Nokia’s N97 is official, and looking lovely from every angle, but it’s easy to get carried away by the fact it’s the first touchscreen N-Series, and has a slide-out keyboard. There are more important features underneath, even if they’re largely unsung. Read on to find out why this will be the most important phone of 2009.
All-new OS
The N97 features a completely revamped Symbian operating system. It’s a leap onwards from the software found on the 5800 XpressMusic.
The most obvious addition is widgets on its homescreen. The first few will come from social networks, with Facebook, MySpace and Friendster all involved, but you can bet it won’t stop there. Once others get hold of Nokia’s software, there’ll be a deluge.
These aren’t full-blown apps, although the N97 can run those too, but one-touch access points for your most-used websites and services. Incredibly handy, and exactly what Nokia needs.
N-Gage inside
It’s easy to overlook the ability of the N97 to run N-Gage games, but combine it with its touchscreen and you’ve got one of the first genuine challenges to the iPhone.
OK, so the monster game catalogue isn’t there yet, but all the pieces are finally in place: a flexible interface, combining hardware buttons and a touchscreen, and 3D accelerated graphics. What’s more, Nokia already has big name developers on board for N-Gage, and with the inclusion of touch controls, that’ll only grow.
16:9 superpowers
The N97 is an unashamed movie machine. That screen isn’t just widescreen, it’s a proper 16:9 widescreen. That means you’ll be able to watch movies on it without annoying black bars bordering the picture. Add the phone’s massive memory and killer battery life, and you’ve got a stunningly good portable video box.
Location aware networking
Nokia says the N97 will introduce your “So-Lo” or “social location”. It’s a neat idea, and one we’ve been waiting to see made reality for a long time. In short, it means social networks will be able to access the phone’s GPS chips, so you can share your location with friends, see who’s nearby and geo-tag your blog posts. OK, so other phones can do this, but they all need extra software to make it work: The N97 is the first phone to share your location right out of the box.
Masses of memory
16GB iPhone? Pah! The N97 packs a whopping 32GB as standard, and with an SD card slotted in its side, it’ll expand all the way to 48GB. That’s enough for hundreds of movies, thousands upon thousands of songs, or just one helluva Word document!
Flash playback
While Apple’s Flash player for iPhone is stuck in development hell, and Android only has a proof-of-concept, the N97 can play back Flash video just fine. That means any website it visits will display perfectly, with embedded clips and animations working just fine. Full internet on your phone? So far, Nokia’s the only one to really deliver it.
Out 2009 | £466 | Nokia
