Nokia N80 Review
Introduction
Nokia's
N80 was introduced with the second wave of N-series handsets in November of
2005. It packs quad-band GSM/EDGE support and 3G WCDMA access into an
attractive slider form factor. But there is more to the N80 that makes it so
interesting. For one, it has 802.11g Wi-Fi support and a SIP compatible VOIP
client, meaning you could theoretically use the N80 with a VOIP provider such
as Broad Voice or Vonage. When you add a 3 megapixel camera to the mix and a
very high resolution display, things start to look very interesting indeed. Physical
Aspects Physically, the N80 is shaped like a block that has had its longest
edges rounded out, making it comfortable to hold. A profile view of the device
reveals its somewhat wedged shape, which I personally find quite attractive.
The brushed front facade and textured black body also look good, and resist
finger prints far better than many of the N80's glossy counterparts.
Body Shape and Color
Our
N80 came in black, a color that seems to suit it well. While neither small nor
light, measuring 96mm x 50mm x 26mm (3.8" x 2.0" x 1") and
weighing 135g (4.8oz), the N80 feels appropriate when one considers everything
that is crammed inside. When closed, the N80's 5-way d-pad and main controls
are still accessible. Below the normal soft keys and call keys you will find a
dedicated menu key, a multimedia menu key, an edit key, and a C key. The
multimedia key menu is simply an app that you can configure to give quick
access to N80 functions by using d-pad direction shortcuts, just as always was
the case before Nokia introduced the Active Standby screen. You don't have to
limit yourself to multimedia functions - in spite of its name, it works for
anything. Long-pressing the key from the standby screen will load the music
player by default.
Keypad
Nokia N80
opening the slider mechanism reveals a decent numeric keypad. The keys have a
solid feel and click softly when pressed, but offer limited travel. The only
problem I found with the controls revolved around the d-pad controller. It has
no separate center select button. Instead, you press the entire d-pad down for
selecting. This allows for far more frequent than it would otherwise happen.
Fortunately, the OS seems prepared for that most of the time, and seems to
ignore the direction when it comes with a select press at nearly the same
moment. Regardless, a separate button would have been much nicer. Another
change I would have liked would have been some sort of spring mechanism that
holds the slider open or closed. As is, it can be moved a bit too easily when
the device is removed from a pocket or when you are attempting to press the
power button. When the device is closed, a "Lock Keypad?" prompt
comes up, which is great. But the fact that it defaults to No after a few
seconds if you don't press the Yes soft key means that you have to be very
conscious of it to avoid having the N80 dial on its own, something. When
locked, the keypad will not unlock until it has been nearly completely opened,
which is fine.
Multimedia
In spite of its strange appearance,
the Nokia N80 is actually a very fun handset to have around. It is a multimedia
powerhouse - a good time shaped like a black brick. For starters, its large and
bright 352x416 pixel display is crisp, and colorful - even in direct sunlight.
The 262k color display appears to be the perfect match for the N80, though I
have to wonder how large of a price in terms of power consumption has to be
paid on its behalf.
3.2 Mega Pixels at the Back
The N80's camera is also
quite nice. While it lacks the auto-focus of Nokia's N90 and upcoming N73 and
N93 models, the addition of a manual macro mode slider switch helps keep the 3
megapixel camera useful. When shooting a subject within its sweet spot of 17 to
23cm (7 to 9"), the N80 takes very crisply focused macro shots. In regular
mode, the N80 also does a good job of shooting people and, especially, landscapes.
The built-in LED flash seems a bit more useful than most and even supports
red-eye reduction. The automatic white balance is pretty dam accurate (even
more so than the manual settings, most of the time), and the otherwise a large
no. of settings for shooting modes, color tints, exposure, and even sharpness
round out the package nicely. I forget to mention it completely, there is also
a forward facing VGA camera that can be used for self-portraits and video
calls. The quality does not match that of the main camera, though.
As you might expect, the
N80's camera is used while the handset is held horizontally, in landscape mode,
so that the shutter button is positioned under the right index finger. When the
image gallery is accessed, it too works in landscape mode so as to best fit the
aspect ratio of the photos the camera takes. In addition to photos, the camera
takes very nice quality MP4 video (352x288) and reasonable quality 3GP video
(176x144). Many of the settings available for photos are available when recording
video clips, and the clip length appears to be limited only by available
storage space. You can view the sample MP4 and 3GP videos.
