Casing the Nokia N97: review round-up

Isnt this the official Nokia case for Nokia n97?

http://europe.nokia.com/find-product...ng-case-cp-323

LOL! Take a humungus lump of a phone and make a few mm bigger in every direction. I don't think so!

The old days when people could snap on replacement shells were the ansswer.

Oh well, no belt clip / belt loop pouch or case that's impressive enough to tempt me away from my leather Tesco generic camera case with belt loop then.

Out of interest, have you tried the ToughGuard Shells, Steve?

Julie

Dead right Unregistered LOLer, but the phones lasted for years!
Now Mr Nokia can sell us a new phone when our feeble plastic touch screens are all scratched up after a couple of months.

You people act as though thick cases do not exist for other phones. I have so many broken screen iPhones being used everyday by people too stupid to realise that unprotected glass on a mobile device is a no-go area.

Don't like a case, get a screen protector.

Steve

Good round up and very timely as my last in-situ case (a rubberised plastic snap on type) broke - the little claws that held it in place weren't up to the job and snapped or lost their top edges so they were straight, resulting in the case just falling off!

Have you checked out the silicone cases that also cover the keyboard - I am interested in these:

e.g:
http://www.mobilefun.co.uk/silicone-...ack-p19590.htm
or
http://shop.brando.com/nokia-n97-sil...c0002d004.html

How would these score?

Cheers
Jago

I always keep my phone in my jeans pocket with keys, coins everything. Never had a screen problem, slight scratching that easily buffs out. Capacitive screens are known to be fragile, resistive are much tougher though.

its times like these, i love the n97 care bundle i bought from ebay. $20 AU, got me a leather case, + black plastic clip on case (love this), battery, charger cable, clear case, cleaning cloth, screen protector, etc.

the black plastic case clips on tight and protects the shell from damage, whilst the screen protector keeps the screen nice and safe.

steve, I splashed out a fortune on the Noreve Tradition case in the Dark Vintage Leather but it adds too much bulk to the device and the Claw next to the keyboard D Pad makes the D Pad difficult to use, it actually blocks direct access to it. I much prefer the Nokia CP-382 because it adds virtually no bulk and slips into the pocket nicely. My pouch is not too tight, it just fits perfectly.

Does the Noreve Tradition case have a magnetic closure? If so, take away a few points. Magnetic closures, although cool and more resistant to wear and tear than mechanical ones, mess the magnetometer of the phone.
I bought the Noreve case for the i8910, and it was a huge disappointment exactly because of this problem.

You seem to have a love of leather steve?!

What about those silicon cases for the N97? Or the plastic protectors that stick to the phone and don't add bulk? I'd like to see a review of those! Personally, I wouldn't want to be adding the massive bulk of a leather container for the phone.

I've gotten through a load of them silicone things, they just don't last. One or two weeks and they break.

I've got the PDAir Aluminium case (£15 on ebay), hard as nails and feels good in the hand. Lots of opening and closing involved though.

Also got a simple leather case with magnet closing which can mess with the camera, and a simple belt clip if I want to take the phone out naked! Fits well.

Tons of cheap ones on Ebay.

Hi Steve, great to see another casing review! You helped me to get the right case for the E90. You suggested the Bugatti, which was great. I used the same brand for my E71. Bugatti has a N97 case as welll. Can you test that also?

The bugatti looks good for the N97 too, I just didnt have the nerve to ask for a review sample of that one as WELL 8-)

The Proporta Alu-Leather Edge case really looked like a tough one, but as you pointed out having it to "knack" in place sounded a bit dangerous for the N97.

Not function wise too good if you use your phone a lot. Maybe it works for containing it while playing music? That is using a bluetooth headset.
I mean you can't see the display when it's closed and the 3.5 mm jack is covered up.

I'm feeling a bit biased here but I actually bought the Silicone case from Brando for personal use. Don't know how the one from Mobile Fun is but they seems to be alike.
http://www.symbian-guru.com/welcome/...-reviewed.html

I have personally been through 6 cases (rubber snapons to the stock Nokia to Silicone ones) and my personal experience is - just get a sock type case that you can slip the phone into.

The majority of leather cases have the magnets on it that affects the cameras as a couple of people have pointed out. Have found that this reduces battery life significantly since the app is constantly running in memory and polling the camera for life.

The other type of case such as the clear crystal or the rubberised snap ons look fairly decent - and work quite well until they start affecting the touch screen. Most have a strip running across the lower screen and this ends up touching the screen fairly often making the touch less sensitive and accumulates to a point of being unusable.

Standard Nokia case is pretty ordinary - I dont mind it other than the fact that it is extremely tight fit and you have to squeeze the phone to get it out..

Good point, and one that I fell foul of with an otherwise very nice ("landscape") belt clip case that I found on eBay. Luckily I bought it bearing in mind that it was cheap, and if there was a problem with it I hadn't lost a lot. Don't know whether the magnet switching on the camera is something that could possibly be fixed by a firmware update. I suspect probably not, but I have no idea what's involved.

Luckily, the (£3-ish) Tesco leather camera case has a small (i.e. not overly intrusive) velco closure.

Julie

Personally, I swear by the AX-ALEX cases - built like a fortress, belt loop is really snug, non-magnetic/non-velcro flap closure. Who cares if I look a geek? I'm proud to be one 8-)

Why do people make such a big deal about what case to use with the phone. Surely you just buy a nice looking phone and thats it!!!

Ian
EasyCaribbeanShop.com

Steve, how abt a review of the official case?

No. There is no magnetic closure for Noreve Tradition N97 case.

I have bought Noreve Tradition cases for my N82, N85 and N97. They are near perfect. :)

I read your review a little bit too late. My Nokia N97 Carry Case CP-382 is on its way from UK to Bolivia. A bit difficult to return…

I will figure something out.

That CP-323 is the only official Nokia case available in Denmark.

I bought it back in June, when I got my N97. I really like this case for it's simplicity - it's made out of fabrick, and don't ad bulk to the N97 in any way. But it does give the phone protection, and enough for my use.
I don't want/need a beltclip, and even if I love leather cases (got one for nearly all my gadgets!), the simple CP-323 is just what I need for the N97.

Only drawback is that it's quite difficult to get out of the case, when the phone is ringing. But there are two holes, on the back side, and I just push the phone out, sticking my fingers in these holes. Not an issiue anymore.


I am very happy to see that Nokia is going the same route, with the planned case for the N900, which I will get as soone as possible! Both the case and the N900 :D

http://europe.nokia.com/find-product...for-nokia-n900

The best N97 case i have seen so far is this one:
http://www.maximobileshop.com/etui-c...nokia-n97.html

Leather and stunning design