Review: Nokia N900

Nokia N900 Review

Phone rating:

In a nutshell: The Nokia N900 features the new Linux-based Maemo operating system and is more of an internet tablet than a phone. Its outstanding features are its QWERTY keyboard, hi-res touchscreen, web browser and multitasking ability. Downsides are poor user-friendliness, size, weight and the very high price.
Best buy: Free with half-price line rental from Mobiles.co.uk.

Review: January 2010.

Nokia's N900 looks like a souped-up version of the flagship N97 smartphone. In a way it is, but in fact, under the bonnet lurks something new to the word of mobile phones. It's Nokia's new Linux-based Maemo operating system.

But the first thing you notice about the N900 isn't the operating system. It's the price. Wow, that's a lot of money! The second thing you notice is the size. Wow, it's huge! The third thing you notice is the weight. Wow, this is the heaviest phone on the market!

Haven't put the phone back on the shelf yet? That's good, because then you start to notice some good things. First the slide-out QWERTY keyboard. You begin to realise why the phone is heavy. It's because a keyboard this big weighs a ton. But that means that it's easy to use, and you can out-type even those BlackBerry guys. We think that the keyboard isn't actually as good as the one on the N97, but that's just a quibble. You'll also notice the screen, and once again appreciate why the N900 is so big. This is a fantastic screen - Nokia's best so far - measuring 3.5 inches across and with an incredible 800 x 480 pixel resolution. It's a touchscreen of course. Shame that it's resistive though, not capacitative, so you sometimes have to press it a couple of times before it responds, unless you use a stylus.

The N900 also has a great camera. It's essentially the same camera as the one on the N97 and N97 Mini, with 5 megapixels, Carl Zeiss optics, Tessar lens, autofocus, dual LED flash and geo-tagging. The video camera is outstanding, recording at an incredible 800 x 480 pixels. There's also a front-mounted VGA web camera, though at the time of this review we weren't able to establish whether this can be used for video calling. There's a digital media player, with all the features that you'd expect, and an FM transmitter. Bizarrely, there's no FM radio, although it is possible to install one using a third-party download. We know that a lot of people like their apps, but really some things should come as standard. Since when have phone manufacturers started treating their devices like flat-packed furniture? A-GPS with Ovi Maps is included, though.

Is there any reason so far why you should choose the N900 over the N97? We think not. The only reason then would be the Maemo operating system. We're going to stick our necks out here and say something really unpopular. Whenever we say this kind of thing, we always get hate mail, so it would be nice if the haters just gave it a rest this time :) OK, here goes: if you buy a phone with an untested operating system, you had better be prepared to roll your sleeves up and do some really hard work making your phone operational. It's always the same. If you buy the N900 you'll be a beta-tester for Nokia. Lots of stuff won't work at first. Perhaps some things will never work. If you can live with that and like a challenge, go ahead. Otherwise avoid. We've already mentioned the lack of an FM radio and video calling. Other things that are missing include MMS, and there are few apps currently available from the Ovi store, although this will no doubt improve as time goes by.

But there are good things too. The Maemo OS is very fast, and is supported by fast hardware too, enabling it to deliver on its promise of genuine multi-tasking. The Mozilla-based web browser is superb, and as a mobile web browser the N900 is hard to beat, with its lightning-fast HSPA and WiFi support. Build quality is solid, there's bags of memory (up to 48GB), and audio quality is excellent.

So, the N900 isn't really an ideal mobile phone for many users, but for someone who really wants an internet tablet with calling features added, it could be just the thing.

Features of the Nokia N900 include:

• 5 megapixel camera (2592 x 1944 pixels) with Carl Zeiss optics, Tessar lens, autofocus, dual LED flash, photo editor and geo-tagging
• Video camera: MPEG4 video capture at 800 x 480 pixels
• Front camera: VGA web camera
• Display: Resistive touchscreen, 16 million colours, 800 x 480 pixels (3.5 inches) with orientation sensor, proximity sensor and light sensor
• Digital music player (supports MP3/AAC/eAAC/WMA formats)
• Integrated stereo speakers
• FM transmitter
• A-GPS with Ovi Maps
• Speed dialing
• Messaging: SMS, Email (SMTP, IMAP4, POP3, Mail for Exchange)
• Viewing of email attachments – .doc, .xls, .ppt, .pdf
• Memory: 256 MB RAM, 32 GB plus microSD memory card slot (up to 16GB)
• Connectivity: Bluetooth 2.1, USB 2.0, TV-Out, WLAN 802.11 b/g, 3.5 mm stereo headphone plug
• Internet: Maemo Browser with Flash video support, RSS reader, HSPA (10Mbps download, 2 Mbps upload), WLAN (up to 11Mbps/54Mbps)
• Quadband plus 3G
• Size: 111 x 60 x 20 mm
• Weight: 181g

Nokia N900 Consumer Reviews

Love your mobile? Hate it? Please share your experiences to help other people choose the phone that's best for them. Please do not review this phone if you have not used it. This is a review site, not a forum, so please don't just ask questions. Please do not use swear words or offensive language, and please, no advertising!

