Bonnie Cha,
Senior Associate Editor
April 6, 2009
When the Nokia N series first debuted back in 2006, we were impressed by the breadth of advanced entertainment options, productivity tools, and voice features that the company was able to cram into a smartphone. Back then, 2- and 3-megapixel camera phones were a rarity. Of course, Nokia didn't stop there. The Finnish cell phone manufacturer has continued to push the limits with devices, such as the everything-but-kitchen-sink Nokia N95 and music-loving Nokia N76, capturing the interest of many CNET readers--and rightfully so. The latest N series models include the Nokia N79, Nokia N85, and the yet-to-be-released but highly anticipated Nokia N97, which is the first of the N series devices to have a touch screen.
The problem remains that most of these phones aren't available in the United States, but Nokia is working on making it easier to buy the N-series phones from its Web site, flagship stores, and other retailers. Of course, you'll have to pay a premium to get an unlocked version since the U.S. carriers have not picked up these high-end mobiles for various reasons.
| Product name | |||||
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| Price | $385.00 to $624.99 | $299.99 to $549.99 | $330.00 to $449.99 | $379.99 to $529.99 | $599.99 to $699.99 |
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| Review date | December 18, 2008 | January 22, 2009 | January 26, 2009 | April 17, 2008 | June 24, 2009 |
| The Bottom Line | Though the Nokia N96 is a powerful all-in-one smartphone with an impressive amount of user storage, it's not a significant upgrade to the N95 and is outdone by new devices coming to market, including the Nokia N97. | The Nokia N79 might not be the star of the N series devices, but it still shines as a great multimedia smartphone with plenty of features and fast performance. | The Nokia N85 may not offer as much memory as the N95 or N96, but it offers just as many features and a sleeker design, making it a better value in our book. | Offering ample memory, a larger screen, and 3G support, the 8GB Nokia N95 is sure to please those looking for the ultimate in multimedia/cell phone convergence, but you'll pay for the features, and there are some performance issues. | While the Nokia N97 is packed with features and offers the freedom of an unlocked phone, its clunky touch interface, sky-high price tag, and outdated operating system make it hard to recommend when there are better touch-screen smartphones on the market. |
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| Features | |||||
| Band / mode | WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM 850/900/1800/1900 | WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM 850/900/1800/1900 | WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM 850/900/1800/1900 | WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM 850/900/1800/1900 | WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM 850/900/1800/1900 |
| Cellular technology | WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM | WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM | WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM | WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM | WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM |
| Talk time | Up to 220 min | Up to 330 min | 325 min | Up to 300 min | Up to 400 min |
| Weight | 4.4 oz | 3.4 oz | 4.5 oz | 4.5 oz | 5.3 oz |
| Full specifications | Full specifications | Full specifications | Full specifications | Full specifications | Full specifications |
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