Kevs wrote:Not to sound like a complete convert on Day 1, but the N900 has all of the above covered..... you just need to tweak it your needs
True, it's very much a landscape device.
With the current firmware portrait is there for phone and web browser, but you can't type in portrait so you'll have to drop back to landscape for that, but for 'most' things landscape is much better.
I sold my N97 and got a HTC desire 5 days ago, and so far......
no crashes, no hanging, no problems AT ALL. And its fast, damn fast. Android has been a breath of fresh air.
The web browser is something else, its so fast i cannot explain, NEVER used anything close to it on a phone before, with flash support. On my N97 i never used the stock browser, as it was slow, had C drive issues- i used mini opera for all my web browsing. I haven't even bothered installing Opera on the desire, that says it all.
The homescreens are a dream, all the benefits of the N97 in there, but these work, and the phone has enough grunt to pull it off.
The app store is far more mature, and you get so many things free that you have to pay for with the N97, such as threaded message apps, decent games. Oh, and i don't have to pay for Pdf viewer etc, and i get free google maps (with navigation - not strictly 'direct'😉
Photo management is brilliant. I put 4500 photos onto my SD card in various folders, and the phone creates albums for each of these folders automatically. Brilliant. Plus i can see all photos in one view- found it very annoying on the N97 that you had to spilt between captured and downloaded (particularly as some captured photos randomly ended up in the downloaded section!)
The camera is as good in good light, but not as good in low light. Having said that, the N97 was rubbish in low light, never got rid of the flash flood issue.
Things i miss from the N97 are FM transmitter (although going to get a bluetooth stereo to mimic this), 32GB onboard and the better battery life. Funny thing is, i thought i would miss the QWERTY, but i don't! Combination of non-resistive touchscreen and 'auto correct' feature means i actually type faster on the on screen keyboard, this really did surprise me.
In conclusion, if anyone is thinking of moving on, the Desire is a cracking phone. The battery life is not great, but i can live with carrying a spare. Go on the android desire forum, vast majority of posts are actually positive, only a few with 'real' issues- which is rare from my forum experience.
I do miss my N97, i have had symbian phones for a long time, but now it seems so dated and out of touch, not to mention full of bugs. The desire is more stable than my N97 was after v21 (almost a year after release). I do hope nokia sort it out, but it will take something truly amazing to bring me back to symbian - and that is sad:frown:
Good luck everyone, i'll still pop in now and again if thats ok, just because its become a bit of a habit now, and i like the people on this forum, i feel like we have all been on one heck of a journey together, and mine has come to an end
Thanks to everyone who helped me over the past year and good luck :icon14:
Cracking review :icon14:
I want it more now! 😃
Hope you don't suffer from the SD card issue I had with that many photos onboard.
spirit44 wrote:
Photo management is brilliant. I put 4500 photos onto my SD card in various folders, and the phone creates albums for each of these folders automatically. Brilliant. Plus i can see all photos in one view- found it very annoying on the N97 that you had to spilt between captured and downloaded (particularly as some captured photos randomly ended up in the downloaded section!)
Got it!
Made �30 in the process too :icon14:
WOW, the thing is awesome. It's so quick, and everything works perfectly!
The web browser is just like a PC one, everything loads (flash etc) and the pages zooms around very smoothly, even on heavy sites like the BBC.
The app store loaded with apps, and even has my favourite Iphone app, paper toss! Love it.
I also like the facebook integration. My contacts list has the profile pic from FB and also a status update.
So far, the only negative thing is that the headphones can't separate at the remote so I can't use my own. Also, the remote has no volume control which is stupid.
To say I'm happy is an understement! 😃
Congrats BB, just been around a few phone shops today looking at other potentials, the sticking point at the moment seems to be Android ability to sync with Mac. Spoke to one guy in CPW who just didn't know any 'technical' type questions, and one guy in Phones 4 U who just told me info that wasn't accurate.
Did look at the Sony Experia 10, but wasn't too impressed with the speed of it, didn't seem any faster than the N97 to be honest. Need to investigate further.
Still in Blighty, so might have a few more shopping days til the airpalnes get back into the air !!
