(my previous phone was the sony ericsson k800i)
Previous Phone Thoughts
Up until today, i have been using the sony ericsson k800i.
Camera
I absolutely loved this phone throughout its 2yr contract. It completely replaced my digital camera, one less thing to carry. I liked how the camera could be activated with a simple down-slide of the camera cover. The xenon flash worked well, although it had this weird function of flashing twice? I never really understood why it did that, but it didnt really bother me much.
Interface
I really like the interface. its very clean and looks very modern.
Everything can be easily accessed with shortcut keys. Such as the last picture taken. The music player can be quickly accessed through the play/pause key located on the side of the phone.
The wallpaper and theme can be easily changed, and a variety of themes are available. Some have a very interesting animated effect, very nice. However the animated wallpaper is quite slow.
On the other hand, the response rate between key presses, and menu transitions is superb. I never had a problem or felt like the phone was lagging when i pressed a button or moved from menu to menu, everything felt instant.
Also the layout was simple, which made it extremely easy-to-use. i had absolutely no problems turning on the phone for the first time, and accessing all its menus and features, the day i got it.
Physical Looks
The k800 looks very nice, with a combination of black and silver accents.
The front face, has a brushed aluminum black look. And the back is also black, but has a rubberdized feeling to it. The sides has a silver lining that outlines the the entire phone.
Overall the look is very nice.
I had a few concerns when i first felt this phone, the keys felt a bit, weak.
The keys are made of rubber, but each one seems to be only supported by a center pillar, like so "T" I was a bit afraid that these keys will fall off overtime, however it never did. The joystick was my 2nd concern, as i had read from other users that over time it would get dirty, and would not function correctly. This has happened once before, but a simple clean with a Qtip quickly solved this issue.
The keys are very clicky, as is the joystick, and quite impossible to operate it in complete silence.
The brightness of the screen, was quite low. Didnt notice it much at first, but when outdoors, i had to be pretty close to the screen to play games under the sun.
There are shortcut keys throughout the exterior of the phone, which were very convenient to use.
Keys such as, radio, camera, last shot taken, multiple applications, internet(never used), volume up and down.
Multimedia
It can hold up to 1000 text messages, which i realized not many phones allow you to. However these texts cannot be saved to a memory card, so i had to constantly delete existing messages to receive or send new ones.
The voice recorder function worked exceptionally well, and could record for long periods of time, same with the video recording function, it wasnt the best quality, but it did get the job done.
(the only problem i had with the video recorder, was that it recorded in 3GP format, which meant i had to convert to mpeg to transfer to an ipod or upload to youtube).
It had built in programs, that allowed you to edit photos and videos.
Was very simplified, but was useful, and fun to play with.
There was also a music dj, which allowed you to create your own music files using either the snare, piano, bass, or trumpet. I really loved this program, since it allowed me to make ringtones and alarms.
All games worked really well, except for the extremely complex 3d games. aside from those, it was able to render and fully run 99% of the games i owned.
the k800i was a great phone, i hope the n82 is just as great, even better!
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Before gettin the box.....
Previous thought on the Nokia N82
I did constant research on the nokia n82 and other phones i was interested in for a good month or so...
Read nearly every single professional review available on the internets, checked every single nokia related blog and forum and watched nearly every single youtube video of the N82. I wanted to know the ins and outs of this phone, the pros and cons. I wanted to know what it could do, and what it couldnt do, how it is an improvement over my current phone.
Not only that, but i NEVER OWNED A NOKIA before, so i wanted to know what it looked like and how it worked.
One of the most important factors for my next phone that i wanted, was that it had a better camera than my current k800, and that its interface was just as responsive. Also one thing that bugged me bout the k800, was that it did not have a standard 3.5mm headphone jack. Other than these 3 simple things, everything else was more of an addition or plus on what i needed.
I read reviews, and the only cons that were universally shared, was that the form was a bit chunky, heavy, thick, keys were uncomfortable to use, too tiny, screen was less bright than the n95. Aside from the physical cons, there were not that many software cons. I, at first did not want to buy the n82, mostly due to its silver casing, it just looked bad to me. But i had never seen it in person. When the black version came out. i thought it looked better, but still wasnt completely assured. The look still didnt jump out at me. and was a bit MEH bout the whole design.
At least ... till the moment i opened the box to see what was inside....
The BOX and the UNBOXING of the Nokia N82
(the following photos were shot with the sony ericsson k800i)
The box isnt the most beautiful box, at least compared to my k800 box. However it is presented well. Like other n82 black unboxers, mine also had this black n82 sleeve on top of the silver n82 box. seemed a bit rushed in my opinion, but it didnt really bother me much. On the front of the black sleeve. you can see some sort of map like graphic. i thought it was cool little detail to hint at its gps functionality.
I took off the sleeve and opened up the main box.
Inside i instantly saw my black n82 under the clear plastic cover.
The n82 was in a black tray, also in this tray, was the microsd 2gig memory card, battery, and the earphones.
The earphones, looked and felt relatively cheap, It was too light for my tastes.
I picked up the n82, and was instantly SHOCKED at how light it was.
It was REALLY LIGHT. (before the battery was inserted). even still, it felt like nothing was inside! also it felt very thin. However after puttin it next to my k800, i noticed it was nearly the exact same thickness. It was only slightly thinner, since the n82 did not have a protruding lens cover.
I did not instantly turn on the n82, rather i looked deeper into the box contents. underneath the black tray, was the nokia user manual and cd. There was also the mini?micro? USB cable, and the power charger. There was also a TV out cable.
After lookin at all the box contents, and snapping some pictures.
I went on to fondle my phone.
(the following photos were shot with the sony ericsson K800i)
I was EXTREMELY SHOCKED... the look of this phone was extremely HAWT!