Music Application
Considering how weak the
music application on the N90 is, I was really surprised to find that the N80's
new music player application worked so well. While you can use Nokia's included
PC Suite software to manage your music, the N80 also deals equally well with
files copied directly to the mini SD memory card via the N80's USB connection
or with a dedicated memory card reader. The system makes use of M3U files for
playlists, so as long as you save the playlist in the same directory as the
music files themselves, the system will pick them up and find everything. You
can also create and edit playlists on the phone itself. Considering that using
a good USB 2.0 card reader is at least 3 times as fast as a connection through
the N80's pop-port, you’ll probably want to take advantage of that. The Music
Library, accessible from the Music Player, will organize your music by artist
and album and such just like any decent dedicated MP3 player. One last thing of
note is the Music Player's ability to play in the background while you use the
phone for other tasks, something that many non-Smartphone devices with music
players are not capable of doing.
FM Visual Radio player
The N80 also comes with the
Nokia FM Visual Radio player, such as we saw on the 7710 a year and a half ago.
The FM radio application takes advantage of GPRS/EDGE/WCDMA data or a Wi-Fi
connection to pull down information from participating radio stations around
the world so that the N80 user will get visual and textual information on the
artist and song that is playing over the FM radio. It is an interesting system,
just not one that has widespread support.
Memory Storage
The Nokia N80 has roughly
40MB of available internal storage that can be used for multimedia, contacts
and appointments, and other things like applications. A mini SD memory card
slot allows you to boost that amount significantly, and Nokia ships the N80
with a 128MB card in the box. I used the N80 with a 2GB card without any problems
at all.
User Interface
From
my perspective, one of the best things about the N80 is the new 3rd edition of
the S60 user interface. Not because of the things it does differently from
earlier versions, and there are a number of them, but for the new found speed
and snappiness that the S60 UI finally has. I've long been a fan of the S60
user interface, but it has always lacked the speed and quick response that
people expect from a phone. 3rd edition seems to take care of that, since the
N80 as well as the other 3rd edition devices I've used all seem to work
markedly faster than prior generation devices. If you have been a S60 fan in
the past, you will probably be jumping for joy after spending a bit of time
with a 3rd edition device.
Active Standby screen
For
those not familiar with it already, the Active Standby screen that is shared by
2nd and 3rd edition S60 devices allows you to configure a row of shortcut icons
near the top of the display that you can navigate through and select to access
your most commonly used functions. S60 3rd edition adds a couple more icons to
the row when compared with 2nd edition devices with the same screen resolution.
Below those icons are listed calendar appointments and events for the current
and upcoming days, as well as a summary of your to-do list state. You can
scroll down to those items and select them to access the calendar and to-do
lists.
Otherwise,
programs and most phone functionality are accessed through the main menu.
Pressing the dedicated menu button, colored in blue underneath the d-pad, will
bring up a 3x4 icon grid main menu. The menu is organized into items and
folders. The order and placement of everything can be changed to suit the user,
and items can be moved into or out of folders, and new folders can be created
as needed. You cannot, however, create a folder inside of another folder. The
main menu and the contents of folders can be navigated with d-pad or with the
keypad, as the 3x4 icon grid matches up with the keypad keys, also in a 3x4
grid.
In
general, the left soft key will bring up the options menu. The first item of
that menu will typically duplicate the functionality of pressing the d-pad
select, and the rest of the menu options list other things that can be
accomplished. Sub-menus can be opened by navigating to them and selecting them
or by pressing right on the d-pad. They can be edited by pressing left on the
d-pad as well. The right hand soft keys are nearly always linked to an exit,
back, or cancel function.
Applications
and major sub-sections of the N80, such as the Settings app, can make use of a
dual-mode list/tabbed interface. For example, the Standby Mode item in the
settings menu, located under General and above Display, can be navigated to and
selected with the d-pad as you would expect. But once in the Standby Mode
section, you will see tabs at the top of the display that indicate that you can
use the d-pad to go left or right to access the General or Display sections.
The same tabs system is used in the Bluetooth application and other parts of
the device. It is pretty easy to use and understand.
Message alerts and missed call alerts
One
of my favorite updates in S60 3rd edition is that now new message alerts and
missed call alerts will be shown in the same popup at the same time, one beneath
the other. No longer will you exit out of a new Voicemail popup alert only to
be accustomed by an alert telling you that you missed the call that lead to the
voicemail in the first place. Little things like this show that Nokia's S60 is
finally approaching maturity. The UI is being tightened and becoming more
polished. What has long been a decent and very flexible UI is now just as
flexible, but far more usable and user friendly.