Can you get Google calendar sync for the MAC? It's a little app which syncs outlook mail with Google calendar on the web which in turn syncs with the phone. Not sure if this would be of use to you?[LIST=1]
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BanziBarn wrote:Can you get Google calendar sync for the MAC? It's a little app which syncs outlook mail with Google calendar on the web which in turn syncs with the phone. Not sure if this would be of use to you?[LIST=1]
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Yes, I have Google Sync set up with the Mac. When I first got the N97, there was no iSync plug in available, so had to use this method to sync the laptop with Google, then synced Google with the phone.
Spent about 20 mins today playing with the Desire , trying to get it to tether with the Mac, couldn't get it to work, but there is an app for Android which allows it to happen, so might look at that. Odd thing was that the CPW were trying to cahrge me �449 for the phone today, even though in their shops, the ticket price for PAYG is �399 + �10 top up . Something about not having any PAYG handsets in store.
spirit44 wrote:I sold my N97 and got a HTC desire 5 days ago, and so far......no crashes, no hanging, no problems AT ALL. And its fast, damn fast. Android has been a breath of fresh air.
The app store is far more mature, and you get so many things free that you have to pay for with the N97, such as threaded message apps, decent games. Oh, and i don't have to pay for Pdf viewer etc, and i get free google maps (with navigation - not strictly 'direct'😉
Yep, you're having the epiphany I had when I junked my N97 for a Milestone in December. Against the odds, Android seems more 'mature' than Symbian after only being around for a couple of years. The Market in particular knocks Ovi into a cocked hat.
If you have Android 1.6 or greater, Google has recently enabled the whizzy (and free) turn-by-turn navigation for the UK, so grab the latest version of Google Maps from the Market if you haven't already!
The only plus now of Ovi Maps vs Google, is offline mode. I can use Ovi if I am abroad in the US for example without incurring silly roaming data charges.
stringent wrote:The only plus now of Ovi Maps vs Google, is offline mode. I can use Ovi if I am abroad in the US for example without incurring silly roaming data charges.
True, there are 'offline' solutions for Android but you have to pay for them (CoPilot live is around �20 I think).
For the occasional bit of navigation I do, paying for a few Kb of data to get me out of a spot is acceptable.
Got rid of my N97 yesterday. �180 from a mobile recyclying website which wasnt too bad and plumped like many of you for the Desire and must say one of the more intelligent decisions ive made in a long time.
Really disappointed with the N97 considering ive used mainly used Nokias ever since the old 402's.
Just need to find a case and some screen protectors for my HTC now considering how beautiful it is im scared i might accidently scratch the screen or something.
Well, I'm back in Saudi now, didn't quite get round to picking up a Desire, thought long and hard about it, looked at other possibilities, Sony Ericsson Experia X10 and the forthcoming Samsung I9000 Galaxy - both Android, and this does seem to be inspiring some nice phones.
I have now put the N97 away, and dug out the old and very trusty N95 which is back to being my main phone.
Had a quick look around a couple of phone shops today in Saudi and the Desire & Experia X10 are not yet on sale out here, so will carry on with the N95 and see what is available when I'm back in Blighty in the late summer.
Good luck to all you new Desire owners.
Those of you who did recycle your phones, how cosmetically damaged were your phones? About the only problem with my N97 is the the paint flecks coming off around the rims and a few minor scratches.
The thing has held up well considering the amount of times I've dropped it on the floor.
I too am tempted either for the Desire or NexusOne, but the thing that's putting me off at the moment is at least the lack of onboard memory and the mono speaker on the back.
What's the sound quality like through the built in speaker compared to the N97?
I sold mine on ebay, but when I got the n97 I sent my n95 to mazuma, it had chunks missing from all the times I had dropped it! But they paid up no prob. As long as it works there won't be an issue.
As for the loudspeakers, the sound is definitely better on the n97 with its stereo sound. But I do find that the desire is louder when making calls over speakerphone. Although the sound is more tinny.
But in my opinion both are rubbish, these new thin phones have useless speakers, to look cool and no doubt sell as many Bluetooth headsets as possible. Sorry, very cynical.....