Average rating from 28 reviews:

Reviewed by Sheetal from Slovakia on 13th Mar 2010
wow.. best phone ever!
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Reviewed by abd el rahman samir from egypt on 6th Mar 2010
very good mobile like computer i can do any thing with it emails,browsing internet,play games,play music,see movies and videos, it like notebook with sim card.
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Reviewed by Rex Mundi from UK on 4th Mar 2010
love it although you do have to work around some things but i do love a challenge! best smartphone by miles
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Reviewed by Jim from London, UK on 2nd Mar 2010
I was so apprehensive before getting this phone but man this machine is a killer. This phone is simply outstanding. There is so much you can do on this phone and believe me i havent slept properly since buying it. Battery life is excellent keeping in mind the number of applications it runs. Not enough apps as compare to iphone but u dont need apps when u can actually use internet as easily as your laptop. Web browsing has never been so amazing on any phone ever. I really recommend this phone. Outstanding.
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Reviewed by collins museka from zambia on 26th Feb 2010
this the bsest smartphone made by nokia and best phone on the market.the interface is superb and very great built qaulity.welldone nokia.
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Reviewed by Sadaf Khan from Birmingham,UK. on 24th Feb 2010
Its truly awesome, all applications + battery + each & everything is really appreciateble.. I wish i could meet the maker.. :p ;) Birmingham,UK.
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Reviewed by Ocran Edward Kingsley from Ghana on 21st Feb 2010
its very coool
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Reviewed by Muthukumaran.T from India on 18th Feb 2010
I Love Nokia for its quality and good manufactring even in all applications, camera, video, music, web browser, user friendly, good display and affordable price. muthukumaran.T Vellore, Tamil Nadu, India.
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Reviewed by matthew from wales on 10th Feb 2010
I've had this phone for about 2 weeks now and I am amazed at the quality, yes its bit chunky but its as strong as a tank (check out the n900 stress tests on youtube). The touchscreen is the best resistive screen on the market (and I've used a few!). As for the resolution, its top notch! twice the pixel count of the I phone and same size screen it just looks fantastic. Massive memory capacity 48gb and the Maemo OS is just a joy to use. I've already installed about 20 different apps/games which have worked perfectly (all official apps, be careful with apps that are still in development) but even if you brick your phone you can reflash the OS and bring it back to life YOURSELF! without having to send it back to manufacturer. everything is unlocked with this phone which is a breath of fresh air in the mobile market where almost every device is strictly controlled by manufacturer or network company. truly wonderful device!.
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Reviewed by graeme from england on 8th Feb 2010
just got my n900 after trading in my n97 mini i thought that was a good phone even with symbian but this beast is something else great screen touch works well not a problem keyboard great much better than n97 and this is gona get better in the next few months buy it you wont be dissapointed!!
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Reviewed by abdulrahman from India on 6th Feb 2010
I storngly belive Nokia N 900 is an asset for Mobile phones
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Reviewed by hannes from sweden on 3rd Feb 2010
The nokia n900 is a super great phone i dont know where u got your reports but it seems they have used u for the beta testers cause this phone have so much more than those few things u have mentioned , and i do belive it has built in radio and a fm transmitter and u can send and recive mms, a-gps with nokia maps are for FREE turn by turn navigation , and it beats all smartphones on the market for the moment CHECK NOKIA.Com for techs on the phone or maemo.nokia.com
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Reviewed by John from England on 29th Jan 2010
My nokia n900 came a couple days ago, and at first you really miss iPhones screen but after a day I was used to it and it beats iPhone hands down in multi tasking, speed, web browser with flash, and overall power of the thing there aren't alot of apps yet but that's just temperal and with open dorce we could have really anything :) you won't regret it Nokia N900 is like no other phone.
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Reviewed by firoz shaikh from india on 29th Jan 2010
not as good as n 97 poor battery ....... on key bord difficult to type numeric no. 1 nad 2 ..... n n97 has mouse also by which u can operate by that but it has only touch screen ..........
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Reviewed by Jaz from West Midlands on 19th Jan 2010
This is the best phone on the market. i love the functions. buy it!
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Reviewed by Egon from England on 16th Jan 2010
All the people who have put more than 2 stars for this fone are idots.... yes you are..!!!! had it for 1 day and took it back total waste of time trying to use it and get what i wanted to do is a joke. no way near the iphone not even close ... like the n97 which also i took back is a big flop ... time nokia looked at making less phones and more input into the OS ....
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Reviewed by Crixiano Ronalxo from Madeira,Portugal on 6th Jan 2010
it looks good but agree it jams a lot and although its decent it jams and restarts alot. shame at bein a multitaskin phone...