Phone Functionality
Signal Strength
Nokia's N80 is available in
two different versions, each supporting EDGE/GPRS data and voice on all 4 GSM
frequency bands, as well as supporting WCDMA 3G on either the normal 2100MHz
band, or the 1900MHz band that is being rolled out across the USA. Audio
quality from both the handset and the speakerphone was pretty good. The N80's
internal antenna seemed to do a slightly above average job of holding on to a
signal, though it is out-performed by other Nokia devices such as the N90.
Battery Life
Like the N90, though, the N80
puts quite a strain on its battery, managing only 4.75 hours of talk time in
our tests with a strong signal (Nokia rates the N80 for only 3 hours). Standby
battery life was another major issue for the N80, as it seemed to have a
particularly hard time when residing in an area with a weak signal. In such
circumstances, it was not unusual for the battery warning to start firing after
only 10 hours of standby time and 1.5 hours of talk time. Based on what we saw,
and on my experience with the similar N90, it appears that part of the problem
is the N80 searching for a 3G connection when it has lost its GSM signal. There
is an option; however, to force the N80 to only look for GSM networks, so that
might mitigate the problem to some extent since I witnessed no trouble while in
Meerut (where a 3G signal was available). Suffice it to say, the N80 could
certainly use a battery capacity of the BL-5B it currently uses.
Contacts
Like other S60 devices, the
N80 has a great contacts system. Users have the ability to store phone numbers,
multiple email, web, or street addresses, and even notes and birthdays. Like a
good Windows Mobile device, the N80 can store pretty much any data point that
is found in Microsoft's Outlook application for desktop PCs. Numbers for video
calls and SIP compatible VOIP phones can also be entered into a contact record.
In terms of accessing those contacts, the search function matches multiple
characters on both the first and last name of a contact, making the process
fairly simple.
Profile support
Profile support on the N80 is
also quite good, though it lacks the timed profile support that you would
expect in a high-end device from Nokia. There are five profiles that can be
used normally, and one dedicated offline mode. All can be edited to taste in a
wide variety of ways ranging from ringtone and vibration options to a new
feature that uses the N80's speech generation system to announce the name of a
caller that it recognizes from the device's contact records. This new feature
is great for Bluetooth headset and car kit users, as it allows them to know who
is calling without needing physical access to the N80 itself.
Support
The N80 supports both voice
dialing/command and speed dialing - in theory at least. While our N80 was fully
capable of taking verbal commands for switching profiles and activating and
deactivating Bluetooth and such, it was useless for voice dialing. I had
success with only 3 of nearly 20 contact names I tested. When the N80 didn't
recognize the name I had spoken, it simply stared back at me with a blank
expression and did nothing. While others seem to have some success with the
Nokia voice dialing application, I never do - perhaps it is my voice. The
situation is exactly the same with the N90. The visual speed dial app, however,
works perfectly and keeps users from needing to remember which contact has
which speed dial assigned to them. Contacts with photos will make use of the
photo instead of the default text version of the contact's name. Speed dials
can, of course, be accessed by long-pressing the corresponding keypad number
key when at the standby screen, as well.
Push-To-Talk system
The N80 also supports Nokia's
own Push-To-Talk system. Since I do not have access to a compatible PTT
network, I was unable to test this functionality. I also did not test
video-calls on the N80 while I was in India- I simply didn't think of it.
Connectivity
Network data options
Nokia's N80 packs enough
connectivity to make most any other handset on the market blush in
embarrassment. Network data options include GPRS and EDGE for GSM networks as
well as 3G WCDMA data. Shorter range data options include infrared, Bluetooth
v1.2, and 802.11g Wi-Fi support. Short of a satellite, there is little system
on the market today that the N80 can't compare up with.
Both the EDGE and WCDMA data
modes worked very well for me. WCDMA data got me though a couple of busy days
at the Nokia N-series event in India, as the N80 performed very well as a 3G
modem over a Bluetooth connection. EDGE data back in the US was also pleasant to
use, though obviously not as fast.
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi access on the N80 is
very well implemented. The system is stable and was able to easily grab a spot
on a crowded access point when my trusty laptop was throwing fits. Wi-Fi access
was pretty quick for a hand held device, and the resulting speed when
downloading email or web pages was very much appreciated. The Wi-Fi connection
appeared to connect and disconnect as needed, instead of staying on constantly.
