Long term review: Nokia N82 (Black)

[slitchfield]

Well, the headline's almost accurate. I'd been using a Nokia N82 as my main device for a month day in, day out. And had formed quite a few 'long term review' opinions. And then the black N82 arrived. In this part-editorial, part-review, I look at how a simple colour change has helped the N82 challenge at the very top of the smartphone stack.

Read on in the full article.

[Jay3gsm]

I've mentioned this a few times on various forums, and I don't mind repeating myself; The N82 is simply the best phone I have ever used, pound for pound it weighs up against any previous NSeries smartphone and beats them all. Releasing the N82 in black is just the cherry on the icing on the cake!

[Ratkat]

I have to agree fully with Jay3gsm.
The N82 is quite simply the best Smartphone I have used, it is nearly perfect.
If I have one criticism it is with the active standby, I would prefer to have the customizable version from the 'E' Series phones like the E51.

The lense cover is really great, better than the N95 Classic. I think Nokia have made a huge mistake with with the forthcoming N96 not having a lense cover, anyone who has had a N95 8GB will understand why ( the two major reasons being poorer pictures and a coating on the lense that scratches no matter how much care you take).

Steve I am sorry to say this but since the past 2 years I have been following your reviews , I always had the impression that you always judge products without any bias.
But for the first time I am DISAPPOINTED.
Judging by what you wrote about the original n82, this article seems out of place.
It seems that you have been influenced by other writers in the blogosphere like Stefan and Vaibhav when you wrote this article and hence have been forced to appreciate those points which you had previously opposed.
eg Everyone knows that only a change in panel colour does not MAJORLY affect and influence features like THIN KEYS, DIM SCREEN, SMAL SCREEN AND BAD NAVIGATION which you had rightfully pointed in your original article.
And after having thrashed the phone on these very points, you now seem to be in harmony with them.(read:LOVE).
No doubt the n82 is a good device but what I am trying to bring out here is your bias.
I can only say that you the most respected symbian author and therefore, please do not come under others influence and keep reviewing products honestly like you have always been.
GOOD LUCK

PRATEEK

[slitchfield]

@Prateek: Sorry you feel I've been influenced. My change of heart with regard to the N82 was just as described in the article. Remember that my initial preview of the device was after having had it for a day or so, and then I had to pass it on. So I never got to live with it. The N82 is one of those devices where you have to grit your teeth and abandon prejudice and simply try for real. I quite enjoyed my trial N82 during April and it was only really the bigger screen and sharper camera (see my last Smartphones Show, no. 58) that drew me back to my N95.

Just because my opinions change over time doesn't mean I've been 'got at'. It just means I'm human!

[pintofale]

Steve,

Thanks for the update - unlike the earlier respondent I give you credit for having the courage to revise your opinion, and as you correctly pointed out, sometimes first/early impressions are wrong. I was nuts about my 9500 for about three days - by the end of the week it was back on eBay!

I must ask you about the screen - can it allow dust ingress? This is a very important point to me - my 7650/6630/N70 were always being taken apart to have the screen cleaned. My current squeeze (N93) is splendidly immune, as I believe the N95-8GB is. What about the '82 - your answer will decide if I buy one!

Cheers.

[Hardeep1singh]

Ownership of smartphones continues to be something of a compromise, of course. Will Nokia, or Sony Ericsson, or Motorola, or HTC, or Apple ever 'nail it'? Somehow I doubt it.

In my humble opinion, these company would never nail it, they wouldn't even want to nail it. N95 was a 'mistake' [hold on, don't jump on me :-)] where Nokia provided so much of might in a single device that nobody (not even nokia) has been able to better it even after an year of its release. N95 has brought stagnancy to this otherwise eventful industry (atleast in the high end devices section). Even N82 is considered as an N95 in a different avatar so we can comfortably say there has been no 'real' device for sometime now that would dethrone N95. From a financial perspective this isn't good and I doubt if nokia (or any other company) for that matter would do something like this again. So chances of Nokia, Sony Ericsson, or Motorola, or HTC, or even Apple nailing it are NIL.

Your comment about the N82 being nearly indestructable is pretty true. My silver snapper dropped out of my pocket while speeding down a busy road on a motorcycle. I U-turned and found it after it had bounced its way down the street and not only was it still working, it had only 2 stratches on it!

My old N93 would have flown into a million pieces.

[slitchfield]

@pintofale: Er.... I've owned most of those devices - heck, I've owned virtually all devices and have never known dust get into the screens of ANY of them. Is it just me? Is it just you? Comments from others welcome!

[Ratkat]

I have a couple of specs of dust on the screen under the cover of my N82, and as it hasn't got any worse I assume they have been there since it was put together.

A friend of mine had lots of trouble with his 5500 though, basically he had a problem with the keypad, he took it to the Portsmouth NSC and they replaced the keypad, since then it has to go back to them to have the dust cleaned out every couple of months.

In general though I personally have never had a huge issue with dust since they stopped the good old changeable covers.

[Hardeep1singh]

Dust reaches the screen but it isn't visible in regular use, if you really want to see it. Just come out in the sunlight, bring the cellphone out from your pocket, don't unlock the keypad, just click on any key to end the screensaver and check the screen carefully. You'll see a lot of dust.

Its pleasing to see this revised (IMO 'corrected') opinion on the N82, which is the true flagship N-Series device at the moment (and arguably until at least next year, like many others the N96 doesn't really feel like an upgrade on the N82 to me).

I found the keypad very usable, by virtue of the clear space around each of the small keys. The D-Pad on the silver ones was terrible, so I'm very glad to see it altered for the better here. All in all I think is the best of the current crop of N-Series devices, and I'm really looking forward to getting m Black N82 this Friday...

Excellent camera but for me the screen is too small for such a long device. And the phone too long.

The compressed packages on the sliders suit me better. I don't wear my phone on show in a holster like a western gunslinger so I can be mugged for it, it goes in my pocket and the sliders fit better and offer a bigger screen for the deal. I with the N82 flash was available on the sliders.

i'm pleased to see a good review for the n82. I've had mine a month and am amazed at what it can do.

Candy bar form is so much better, i had a n80 previously and as a slider it is top heavy when trying to use one handed. As for key pad, the n80 had a 'standard' flat flush style which was difficult to use. Mind you i've also had the 7610 and 3650 which both had unconventional keys, but fine to use once you're familiar, which takes me back to the n82 (this is written on my phone).

I think this is a corking phone, not just because of the hardware but for nokia's software especially from their beta labs. Love it!

[Raven]

Hmmm, a friend of mine got an N82 through work, dropped it once, screen broke...

My E90 on the other hand has been dropped on concrete several times - just leaving a few barely noticeable scratches on the edges. No damage made to the outer screen, nor the 4" internal screen. I'd take any E-series phone over those plasticy, fragile N-series phones any day. Just my personal opinion. I also wish AAS would cover the Enterprise series of phones more.