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Reviewed by bari from UK on 6th Jan 2010
been using this phone since early december 2009. I preordered it from nokia and been using vodafone with it. this phone is excellent. i have used N82 before. the touch screen are not like the iphone touchscreen. you really need to touch the screen sometimes but be able to use stylus and use handwritting is an added advantages. the screen size is huge and sharp. the interface is easy to use and fast. it is totally different from symbian. the application for Maemo is still lacking. but if u use the developer application, then u have a lot of choice. but bear in mind that developer application is still under testing/beta. if u use alot then u might need to charge it everyday. but it can last for 2-3day max if put on standby. be able to multitasking is great. i can send text to few people + sign in IM + playing game + play MP3 with no slowdown at all. for me this is better than iphone. was considering iphone but thought N900 is better and it is :)
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Reviewed by Desmodromic from Netherlands on 5th Jan 2010
Purchased this phone after my N95 8GB. Wasn't sure about the touchscreen though, but after one day of playing with it I found it to be excellent! The UI is very easy to use and very fast. The screen is unbelievable! so sharp and bright. Downside is the programmes available, compared to the Symbian phones from Nokia. But more programmes come out every day. Battery life was bad (charging every day) but strangly seems to be getting better (have the phone for 1 month now) If you're looking for a top notch communication machine, this is the one!
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Reviewed by stacy from england on 3rd Jan 2010
i got this phone about a week or 2 ago and im alreadys having problems ! i think my phone was the last one made on a friday night . the slide has jammed bits of the touchscreen is not working and the screen goes blank do not get this phone at alll me experiance R U B B I S H
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Reviewed by Jon from UK on 2nd Jan 2010
Purchased phone today and i am using it now to type this review. so far this phone has been excellent. was considering an iphone but this is cheaper and somuch better. great internet use, media and music use and better than n97, highly reccommended. only issue is not yet able bto put phone in profile like on n97. 10/10 well done nokia!
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Reviewed by Krish from India on 18th Dec 2009
I bought this phone three days back. Unofficially as it yet to be launched here officially. I have been using iphone 3G for more than year and for everything i needed a app, with this phone all is built in, and interface is fast and very attractive. ability to customize and its bright screen is great use especially if you receive lot of emails like i do - readability is good even during day time. Am sure Maemo platform will bring in a lot of developers. Thank you Nokia for the effort.
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Reviewed by iqrama qassim from malawi on 17th Dec 2009
ulala......never seen anything like this. im amazed. just enjoying it right now...nokia u've killed it
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Reviewed by Nick L from Great Britain on 3rd Dec 2009
This is an utterly fabulous phone capable of running tasks in true multi-tasking mode (rather than single mode that most phones operate in) and this is because you are buying a phone that runs a true Linux-based O/S (Maemo). It can't be compared with the N95 or N97. Theoretically this beats the iPhone hands down (and I say this as a dedicated user of apple computers); however whether it beats the iPhone or the other competitors will depend on the apps store and whether Nokia can persuade software writers to write the applications for it. Apple did this and it was a roaring success. This is the first true videophone and video-messaging tool and has lots of features already. In China and USA where it is already out, it is beginning to penetrate the corporate market alongside iPhone.The only reason the N800 didn't succeed was that it wasn't a phone and if you think back 15 years, Nokia was way ahead of the market. Yes a capacitive screen would have been an improvement but this resistive screen is still great. Nokia - its all down to applications and connectivity. If this connects to Windows and Apple easily, and get the applications, then it will knock iPhone off the perch. If it doesn't then ...... ......and of course there are the rumours of a June 2010 launch of the Apple A5 tablet (like a big iPhone) with GSM capability... so we're not yet out of the woods on comparisons!
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Reviewed by Ahmed Jama from England,UK on 22nd Nov 2009
This phone is an ABSOLUTE CRAZY FEATURE LOADED phone !!!!!! it has everything guys..cnt wait to get ih. my friend in america has it and says he could live with tht phone for a long time! BEST PHONE EVER along with the IPhone. A-Must-Buy PHONE!!
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Reviewed by Alfee from China on 17th Oct 2009
Ive had this fone out in China and its the best phone yet, thankss Nokia.
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Reviewed by kii from UK on 23rd Sep 2009
Seen the demos, Seen what its capable of, cant wait already preordered it ready for release in october sometime. Will smash all competitors out there! Cant wait
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Reviewed by daniel wilson from uk on 14th Sep 2009
Great phone way better then the nokia n97 nokia best smartphone/computer phone yet
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You can read more Nokia N900 reviews at RecommendedBuys UK.

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