By Z. Skropanic "zts" (Calif.)
This review is from: Nokia N9 Unlocked GSM Phone with 64 GB Internal Memory--International Version (Black) (Wireless Phone Accessory)
Great stuff:
- top-notch design -- N9 looks amazingly good (to me it looks better than newer iPhones)
- excellent manufacturing quality
- excellent phone component (better than iPhone with AT&T; I'm getting a very good reception in places where iPhone repeatedly failed with AT&T network)
- works with both AT&T and T Mobile
- superior swipe technology (also better than on Nokia Win platform too)
- integrated social networks
- 64 GB
- much more ROM for processing apps (I was running out of ROM on N8 with maybe a dozen or so themes and maybe a dozen of downloaded apps)
- excellently implemented *Dashboard* concept that shows important stuff (appointments, missed phone calls, new emails, etc)
Good stuff:
- solid camera (but N8 was better in that respect and so is newer iPhone)
- easy setup
- easy email setup if you have a GMAIL account(s) (for private Hotmail use N9's Exchange server setup and it works great since MS put the Active sync))
- WiFi has a solid range
- new Linux-based MeeGo OS is pretty good ... even excellent (but I think most people will find iOS and Android either easier or more intuitive)
- over-the-air or cloud sync works very well (and better be since Nokia is shutting down some services and N9 is incompatible with Nokia Suite)
- battery life seems to be OK (about same as an average iPhone with a few power saving enabled and the BT off)
Bad stuff:
- if you are addicted to collecting various apps, N9 is either not for you or it could be a cure for your addiction. While most of the things that a typical user will ever want to use are covered through Nokia Store apps (most of them are free), the Spartan system rules N9 compared to iOS and Android.
- no memory expansion slot (think about 64GB instead of 16GB version when ordering)
- no user-replaceable battery (same as iPhone)
- incompatible with Nokia Suite (use Nokia Link that I found only marginally or minimally useful since it doesn't sync contacts or calendars)
- Nokia killing some nice *convenience* services that makes you wonder if their commitment to Windows Mobile platform is going to leave behind some long-time Nokia fans
Overall a great product from Nokia, even superb if your main thing is to use this device mainly for phone calls, check email, do some light social networking. If you are more into entertainment on your phone then stick with iPhone or an Android-based phone. If you plan to switch phones, make sure your current phone is using the microSIM card or you'll need to get one from your cell provider or use the cutter. If you are switching from a 4G or newer AT&T iPhone than you already have microSIM.
By Rohit Garewal(CA)
This review is from: Nokia N9 Unlocked GSM Phone with 64 GB Internal Memory--International Version (Black) (Wireless Phone Accessory)
Let's just get this out of the way right now. The Nokia N9 is the most beautiful phone hardware I've ever owned. Not a surprise, as only Nokia and Apple churn out engineering this elegant. I'm somewhat of a phone junky, as I've owned most of the headliner phones from the major OS's: iPhone 4s, galaxy s2, galaxy nexus, Samsung focus, etc.
Hardware: I'm typing this on my iPad, so don't have the typing patience to get too much into this, but wow this hardware is elegant. The curved screen complements the swipe os perfectly, the unibody construction is so well out together, the large generous speaker on the bottom provides plenty of volume, and the clear black screen really does provide such a vivid picture that icons look like they're floating on the screen. But really, you have to hold this phone to appreciate it. The old king of design (iPhone 4s) has been supplemented.
One more thing on hardware, and this was huge for me. The antennae on this phone is pure Nokia, I.e. excellent. Typically, I have difficulty getting signal in many places in San Francisco with AT&T, but the N9 keeps a signal everywhere I go. In the east bay in the hills where my iPhone and nexus routinely would lose signal the N9 has 2-4 bars. It's really amazing.
Software: the Meego experience is simple and effective, and I love it. Before Meego, my favorite OS was WP7. To be clear, when I rate an os, personally I'm excluding available software (ie apps). The reason is I'm thinking of the engineering and the thought out into the OS design, not how many developers chose to support it. I'm not saying apps are not important, far from it, but the number of available apps is so individually relevant (or not so) to the Individual user you have to decide how important that is to you.
Much like wp7, Meego provides most used functionality with the minimal amount of screen interaction. Close an app, slide down. Switch an app, swipe right. Get notifications, swipe left. Minimize an app, swipe up. That's it. Simple, effective, and gorgeous.
The N9 also comes with an incredible amount of connectivity out of the box. Gmail, exchange, Picasa, Dropbox, skype, twitter, Facebook, and more. I especially love how Skype is built in. Make calls and message directly from within the app.
Battery: my only gripe with the phone. With everything enabled (especially gtalk, Skype, and Facebook chat) the battery is done after 12 hours of light usage. Start using the phone and youre down to 8 hours...that's is horrible. When you're NOT logged in to the messaging apps, battery shoots up to 2-3 days of light usage, and 16 hours of heavy, which is brilliant. Im not sure if this imitedto a few vocal N9 users, or if this all phones, but this is my experience.
Summary: if you don't need a lot of external software, but need a heavily reliable phone that does mail, messaging, camera, Skype, music and video brilliantly, it is amazing. If you need more, definitely take a look at the lumia 900. It's not out yet, but supposedly has the same hardware design with a great os as well.
By J. Cassada -
This review is from: Nokia N9 Unlocked GSM Phone with 64 GB Internal Memory--International Version (Black) (Wireless Phone Accessory)
I've had this phone for a little over a week now, and I like it more and more everyday. There was an element of frustration at first...Gmail doesn't seem to want to play nice with Meego. Even some of the workarounds wouldn't help my mail and contacts to sync. Maps would freeze, Drive wouldn't load, and there was a few other hair-pulling frustrations.
So why five stars? Well, most of my frustrations were fixed. Peruse the pages of the Meego forum and you'll find a lot of answers to tech problems. The N9 user community is very helpful. Also, the phone itself makes the tech woes dissipate from utter user-joy: the screen is incredible, a joy to look at. The N9 UI is the most intuitive touch screen experience I have ever used. The indicators on the lock screen are smart. I can't believe more smart phones don't use the same approach to indicators.
I'm using my N9 on T-mobile, and while I seem to have fewer signal bars overall, I have fewer dropped calls. I can even talk on my N9 in my basement, which I couldn't do with my Sprint phone. Whether or not it's because T-mobile has a superior signal, or whether it's because the N9 has a better antenna -- I dunno.
Some have said that the Ovi store has a paltry selection, but I've found everything I need and more. Sure, it's no Google play, but how many light saber and fart apps does a phone need?
Admittedly, the battery is wanting. If you have a bunch of background apps running, it'll be toast in one day or less. But if you tweak your settings, you'll easily get at least two days with moderate usage.
So, it's a phone I recommend. Even with all the baggage of the various tech problems (which are fixable), the poor battery, and the fact that Nokia will quit supporting it after 2014 (might need a new phone by 2015 anyway) it's still worth it. You know you have an awesome phone when the associates at T-mobile and best buy ogle it with "wows" and "where did you get that?" The N9 is like a pretty girl - she's worth fighting for.
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