any of the fancy FP2 animations. In fact, it doesn't even have the option to have animated icons as on my N82.

Actually it does have menu animations, but the built in themes doesnt have any special fading/animation effects such as in the Haze theme supplied with the N78. If you enter the theme selection menu you can turn on/off the theme effects in the options menu.

Nick Antsee,

Your initial review in enlightening. I'm an avid power user, and feel this device is woefully inadequate. Opposingly, you seem to be a less aggressive power user, and even use a Mac PC!! We're definitely from two planets (I believe mine's the alien one)! Needless to say, your impression of this device is intriguing to me. Those unfamiliar with past Nseries, or not looking for bleeding edge performance may enjoy this device.

Enfors, the Forum Nokia device spec sheet lists a dedicated hardware GPU, though tests prove its nothing near as powerful as the hardware setup of the N95-2. I believe this listed processor is actually a smaller processor to enable the video encoding at 30fps like the 6220, which would otherwise be stuck at 15fps like the sad N78.

Macwhu, since the Nseries were introduced in 2005, high-res video playback has been a forte of most models. 640x480 is hardly high-res by Nseries standards, with most models capable of capturing video in this resolution. You will find no comparable video capture or playback device anywhere else on the market! Nseries=unmatched content creation and experiencing capabilities. If you had issues with captured video stuttering, perhaps you should update your firmware to the latest version, or format the mass or card memory. That was an issue in earlier builds, but the N95's video capturing prowess is now flawless, and unprecedented in the market, even in comparison to newer 8 megapixel models. Contact me on the Symbian Freak site if you need help fixing it. Its definitely not normal behavior for recording.

The N96's video playback has no advantage over the N85 or N95. They sport identical players and codec support. Most power users go for Coreplayer's much more powerful media player, anyway, which handles almost every video codec known to man! To compare this or any other Nseries device to an iPhone is a little tilted. The Nseries can be configured to play almost any media format via freeware, multitasks, and can replace a decent laptop. The iPhone is just an iTunes player with a simplified web browser. Not much more. Being pretty doesn't help get good grades in a tech review. Performance trumps style when prices are similar.

1976, are you pressing in your camera capture button partially to begin the focus, awaiting the green light to capture, and fully pressing the rest of the way to capture? If so, blame the grease and grime on the coverless camera lens. Give it a cleaning before shooting.

Hope I've shed some light on some of your questions.

Chris aka christexaport
www.symbian-freak.com
www.android-freak.org

My earlier statement sums up this device...

Anyone unfamiliar with the Nseries, that's never had one of their recent flagship devices, or not seeking bleeding edge innovation and performance may be amazed.

Now isn't the Nseries supposed to be the pinnacle of mobile computing, the bleeding edge of technology, and the performance innovator?? What on earth is Nokia doing to our glorious brand? 😞 The fact the flagship N96 is compared to competitors, or has a competitor at all, is an embarrassment for Nokia. The N90, N93, N95-2 and N82 had no peer, power or spec-wise. The N96 is an also-ran amongst various multipositioned competitors. It comes with a unique selling point of high quality image and video capture, a segment it may no longer even lead in the industry.

Does anyone else feels as let down as I? Where's the commanding technological lead? Android OEM's are licking their chops, because there's an opening in the kitchen, and the chef's fast asleep...

I'll try an answer all the questions to date:

1) Don't know about the sound quality of the N91 but what I can say is that the sound is excellent and the supplied headset is very good but I prefer the sound through the Bluetooth BH-503 Headset, it is a bit more mellow, probably because the treble is balanced by the better bass.
2) Don't know about the hardware 3D acceleration.
3) It plays back Video files no problem from Micro SD Cards I ripped a 1GB file from a DVD and it plays back smoothly (30fps at approx 1500 kbps) from the Micro SD card but it stutters when you move the same file to the internal Mass Storage Memory, move it back again to the SD and it is fine, early firmware or slow mass storage memory? I don't know.
4) You can close the Video file and application and then re-open an play from beginning or last position.
5) Navi wheel doesn't work, breath only
6) Screen rotation automatic OR manual
7) I had milky pictures the first few shots but I am not sure if the soft reset and formatting of the mass memory fixed it or if it was because I changed the default settings and then changed them back again. Check that your Video capture is set to max quality.
8) Chris I wasn't complaining about the Video capture/playback capability/resolution other than it works fine with Micro SD Cards but stutters from the Mass Storage and I have already tried formatting the Mass storage memory. I don't know about the N96 processor but what I do know is that it handles photos and videos faster than my E90 which on paper apparently has a fast processor.

Best Regards
Nick Anstee

christexaport wrote:

Macwhu, since the Nseries were introduced in 2005, high-res video playback has been a forte of most models. 640x480 is hardly high-res by Nseries standards, with most models capable of capturing video in this resolution.

The N96's video playback has no advantage over the N85 or N95.
www.symbian-freak.com
www.android-freak.org

cool - thanks for the reply
i have no problem with my original n95 video recording and agree its amazing.

but often it stutters and loses audio sync on mp4 h.264 videos i playback.
but i may jsut get an ipod for that - and stick with the nokia for photo/video capture.
and internet access on the go.

though like most people im probably leaning towards an n85 in that case.

