TamsS60 - the S60 Blog

Being an avid photographer myself, I was particularily interested to see how the N82’s camera fares - after all, the device managed to take home a CIPA award. But can it stack up(click the images for native versions)?

Hardware-wise, the camera is excellently equipped. A Carl Zeiss lense provides the focussing, a 5MP sensor does the actual imaging. Last but not least, a real flash and a focus assist LED are thrown in to simplify working in low-light conditions.

The first test image was an indoor shot of the ficus in my main office(shared with abc texte) - the leaves are somewhat sharp, but pretty noisy:

After that, I went on to make a few shots with the macro mode(must be activated manually). Both of them turned out well focussed, although the Treo’s keys are a bit noisy:

Moving on to flash: my classic test bookshelf has turned out pretty well. Of course, a digital camera manages a better picture(where the book covers can actually be read) - but for a camera phone, the N82’s performance is superb:

A completely dark bedroom(6m long) was lit up well, although noise levels got out of control:

Finally, an image of a brightly lit house made with night mode. The capture time is pretty long - getting a sharp image is easiest via burst mode. Nevertheless, the images aren’t as crisp as the ones from a digital camera:

The burst mode of the camera is excellent(even though a bit slow at approx 0.5FPS/sec when saving 5MP pics to RAM) - it allows you to fill up the available memory completely..

The Nokia N82 has a rather small QVGA screen. Traditionally, Nokia’s Nseries phones have had excellent screens…how well does the N82 fare?

Here is a series of comparison shots next to a Treo 680:

The next victim is hp’s baby ipaq. Its high-quality TFT is hard to beat:

Finally, we pitted the N82 against its distant predecessor(the N71). For me, the winner is clear(the N71):

Unfortunately, the N82 continues the negative trend that started with the Centro and the N81. Everything shown on the screen has an annoying reddish cast - people who are used to cold, blueish images will not be too happy with the N82.

After having looked at the size of the N82, it’s now time to look at what Nokia managed to pack into the box.

When looking at the front of the box, one immediately notes that the keys are extremely thin. However, this turns out to be a minor nuissance: after having used the phone for a for a few seconds, typing becomes easy. The small key on the right side of the 5way is used to open the “quicklaunch” menu:

The back of the device contains the camera. Its lens is protected with a mechanical slider that works surprisingly well and feels sturdily built(although it’s always possible that a recommended breaking point is inside). Opening the slider automatically activates the camera software. Unfortunately, restarting it requires you to open and close the slider…

A BP-6MT battery provides the power:

Unsurprisingly, the top of the device contains the power button and a 3.5″ headphone jack:

The left side of the device contains a MicroUSB port, Nokia’s classic charger port and the MicroSD slot:

Unfortunately, the slot doesn’t handle well - its mechanics(the lid) don’t look trust-invoking:

The right side contains the camera buttons(pressing the camera button does NOT start the camera application) and the volume controls:

In the end, the Nokia N82 is a well-built device with few, small kinks tha could IMHO be ironed out with a firmware update(however, it could contain loads of recommended breaking points). People willing to take a gamble will definitely be happy with the device(unless it comes to swapping memory cards).

Neither of the two devices can compete with a run-of-the-mill digital camera(except maybe with these horrible Olympus E520 sample images on TamsPalm). This article does not assume highly professional intentions,l but rather considers “for-kicks” photography…

Austrians currently suffer under the strain of the European Soccer Championship. Vienna is one of the host cities and this has a so-called fan zone where fans are herded together to be a$$ed out of 6$/pint of beer.

Yours truly decided to use this unique opportunity(loads of light and folks) for a shootout between two completely different devices. On the left side, we have the Palm Centro(1.3MP camera without autofocus). On the right side, we have Nokia’s now-dethroned camera phone king aka the N95 8GB. Who will get out on top(click images for full versions)?

The first motive was a batch of merry cops. The Centro suffers from blown-out highlights, whereas thje Nokia N95 8GB manages to deliver a superior image after a few seconds(which, ironically, was enough time for a cheeky fan to run into my frame):

Photographing the stage was more fun with the Centro(as it worked faster). The N95 8GB’s long focusing time makes spontaneous photography difficult:

Photographing fans is easy with both devices - the Centro handles better, though:

“Aerial” photography from the press tower is one of the things the N95 8GB does really well. As there is little movement, the long focusing delay is no issue - and the 5MP resolution definitely makes a difference(look at the trees in the second image):

Indoors, the Centro did a better job keeping a somewhat sane color balance(the N95’s image is too light). Noise-wise, neither of the two performed honorable:

Finally, a shot of yours truly after all the carnage. The N95 8GB excels here - look at a big version of the image to see what I mean(look at the shirt):

In the end, the Nokia N95 8GB delivers superior images: they are sharper, less noisy, have more detail and generally look much better. However, its slow “modus vivendi” sometimes made me feel warm about the Centro - its images are usable for small prints, and can be generated “on the fly” without any focusing delays…

Nokia’s N82 is considered the best camera phone on the market - but is it portable? Or does it require a camera assistant for transportation? Read on for a few comparison shots with other devices…

Our first competitor is Palm’s trusty Treo 680. The QWERTY phone is quite a bit wider:

HP’s baby ipaq is less high, but much wider:

The Nokia N71 is a flip phone - ergo thicker, but less tall.

Finally, here’s a shot next to the iPod touch:

Generally, we see that the N82’s screen is significantly smaller than the ones found on PDAesque devices. Also, its controls are much smaller - the practical implications of this will be covered in the next issue.

