Readers of my blog will remember that I had pre-ordered the Nokia N97 way back in May. However, due to a fckup by Nokia, I canceled the order and have been limping by with my N95-1.
Since then a lot of new contenders have been released and I’ve had time to compare and analyze. In the end, I still feel the N97 is the best choice for me. The two main reasons are the N97’s far superior camera and ability to use as a WiFi hotspot via Joikuspot.
The openness of the Nokia platform is also nice. I can automatically sync files over WiFi with SymSync and even browse files on the phone over WiFi using SymSMB. They’ve even got a Windows Remote Desktop client which I’m anxious to try. All of these products are from Telexy.
Another reason I stuck with Nokia is the auto-bookmarking feature of the podcast player. iPhone also has, but only with AAC files and since I have an automated way to create speeded-up MP3s, converting formats would be an extra manual step. It will also be nice to use a browser that supports Flash.
I got $200 off the $699 list price with free shipping, so it’s actually a better deal than my original pre-order. Plus, it will have the latest firmware already installed, so it will be a nicer out-of-the-box experience.
I strongly considered the new N97 mini, but since there is no NAM version out yet and it has no camera lens cover, I’m passing. I also considered the N86 especially since it has an 8MP camera, but I think I’d like to try the touchscreen movement and see if I can live without physical buttons.
I think what makes this an easier choice is that I already have an iPod Touch 2nd gen. As such, I have access to all of the cool iPhone apps. I actually like having two devices since one can be dedicated to mostly music and media. It would be a pain if I did everything all on one device.
Whew! Now I can finally stop being so envious of all those iPhone owners. Perhaps they will be a little envious of me now! =)