I do regret that I was unable
to try using the N80 on a SIP compatible VOIP system. I expect that the battery
drain when using the N80 as a SIP phone would have been quite intense.
Unfortunately Vonage, the VOIP provider I use, does not provide SIP credentials
to its customers (though some other providers do).
Bluetooth
Bluetooth support worked
flawlessly on the N80, something that the N90 could never claim even after a
couple of firmware updates. The N80 Bluetooth system supports PC Suite, Headset
and Hands Free, OBEX access, and Dial up Networking. I encountered no problems
at all.
USB support
USB support on the N80 is a
bit different than that found in earlier S60 devices. When attached to a PC
with the included USB cable, the N80 asks which type of connection is required:
PC Suite, USB Mass Storage, or Pict Bridge printing. When used for USB mass
storage, the N80 goes into offline mode, returning to the regular profile once
the cable connection has been severed. But even though it supports USB 2.0,
access to the mini SD card in the device was still much slower than if a
dedicated card reader had been used.
Messaging
SMS system
While
it doesn't support the push email based systems that its E-series do, the Nokia
N80 does support most traditional phone based messaging systems quite well. The
SMS system is well implemented and allows for the insertion of user-defined
template texts in order to help save wear and tear on the finger tips. I was
quite pleased how delivery reports popped up briefly on the display before
getting filed into a separate folder where they don't get in the way of regular
text messages. Received text messages can be forwarded to another user, saved
to a user created folder, or even printed when connected to a compatible
Bluetooth printer.
MMS system
The
MMS system in the Nokia N80 is equally nice. Users can create messages with
multiple slides that contain video clips, sound files, images, as well as text.
The text can be positioned before or after the multimedia content in each
slide, and the user has the option, once again, of using templates for the text
entry. The only option that I could not locate was one that would allow me to
alter the timing of each slide in the presentation. As has always been the case
with S60 based devices, text and MMS messages can be created while the phone has
no network access without issue, since the N80 will simply defer sending until
it has a proper signal. This means you can create your messages even while
riding the subway since they will all be sent out when you reach the surface.
Email support
The
email support on the N80 worked very well. Multiple accounts can be defined,
and each can be accessed without the need to switch the "active"
account. The active account designation does determine which account is used
when new messages are created, though. I tested the N80 with our POP and IMAP
servers and had no complaints. In fact, the new account setup wizard and folder
subscription support (IMAP) was quite impressive. Depending on whether POP or
IMAP is being used, you can tell the N80 to download only headers, the first so
many kilobytes of each message, or the entire message with attachments.
Automatic email pickup can be enabled for each account separately. Users can
specify which days of the week email should be picked up on, between which
hours, and how often. There is even an option for telling the N80 to only pick
up mail when in the presence of your home Wi-Fi network.
Throughout
all 3 messaging subsystems, as well as most of the phone's UI, the T9
predictive text input system is available. Text input is quite fast, and access
to special symbols and the language settings is quick thanks to the dedicated
edit key (the one that looks like a pencil). The only thing I would consider
missing is access to the N80's user dictionary. As it stands, if you mistakenly
enter an incorrectly spelled word in T9, the N80 will save that word and assume
it is valid - possibly recommending it in the future. You'll have no way of
removing it.
Applications
One of the strong points of
the S60 system is the fact that it runs on top of the Symbian operating system.
In the case of S60 3rd edition, the OS is Symbian v9.1. While this means that
there are many applications available for download or purchase that run on the
N80, not all apps that ran on earlier editions of S60 will work on the N80's
3rd edition software. MIDP 2.0 compatible Java applications that worked on
prior versions should still run on the N80, though.
But with that said, there are
already a number of interesting applications loaded on the N80 out of the box.
Apart from the fully featured calendar/to-do list, you'll find things such as a
world clock with an alarm, a bar code reader, Nokia's Life Blog, Real Player,
Flash Player, Word/Excel/PowerPoint viewers, and the truly amazing Nokia web
browser. There is even a new 3D looking version of the popular Nokia classic
Snakes.
The calendar application is
pretty much like that found in earlier S60 devices. New appointments of several
different types can be created. Start and end times and dates can be set, where
appropriate, and alarms can be configured to remind you before the appointment
takes place. The calendar can be viewed in either month or week view, and when
a particular date is highlighted by navigating with the d-pad; the appointments
contained therein will be listed at the top of the screen in something that
looks like a tool tip.