The speaker isn't great, but I got one of these which is one of the best gadgets I've had! It's sounds amazing, perfect for going on holiday or using in the bathroom.
http://www.play.com/Electronics/Electronics/4-/9623066/X-Mi-X-Mini-II-2nd-Generation-Capsule-iPod-MP3-Speaker/Product.html?&_$ja=tsid:11518|cc:|prd:9623066|cat:MP3+Speakers
RE: recycle, my N97 was in perfect condition but as has been said, I don't think it matters too much.
knh4, I'm being super paranoid about scratching the screen too! I ordered some screen protectors last Sunday from Ebay but they've not arrived yet.... hope they arrive soon.
nottmbantam, the N95 will serve you perfectly until you decide what to get 😊
sjdean wrote:Those of you who did recycle your phones, how cosmetically damaged were your phones? About the only problem with my N97 is the the paint flecks coming off around the rims and a few minor scratches.The thing has held up well considering the amount of times I've dropped it on the floor.
I too am tempted either for the Desire or NexusOne, but the thing that's putting me off at the moment is at least the lack of onboard memory and the mono speaker on the back.
What's the sound quality like through the built in speaker compared to the N97?
That's the one thing that prevents me from selling the N97 - the cosmetic damage. I put a screen protector on from Day One, so that is in perfect condition, but the chrome surround around the keyboard looks really tatty, and I'm disapopinted with that. Selling it like that will reduce the price, but I reckon I should be able to sell it for around �150 quite easily, max price up to around �170.
The N95's chrome buttons ( volume rocker, camera shutter ) are similarly worn away, but that phone is three years old! It is just a solid device and having used it ( again) for the last two days, I'm now wondering why I splashed out all the dinero on the N97 in the first place? A costly error of judgement I think...
Was thinking today re the surge of Android phones, there certainly seems to be a groundswell in terms of more and more manufacturers turning their attentions to Android, and Nokia are going to have to come up with something VERY special in the N8 ( or whatever the latest will be ) to get phone users abck into the Symbian market again. The Desire seems to be very popular at the moment, and could be a very good rival for the iPhone. THe new iPhone is rumoured to use a micro sim card, which I think might work against it?
Im just glad I didn't jump ship to the N900.... Sports Tracker isn't there, Google Maps isn't supported, no facebook widget! Shouldn't have told a friend "that's a cracking phone that is, I would have gone with that one..."
For those that have made the switch to HTC Desire or Google NexusOne, video recording... how long can you record for? The N97 allows upto 1hr 30m in one go. The Android suggests 30m maximum.
Well, I'm another N97 owner who's made the decision to jump ship to the HTC Desire. I've tried really hard to like my N97 and there are lots of good things in its favour: 32Gb expandable storage, the cool angled keyboard, familiarity (I arrived at the N97 via I suspect a reasonably common route of 6630 > N80 > N95 > N95 8GB) etc. But it just doesn't work as it should.
I've had enough of the constant battles with C: drive space; the all too regular freezing and battery pulls; the massive lags when opening applications - sometimes never actually opening at all.
The whole experience isn't a pleasant one. In theory I've got all this technology in my pocket that can do so many things, but in reality I can never rely on it to do them. For example the potentially great Nokia Maps app (which I would be a big fan of) takes so long to get going and is so willing to crash and shut down that I don't bother using it on the occasions that I'd really like to.
Even with the early problems there seemed like promise with apps like the Photo Browser, but nothing much more seemed to come from Nokia, and in reality whilst this software is quite nice, the phone just isn't powerful enough to run it properly. With a decent sized library of pics you end up with huge delays for any image at all and then get something so pixelated it's unrecognisable for another age. Want to MMS it to someone? Jab away at the screen trying to get the menu to come up and bounce back and forth between different views instead.
Whatever task I want to do, even if the phone does manage to perform it well, I never have confidence that it will and so I often don't bother. I feel strangely sad and guilty that I'm giving up on Nokia and Symbian for now - I did have a strong brand loyalty and have been an advocate and defender for a long time, but I've just reached the limit of my patience with what's meant to be a premium product. It's rather telling that the phone recycling companies are actually offering more for a N97 Mini than for an N97. Even more telling is that the N95 8GB fetches almost as much.