In the end, the N82 is a nicely-transportable candybar phone that is neither excessively big nor small. It fits my trouser pocket well…no issues here!

Proporta’s Aluminium-Leather cases have become a classic add-on for mobile devices. The latest incarnation aims to protect Nokia’s high-end camera phone…can it survive a camera phone’s workday?

As usual, Proporta’s products ship in cushioned envelopes via regular mail. The envelopes originate in England and can be delivered to post boxes when you’re not at home:

The case itself drops in a special blister for extra protection.

Getting the N82 into the case is easy: just shove it into the clamps from above until it hits the bar at the bottom. Even though they may not look particularly trustworthy, they provide excellent security and manage to hold the device well even when toppled around/shaken:

Proporta did a great job at keeping the device usable even when in the case - the keyboard and screen are not obstructed at all.

The backside of the lid contains a small bit of space for paper or a memory card:

The top is cleverly tailored to allow easy access to the the headphone jack:

A cutout at the back allows you to access the camera slider - camera and flash are not obstructed:

Unfortunately, the clamps obstruct access to some of the peripherals at the side. The memory card slot can not be accessed at all, and the gallery button is severely obstructed, too:

Finally, here are two shots of the N82 in its case. The Proporta logo is cut out of thin steel and glued on as a small optical ‘gimmick’:

In the end, Proporta’s case for the N82 is like almost all other Proporta products: excellent. There’s little not to like here - the price of 35$ is low compared to other manufacturers offerings…

Traditionally, cases for mobile devices were made out of either aluminium(metal case) or leather. Recently, silicone and PVC(crystal) cases became more popular and eroded the market share of full-metal cases - can Brando’s latest offering for the Nokia N82 stack up?

Like all other Brando products, our sample shipped in a envelope from Hong Kong. The case itself is packed in a blister for extra protection:

Crystal cases always consist of two parts - installing them follows an ageold convention. First, slide the back part onto the phone. After that, snap the front piece onto the back as shown in the image below:

Brando’s case completely covers the phone’s screen - there is no need for a dedicated screen protector here. The camera and the keys got cutouts - unfortunately, the cutouts for the keyboard are a bit too tight and make hitting the top keys of the keypad a bit difficult:

Cutouts at the back allow the camera to operate normally:

The various buttons and ports at the side all got cutouts - unfortunately, the cutout for the memory card slot is in the wrong place - swapping out your memory card requires you to remove the phone from the case:

An extra cutout is provided for the headphone jack and the power button:

Finally, here’s a shot of the phone in its case:

In the end, Brando’s Crystal Case for Nokia N82 is a great protection from accidental scratching. Even though typing is made unnecessarily difficult due to the case’s somewhat tight keyboard cutouts, the phone remains perfectly usable while in the case(except for an occasional memory card swap). The price of just 8$ makes this an absolute must-have case for everybody who likes Crystal Cases - a review of a leather case(costing approx 5x as much) is coming soon!

Many consider the Nokia N82 the best imaging smartphone currently on the market. Thanks to the fine folks at WOMWorld, we can now bring you a review of the box. As usual, let’s start by unboxing the machine:

Nokia’s box designers chose to emphasize the N82’s navigational abilities on the outside of the box:

Sliding the cardboard rim off the side of the box shows another “cover” - this time, the imaging capabilities are highlighted:

Opening the box immediately reveals the N82 - the memory card(with adapter), the headset and the battery can be found below:

Removing the “tray” from the case allows you to access the manuals, the data cable and the standard Nokia charger:

In the end, the N82’s accessory bundle is similar to the one found on most other smartphones(e.g. the Nokia N71). Charger, data cable, headset, memory card. The inclusion of a MicroSD-to-SD adapter and the unusually large size of the memory card(2GB) stand out from the crowd - other than that, little new is to be seen here…

Our review of the Nokia N81 8GB special edition now comes to an end - in case anyone of you misses a part, the full list is below:
The Nokia N81 8GB Special Edition review - unboxing
The Nokia N81 8GB review - size
The Nokia N81 8GB review - physical
The Nokia N81 8GB review - screen
The Nokia N81 8GB review - camera
The Nokia N81 8GB review - random tidbits

So far so good. Some parts are great, some suck - but what’s the final verdict?

For me, the Nokia N81 8GB definitely is a great idea. Integrating a generous amount of memory into the device along with a great camera, GPS and WiFi is a great idea in theory - but Nokia’s N81 8GB unfortunately is not the perfect implementation of the concept.

The phone’s keyboard could be a lot better, and the 2MP fix-focus camera voids further discussion.

The N81 8GB would be a great phone for the 300-400€ price range - however, the current pricing is much too high even for the special edition with the included headphones.

If Nokia improves the camera and keyboard, the N81’s successor could be a true blockbuster. As it is now, it is a great idea with a botched execution….I would not purchase it…

What do you think?

Now that all hardware aspects have been analyzed, it’s time to look at the phone’s software. The phone is based on S60v3 FP1, and is mostly stock. The images below show a few interesting tidbits:
Media tool
Like most other recent S60v3 phones, the N81 includes a special “app launch program”. The N81 8GB’s program is very similar to the one on the N82(review coming soon); and allows you to easily access games, photos, contacts, music, maps and web bookmarks in a tabbed interface:

WiFi wizard
The N81’s WiFi radio is backed up with a somewhat comfortable WiFi finder - here are a few screenshots of the tool in action:

Stay tuned - the final verdict is coming soon!