The N80's most impressive
application, by far, has to be Nokia's new web browser. This beautiful
application renders websites the way they were meant to be. For example, the Mobile
Burn website looks just like it does on a desktop PC. JavaScript driven menus
work as expected, ads pop into place, and tables and graphics are all where
they should be. A very sweet scrolling window aide helps you tell where you are
on the page when moving the pointer around and the Back function actually shows
thumbnails of the pages that are in the cache, so you can visually select the
page you want to go back to. The web browser is nothing short of mind blowing
for a mobile phone, and sets a very high bar that the other manufacturers are
going to have a tough time matching.
What I Like
1) Superb Camera
2) 3rd
edition of the S60
3) Active Standby
screen
4) Message alerts and missed call alerts
5) Great
contacts system
6) Profile
support
7) Push-To-Talk
system
What I Don't Like
1) No separate center select button
2) Lack
of auto-focus In the Camera
3) Poor Battery Life
4) Weak Signal Strength
5) No push email based system
6) Lack
of a good voice dialing
Lastly I Would Say…
Our N80 was running firmware v3.0614.0.1; dated 31-03-2006.Nokia's N80 is a truly amazing mobile phone that has a couple of flaws - one of them quite serious. While the lack of a good voice dialing system is a shame, and the lack of a functional automatic key lock is annoying, it is the battery life issue that is going to be the potential deal breaker for many people. The brilliant features like Wi-Fi, the web browser, the camera, and the music player will be of no use if the phone has no power. So if you are a heavy voice user, especially one that spends a lot of time in or travels through poor reception areas, the N80 probably won't cut it for you. But if you are more like me, where a charger is nearly always close by and the signal is always strong, you will be awed by the N80 - and forgive it its poor battery life.
If Nokia could have doubled
the size of the N80's battery, even at the cost of an additional 18g, I would have
had no qualms about giving the device a highly recommended rating. But as
things stand, the N80 earns only a "Recommended" rating because of
the tarnish that the poor battery life puts on an otherwise shining example of
mobile technology.
Nokia N80 Specifications
General |
2G Network
|
GSM
850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
|
3G Network
|
UMTS
2100
|
|
UMTS
1900 - American version
|
||
Announced
|
-2005, 4Q. Released 2006,
April
|
|
Status-
|
Discontinued
|
Body |
Dimensions
|
-95
x 50 x 26 mm, 97 cc
|
Weight-
|
134
g
|
Display |
Type
|
-TFT,
256K colors
|
Size-
|
352
x 416 pixels, 2.1 inches, 35 x 41 mm (~259 ppi pixel density)
|
Sound |
Alert types-
|
Vibration;
Downloadable polyphonic, monophonic, MP3 ringtones
|
Loudspeaker
|
-Yes
|
|
3.5mm jack -
|
No
|
Memory |
Card slot
|
-Mini
SD (up to 2GB), hot swap, 128 MB card included, buy memory
|
Internal-
|
40
MB storage, 64 MB RAM
|
Data |
GPRS-
|
Class
10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
|
EDGE-
|
Class
11, 236.8 kbps
|
|
Speed-
|
Yes,
384 kbps
|
|
WLAN-
|
Wi-Fi
802.11g
|
|
Bluetooth
|
Yes,
v1.2
|
|
Infrared port
|
-Yes
|
|
USB-
|
Yes,
v2.0, Pop-Port
|
Camera |
Primary-
|
3.15
MP, 2048x1536 pixels, LED flash
|
Video-
|
Yes,
CIF
|
|
Secondary
|
-VGA
video call camera
|
Features |
OS-
|
Symbian
OS, Series 60 UI
|
CPU-
|
220
MHz Dual ARM 9
|
|
Messaging
|
-SMS,
MMS, Email, Instant Messaging
|
|
Browser-
|
WAP
2.0/xHTML, HTML
|
|
Radio-
|
Stereo
FM radio; Visual radio
|
|
GPS-
|
No
|
|
Java-
|
Yes,
MIDP 2.0
|
|
Colors-
|
Silver,
Black
|
|
- Push
to Talk
- Mono MP3 player - Predictive text input - Organizer - Voice dial/memo |
Battery
|
Standard
battery, Li-Ion 820 mAh (BL-5B)
|
|
Stand-by
|
Up
to 192 h
|
|
Talk time
|
-Up
to 3 h
|
Misc
|
SAR US
|
0.86
W/kg (head) 1.05 W/kg (body)
|
|
SAR EU
|
0.68
W/kg (head)
|
||
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