I'm sure the Desire won't be perfect and will have it's limits and frustrations too, but from everything I've read at least it seems like it belongs in 2010 and does what it says it will.
I had my first freeze today resulting in having to take the battery off... so the phone isn't perfect! Still loving it though 😊
Some may be interested, but I was reading about what might be included in the next firmware update and a lot of people think that the phone has FM transmitter abilities that just needs enabling by software. HD video capture may also be on the cards, after all, the camera has enough resolution......
Well- another one bites the dust. Sold my N97 yesterday and got around �200 for it which is less than half of what I paid less than 10 months ago. Interestingly enough, one of the maim phone shops is selling the N97 for exactly half the price it was on first release.
So I went back to using my N95 for a few days and just loved it. The one I perhaps missed most was the qwerty keyboard and the FM Transmitter. After lookimg seriously at the Desire, I decided against spending another �450 on a fancy handset. Those of who read my posts will know I'm based abroad so there is no point buying a monthly UK contract phone and I also need an unlocked handset as I change sim cards depending on where I am!
What the ideal phone for right now would be something akin to the N95 but with a keyboard, so I've kinda gone sideways and made the move to the E Series and just bought an E72 - in fact I'm typing this post on it as we 'speak'. Paid about �250 for the E72 whish is a bit cheaper than i the UK.
I do think though that Android is the way forward for the next few years, if there was a handset that offers all the features of the N97 then I would be interested, but right now, I just a basic handset with some stability and speed which can offer me a solid keyboard, decent camera, 3G and of course wi fi. The Blackberry's out there seem to be lacking in the camera department, plus there is something about them that I just don't like, don't know what, but just don't interest me.
I'm not bashing the N97 or the Desire,I just think for now, I've got a phone that suits my needs and my budget!
Glad you've got something sorted now! Sounds like you've made a good call :icon14:
I just bought an HTC Desire too. Off ebay from a local seller, paid �340 for it with �30 of calls included.
Banzi, or any of you guys that have already jumped ship, can you point me to any sites like this for the Desire.
Ps, i will keep popping back to check out the reviews of the N8 'cause it does look really nice with that 12mp camera, but i want to see how it runs before i part with my cash on a Nokia again.
Here you go
riverboat wrote:I just bought an HTC Desire too. Off ebay from a local seller, paid �340 for it with �30 of calls included.Banzi, or any of you guys that have already jumped ship, can you point me to any sites like this for the Desire.
Ps, i will keep popping back to check out the reviews of the N8 'cause it does look really nice with that 12mp camera, but i want to see how it runs before i part with my cash on a Nokia again.
Yes, I was also interested in the N8, 12mp camera, Symbian ^3, capacitive screen. From the two very brief and basic reviews I've seen, early indications are not good.
I think I'd be tempted to wait for Symbian 4, or wait for an Android device that offers what I'm after - but having learnt my lesson with the N97, I think I'll wait til the phone has been out for a few months before rushing to buy on first release.
BanziBarn wrote:Here you go
Yep, Cheers mate, saw you over there. I've got hold of a tmobile upgrade on, but am thinking about debranding it....lol
Well Im a couple of days of sincere soul searching to decide whether to give up Symbian (for now) for the Nexus One.
As much as I'd love to stick with Symbian, and I love the hardware, and the N97 pretty much does what I want (what the hell am I thinking of moving for?) it just feels tired and dated.
But the N8 is growing on me, but I can't get past the feeling that we'll still have the same messaging interface.
I've sent my N95 to Mazuma. �82 back, paid within a few hours of receipt. Top notch.
sjdean wrote:Well Im a couple of days of sincere soul searching to decide whether to give up Symbian (for now) for the Nexus One.As much as I'd love to stick with Symbian, and I love the hardware, and the N97 pretty much does what I want (what the hell am I thinking of moving for?) it just feels tired and dated.
But the N8 is growing on me, but I can't get past the feeling that we'll still have the same messaging interface.
I've sent my N95 to Mazuma. �82 back, paid within a few hours of receipt. Top notch.
Oddly enough, I'm hanging onto mine. Was happy to sell on the N97, but love the N95, it was and still is such a good phone. I see they are still being sold new online and are still demanding a good price.