Nokia E90 Communicator summarized review

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Nokia E90 Communicator summarized review

Written by Meraj Chhaya on June 4, 2008 – 9:34 pm

The new addition to both the ESeries and Communicator line was expected to be the ultimate business tool, a notebook replacement. It doesn’t live up to the competition, although it does fulfil the featured functionality.

Having a Communicator to run on S60 instead of S80 software platform was a well taken risk by Nokia, as more features are incorporated, and Nokia has far more experience with the S60 platform than S80 platform. Consumers who are used to NSeries won’t feel much of a difference with the E90, much the contrary, as they will enjoy the large internal display and full QWERTY keyboard.

The mobile device is made to fell like a mini-notebook, or so it seems, as it’s huge and ugly. We feel that the space in front was misused, as there is a lot of free space where there could have been a larger display. The keypad has large keys that feel good to the finger. The internal display stands at 4” with 800×352 pixels of resolution. It is not a touchscreen, and many consumers might be disappointed for that. The internal full keyboard feels great at the touch, as it’s deep and has a good feedback. The keys aren’t that large, so typing should be done with only the two thumbs. Unfortunately there is a very poor backlight to the keys, and it has to be manually activated.

As S60 is concerned, there aren’t many differences in applications available. There are few business tools as “Teams” program, as well as saved email settings. There are voice-commanded applications, and options to read messages. An Office suite is installed and full licenced, which allow to read and edit Word and Excel files, although only read PowerPoint files.

The E90 has a full set of connectivity options: HSDPA at 3.6mbps, Bluetooth v2.0, real Printers USB connection (only HP), and even Infrared.

There is no 3.5mm jack, but a 2.5 Nokia AudioVisual jack.

The 3.2 megapixel camera with autofocus performs satisfactorily for a business phone, and can take perceptible photos at night thanks to an average LED flash, although in dark conditions there is absolutely no autofocusing. Video recording is possible at 640×480 pixels of resolution at 30fps. Obviously there is a 3D Hardware accelerator.

Don’t expect much from the music side, as the E90 is a business phone. There is no category divisions, although the User Interface for the music player is acceptable, and the 2.5mm jack earphones are included. You can also connect Stereo Bluetooth Headphones thanks to the Bluetooth v2.0 connectivity.

The A-GPS functionality works the same as in the N95, there is a fast lock if you have internet connection, but without, it can take minutes. Navigation is not free as in most NSeries, but you can buy the licence. The maps aren’t fullscreen as two theme bars are shown. Nevertheless the E90’s GPS navigation works perfectly, and it would be better if there was a car suction mount to aid to the driver.

The big question: Is the E90 better than its competition, such as the HTC TYTN II, and the Samsung F700? The answer is a no, simply because there is no touchscreen, and at this stage, a touchscreen is necessary is large display phones. The style is missing as well, and the E90 is another Communicator which looks like a brick.

Advantages: Symbian OS9.2 with S60 v3.1 FP1; 3.2 megapixel camera with autofocus; large

internal display; comfortable QWERTY keyboard; Printing ability.

Disadvantages: No touchscreen; small front display; no fullscreen Maps application.

Rating: 7.0/10

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