Nokia N96 & Sony Ericsson G700 Under The Microscope
The Russians are at it, again! Well not all Russians but Eldar Murtazin, the man behind Mobile-Review. After bringing us exclusive and detailed reviews of S60 3rd Edition FP2 and the Nokia N78, Eldar is striking again, with a Home Run should we add. Within 3 days, he has posted full detailed reviews of the Nokia N96 (prototype) and the Sony Ericsson G700. He has put both devices under the microscope, and we literally mean it. Both reviews are full with details, pictures, screenshots, and even benchmark comparisons. I wonder when he sleeps.
When the N96 was first announced, as much as I was in love with it, because it brought the best of the N95 and the N81’s worlds (something I have been wanting myself because I believe these devices are perfect opposites in all domains), I was in shock when I read that it would sport a 950mAh battery. Eldar, in his review, brings us some comfort:
Obviously, the N96’s hardware feats help it stay up in the video and music modes longer while packing a less capable battery. Other than that, it was on a par with the Nokia N95 8Gb (give or take in view of its inferior cell).
In Moscow, the N96 stayed online for around 2 days when we were heavy on its features (regular mail checks, up to 5 hours of music and up to 20 SMS messages). We are confident the phone will easily last 2 days even in the most extreme usage mode (except for non-stop web-browsing), and if you are planning to use nothing but its voice calls, then expect 3-4 days of operation, depending on how much time you spend on the phone.
I can say that now, I am more confident towards this issue though I am still not completely sold. Beside pathetic battery life, the other 2 major complaints about the N96 were: lack of Xenon flash and absence of 3D accelerated hardware. The Xenon flash issue has been answered by Ricky before in his “Why Nokia used dual-LEDs on the N96?” and I agree with his explanation. Still, the lack of 3D-acceleration issue remains, and that my friends, I’m afraid we’ll have to moan about and live without.
Heading over the the G700, Eldar has already expressed his love for this UIQ touchscreen device in an informal post he made 2 days ago. Now, he details the ups and downs of the G700. From what I have read so far, the device lacks a proper speedy processor but makes up with software improvements, and has no autofocus in the camera. On the positive side, the touch controlling seems to be very efficient, which by itself is reason enough for us to applaud Sony Ericsson. Here at Symbian-Guru, we have already been thrilled by the G-series announcement from SE, and we still believe that a little competition in the Symbian house can only spice up things and have a positive outcome for the general consumer.
You can head over to the N96 and the G700 reviews from Eldar to catch all the details, but make sure you grab a cup of coffee and that you free up an hour or two of your time.
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