7) I had milky pictures the first few shots but I am not sure if the soft reset and formatting of the mass memory fixed it or if it was because I changed the default settings and then changed them back again

Hey Nick,

thanx for answering, ! So i will give it a try and do at first a soft reset and formatting the mass memory ...mabye you can be so kind and tell me what you changed at the default settings and where to find ---maybe this works ...

thanx so much

cheers

Great info so far nick, very helpful!

Why is that christexaport character so negative? I gave up reading symbian freak because of that egocentric idiot.

Get a life christexaport.

Because I have never had a n series device, I was just wondering: is it actually better than n95 8gb, and have you ever found the lack of 3d chip anoying (can you play videos and games without errors)?

I reckon it is still better than n95 8gb in all aspects, well to me 3d chip isnt too much of a problem..since i dont play ngage games much, i play games on my psp more often..

So it does not have the fade in and fade out rotating animation does it..?
o well..even if N85's better at that part..N96 is still way better in overall with it's 16gb internal memory..i mean there's no other N series device that has that, well apart from the Samsung innov8 of coz..

however i think the price range is still way too expensive! i can't wait to get my hands on this phone..gonna trade my n95 8gb for it..do u think it's worth it Nick? please tell me your opinion, thanks

I'm bored of all this n85/n96 nonsense. They offer no major advantages over my n958gb come upgrade time in early 2009. When will the announcement be for the n958gb's true next gen touchscreen successor that does everything except make ur toast? (When they've flogged enough n85/n96's probably!)

Bonobo wrote:I'm bored of all this n85/n96 nonsense. They offer no major advantages over my n958gb come upgrade time in early 2009.

I don't think that's true. Sure, on the paper the N96 doesn't have many features that earlier models didn't have. But instead, I think it has stability. I even read that in a revew. At first, the reviewer thought the phone was boring, but then came to realise that the N96 was much more polished than earlier models. Here's three paragraphs from the review:

When Nokia N95 hit the market, it had multiple bugs, was slow, used to crash, did not really felt right in the hands, the slider on it sucked, as did the battery life. We, early adopters, actually became beta testers for a new device and even shelled out some serious money for the privilege.

But all was forgiven in the name of all these cool gimmicks like GPS, 5mpx camera, Wi-Fi and others, that worked more often then not.

With Nokia N96 it�s a completely different story. You can feel that the N95 platform had a year to mature just by holding device in your hand.

The full review is available at http://www.unwiredview.com/2008/02/18/nokia-n96-review-boring-is-good/ .

abt audio quality... Now my hand have n91 8gb, n95 8gb, n96. N96 is the best in audio quality. But not as loud as n91. U can say n91 70-80% volume = n96 full. But quality is better than n91

On the N93, there's a problem with the podcasting application. Some podcasts are just too damn quiet to hear in a noisy environment such as driving, or riding a bike even when at 100% volume. This isn't true for all podcasts though, just some of them. Does anybody know if this problem is the same for the N96?

To the guy that feels I'm totally negative, thanks for noticing. Evidently some people like to listen to my honest opinion, instead of pretending the device before us is what we dream of. I speak from a technical and usage point of view few will subscribe to. Those familiar with those patterns understand my reasoning. I hope Nokia is annoyed enough to adjust their product line.

I definitely have done enough happy happy, joy joy when Nokia released the N90, N93, and N95. This device ruins the rich heritage of past Nseries flagships. If you're the fanboy I am, and buy a new device 4 times a year, and expect it to be better each time, you'd also be negative.

I invite you to return to the SF site, and take in the rest of the team. Although we all hold the N96 with much disdain and little regard, not all agree, which is the beauty of our and this community. Some aren't as verbally passionate as I. I'm learning to better control my fiery attitude. Be warned of the man in control of fire, however...

Enfors wrote:I don't think that's true. Sure, on the paper the N96 doesn't have many features that earlier models didn't have. But instead, I think it has stability. I even read that in a revew. At first, the reviewer thought the phone was boring, but then came to realise that the N96 was much more polished than earlier models.

Slower, less powerful hardware, weaker battery, and a useless TV tuner are things I'd accept 3-5 months after buying the N95 classic or 8gb, not after all this wait. All that added up to basically the same device as the N95 with an updated OS, not enough to warrant spending $750 when I don't even get any improvements to the screen, camera features, or media editing capabilities Nokia has slowly been removing since the N90.

I think its ok to like the N96. I'll take one if anyone's donating one. But I hope those interested listen to reviewers like Teo, myself, Marty, and others that find this device repulsive. Perhaps users never realized the power the past flagships had over the competition. Either way, major mobile reviewers, journalists, and techies are disgusted. If it were only me, it'd be one thing. This is not my opinion alone, and as long as others pretend or voice opposite opinions, I'll present an alternative.

I may be unemployed, but I spend my spare money on my hobby.