Nokia N95 Unlocked Cell Phone with 5 MP Camera, International 3G, Wi-Fi, GPS, MP3/Video Player, MicroSD Slot–International Version with Warranty (Silver/Plum)

What customers say about Nokia N95 Unlocked Cell Phone with 5 MP Camera, International 3G, Wi-Fi, GPS, MP3/Video Player, MicroSD Slot–International Version with Warranty (Silver/Plum)?

1. 43 of 46 people found the following review helpful

   
   The best multimedia phone available (for now)., June 10, 2007

   By 

   Timothy Calvillo (United States) –
   
     

   This review is from: Nokia N95 Unlocked Cell Phone with 5 MP Camera, International 3G, Wi-Fi, GPS, MP3/Video Player, MicroSD Slot–International Version with Warranty (Silver/Plum) (Wireless Phone Accessory)

   I have to admit I have been anticipating this phone ever since it was announced in 2006. I have to say overall I am very satisfied with this device. I does have it’s faults that will disappoint, but on the other hand it has managed to exceed my expectations in some respects. First, is stability. I have owned my share of phones and the headache that comes with hoping the next firmware will fix some glaring usability problems (e.g. crashes that only pulling the battery will fix). Thankfully, I am pleased to see S60 3rd Edition is better implemented here and I have yet to run into any major application crashes. This is surprising given how complex this device is and Nokia’s recent past with releasing devices initially plagued with bugs (e.g. N80 & N93). The OS responds pretty well when opening menus and applications. It is not instantaneous most of the time, but is quite fast and significantly better than on other phones that I had the displeasure to deal with. There are some problems. I wish this phone had more memory. If you end up browsing several complex web pages, you will eventually run into the dreaded memory low situation. That is the problem, the browser is so good at rendering pages as it should that you will get irritated you have to close and reopen the browser to clear out the history of the last several pages you visited which are taking up whatever available memory exists (somewhere like 20 out of 64 MB). Nokia should have went with 128 MB since the browser, multimedia functions, and multitasking capabilities can never have too much memory. Still, it is all still very usable it is just annoying Nokia made a poor decision with such a high end phone. Speaking of the browser, as I mentioned it is amazing. I do wish the screen was slightly higher than 320×240 resolution as Nokia has previous generation phones with smaller screens at a higher resolution. It would simply make browsing even better as you wouldn’t have to scale it down or scroll all over the screen as much to take in the entire page. The screen is, however, quite large and it simply looks perfect. Colors are beautifully rendered and picture/video viewing looks excellent on it.

   Multimedia, as expected, is incredible. Sound quality is good, maybe not as good as my old Sony Ericcson K750, but still good nonetheless. Thank goodness Nokia provided a 3.5 mm jack for standard headphones, it is about time. The N95 will have no problem replacing a flash based MP3 player. Multimedia keys work well, but I am not sure how useful they are since the 4-way pad also provides similar functionality. The radio works well enough and manages to pick up a lot of stations in my area, but unfortunately it mostly defaults to mono while occasionally shifting into stereo. The camera is really good. Bright outdoor shots look, sometimes, just as good as any consumer camera. Like every other camera phone, indoor shots with low light will come out noisy and dark. That is to be expected. The LED flash will help provided whatever it is you are taking is not too far away. Make sure to update the firmware immediately as it fixes an annoying shutter lag problem. Pictures though sometimes come out too processed to hide noise. With the 5 MP sensor, I suppose noise is inevitable but I hope Nokia improves their processing algorithm in future updates. Overall, you cannot expect the N95 to replace your dedicated camera but with some practice you can get some very good results. Video recording is excellent. It is NOT DVD quality and you will clearly see lots of compression artifacts on your computer monitor. It is however the best on a phone and probably by a long shot. So much so, that video recording finally becomes useful when you spontaneously need to record an event. The camera soft is very good. All of necessary settings are here, though not all stick when you close the camera application. It takes some time to set up for the next shot, but you can turn off viewing the shot you just took so you can take the next shot quicker. The phone supports TV out. I haven’t had the time to explore the possibilities, but it does appear useful for showing slide shows and video playback to your friends. I haven’t found it terribly useful for much else, but YMMV on this.

   I was a little disappointed by the storage provided by the MicroSD format. Nokia provides a 1 GB card in the box and states the phone phones supports up to 2 GB. It has been confirmed though that the newly released 4 GB SanDisk microSDHC will work in this device. This, IMHO, is an acceptable amount of storage for this device and will be needed given the multimedia possibilities of this phone (e.g. MP3s, video recording).