I did not ever expect to like the look of this phone, but it totally caught me by surprise. The front and back are a glossy black. and the side are of matte black.
The keys and d-pad are raised high enough to be used comfortably.
(Although i cant say how much i like it yet, since i have not turned on the phone yet)
One thing of concern, is that the d-pad felt a bit fragile to me. it felt like it was a raised a bit to high in my opinion.
I looked all around the phone for scratches or scuffs, i didnt want it to have a single scratch on it! unless i did it myself.
Even more shocking, was that, i instantly felt that, the n82 looked sexier than my k800i. Something i felt was near impossible. After seeing the n82 upclose and in person, the k800 felt and looked a bit outdated.
Some people said, that the n82 looked too cheap and plasticy, it does look plasticy, but it looks NICE, in my opinion, and have absolutely no problems with the way it looks.
Overall the unboxing of the phone and the physical aspects of the phone are superb, i give it a 9/10.
Only because, the box wasnt as pretty as the k800s box, and the d-pad feels to fragile.
I am currently charging my phone, but look forward to a review on the interface and its functionalities soon.
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All charged up! turning it on ......................... now
Getting to know the N82
First Impressions
So far... i dont really like the interface.
its really confusing, as opposed to the sony ericsson interface.
even worse... i just deleted a couple files.. cuz i thought they were corrupt files... and then i found out a bit later... that it was actually pre-installed videos from a season of 24.
(unless the phone has a recycle bin of some sort, i doubt those files are retrievable, *sigh*)
Overall, the phone is pretty confusing.
ive been having trouble in just about every aspect, except the camera.
from the music player, video player, settin up WLAN, etc.
The keys are fairly easy to use, and are very responsive. i like the fact, that i dont really have to push them hard, or even put any sort of effort in pushing them, seems very sensitive.
I was somewhat disappointed with the response rate.
key press responses are quick and responsive. however menu to menu is rather laggy. There is a noticeable lag or pause between menus.
Also the built in Web browser, is a bit slow.
There is lag here too, when panning through the webpage, the phone stalls quite often, tryin to process all the information.
(if there is a better free web browser, please let me know)
im a radio person... is the radio available, without the headset?
or is the included nokia headset REQUIRED to listen to the radio?
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Time to sleep...
End of Day 1 Impressions
Yesterday, july 11 2008, i purchased and received my brand new nokia n82 black.
Heres a quick rundown of what i liked, didnt like.
Likes
Still Camera
*the xenon flash perform extremely well, brightens a completely dark room, as if it was day. After taking two of the same shots with my old k800 and my new n82, the difference was clear.
*lots of options and menus, can be easily accessed with the dpad.
*spring loaded lens cover, which also activates the camera functionality
Interface
* I absolutely love the phonebook, the groups section has opened up a new door for organization of contacts.
*standby applications show up on the home screen, and can also be accessed here
*2 short cut keys are dedicated to the two soft keys, can also be customized to any application on the phone. by default (messaging & maps)
*key to key presses are very responsive with absolutely no lag time
*accelerometer, auto rotate screen works in all functions of the phone
Physical Aspects
*SHOCKING & UNEXPECTED, the look of the phone is actually very nice, its extremely sleek
*the keypad is very sensitive, works really well, and are extremely easy to use, one of the best keypads ever in my opinion.
*the phone is approximately 5mm thinner than the k800 (due to its protruding lens cover) but even still, the phone feels extremely thin
*the phone is very light, this is a 50/50 for me. cuz at times i wonder if anything is even inside this phone!
*2.4 inch screen, large, easy to use (.4in bigger than my k800) only .4 in. but it sure makes a difference
*standard 3.5mm headphone jack, located on the top of the phone, nice feature and good placement.
*stereo speakers, extremely loud, actually had to turn it down a lil, cuz it was too loud for me. (Whereas in the k800, i had to put it on max, just to hear the thing)
Multimedia
*snake!!!!
*ngage demo games
*preinstalled with episodes of 24 (however i accidentally deleted some, thinking it was corrupt files :[ )
*default applications: music player, voice recorder, video player, radio, clock, calculator, calendar, dictionary, panoman, realplayer, flash player, etc
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Dislikes
Still Camera
*when accessed, the numerous menus and options take up the whole screen, instead of a small mini menu on the side.
*the volume rocker keys located on the side of the phone, does not act as zoom in and out (was incorporated into the volume rocker on the k800)
*to adjust brightness and contrast, you need to access the menus.
(was incorporated into dpad on the k800)
Interface
*there are no shortcuts when accessing long lists of options.
(The K800i, allowed me to press a corresponding numbpad to location of the option on the list, for example the 3rd row item can be accessed by pressing 3 instead of scrolling down to it)
*lots of features, but quite complicating for a first time user to nokia and the s60 platform.
*absolutely dislike the autolock feature of this phone,
(if anyone knows how to disable this, please let me know.)
*screen standby time display, is too dark to see
*the screen isnt as bright as i would have liked, even on max settings.
(k800i feels brighter)
*although key to key is responsive, menu to menu can lag considerably at times.
*outbox or inbox in messaging does not show how many you have sent or received (if there is a way to show this let me know)
Physical Aspects
*the autofocus shutter key feels spongy, slightly uncomfortable to use
*the dpad feels fragile, but works well.
*the media center key? the little nub next to the dpad and above the cancel key, stopped working.
*the included headset feels cheap, plasticy, too light. and are extremely uncomfortable to use, due to its unique cords, which get easily tangled.
Multimedia
*the radios antennae is not inside the phone, but are inside the included headset, extremely pissed about this one, because i love listening to the radio
*snake 3d!!! i want my original 2d snake please.
(FIN) End of day 1, first impressions....
Look forward to a daily use, thoughts and review next week!
~ForEver lOvE~