   The GPS is very slow to lock onto satellites when first turned on. I wish the software also provided better feedback on what is going on as well. However, a GPS packed into such a device is pretty amazing and as long as you…

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2. 19 of 20 people found the following review helpful

   
   Currently The Best High-End Phone Available., June 21, 2007

   By 

   KD “jasonwhitem” (MN, USA) –

   This review is from: Nokia N95 Unlocked Cell Phone with 5 MP Camera, International 3G, Wi-Fi, GPS, MP3/Video Player, MicroSD Slot–International Version with Warranty (Silver/Plum) (Wireless Phone Accessory)

   My take on some of the features:

   Camera – It takes two seconds to load up, two seconds to focus, and two seconds to see the photos on the screen after a shot is taken, which hardly qualifies for a point-and-shoot. Overall picture quality is dependant on the environment where the photo is taken. If the surrounding is well-lit, photos look impressive. But, in a relatively dark environment, photos look pretty awful.

   Media Playback – I played mp3 tunes and quality was pretty good. Obviously it doesn’t sound as good as dedicated mp3 players like my iPod, but I think the quality is more than acceptable. But, I noticed that there was some noise in the background. This is especially noticeable when I was listening to my music in a quiet environment. Video playback is pretty decent too and the screen size was large enough to allow me to watch my recorded tv show comfortably.

   Battery – I know a lot of people moan about N95′s short battery life. But, I thought it was pretty decent considering all the features this phone offers. The first day I got this phone, I listened to music for about half an hour while commuting, browsed Google map to get directions, check news online for about half an hour, took about twenty photo shots, talked on the phone for about half an hour, and I still had several bars of the battery left. As long as you don’t overuse WiFi or GPS, you should be fine with everyday charges.

   GPS – This is my least favorite feature in the phone. It is simply too slow to lock down the location. I find myself using Google map (for mobile) more often than this feature.

   Design – It is passable, but certainly does not look like a $700 cell phone (since it won’t attract others, is this a good thing?) One thing that bothers me the most is the front slider. It is wobbly, so whenever I press a button it makes that ‘click’ sound. You do get used to it after a couple of days, and there is a DIY way of fixing this (available on the internet), but I don’t think I want to open up my phone and risk breaking my $700 investment!

   Conclusion – I was a bit hesitant at first because of the price and the well-known drawbacks discussed above. But if you’re a semi – power user like me and wouldn’t mind the features being just above average rather than fantastic, you will not regret the purchase.

   iPhone or N95? – I pondered waiting for the iPhone, but ultimately decided against because 1) I don’t like the idea of using touch screen to make phone calls. These are first and foremost cell phones, so the convenience of making phone calls matters the most to me. 2) iPhone does not have 5mp camera. 3) I do not want to make a two year commitment to AT&T (I like my month-to-month contract with T-Mobile, thank you) and who knows how much it will be if unsubsidized? Also, I don’t know when it will be actually available unlocked. 4) I love Apple’s simplicity and elegance, but I needed flexibility (of a Symbian based smartphone) and functionality.

   Alternatives? – I also considered getting Sony Ericsson’s upcoming W960, but I coulnd’t wait that long!

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3. 18 of 19 people found the following review helpful

   
   How I fell in love with a piece of plastic., May 30, 2007

   By 

   Michael Z. Rork “Photographer” (Burlington, VT) –
   
     

   This review is from: Nokia N95 Unlocked Cell Phone with 5 MP Camera, International 3G, Wi-Fi, GPS, MP3/Video Player, MicroSD Slot–International Version with Warranty (Silver/Plum) (Wireless Phone Accessory)

   I have to admit, Nokia is a client of the company I work for, but I assure you, this review is written from my perspective, and not the company I work for.

   The N95, in my opinion, is the most amazing phone ever made. iPhone? Doesn’t even come close to what this baby can do. With it’s built in GPS, 5MP Carl Zeiss digital camera, DVD like video, and the amazingly sleek look, I wouldn’t use any other phone.

   I do have some negatives with it though, so this isn’t all roses. I don’t like how when I slide it down for the media controls and it switches to landscape that it doesn’t switch back to profile when I slide it back. I also don’t like that it doesn’t work on American 3G (or HSDPA). Over seas, of course, this isn’t an issue.

   Things that I like:

   -The layout of the front keys is a vast improvement over the N80 and the N73.

   -The number buttons really stand out and let you feel for what number you mean to push.

   -The image on the screen is brilliant and beautiful.

   -The quality of the camera is BREATH TAKING!

   -It’s light and small even compared to the N73.

   -Everything else about this device.

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