I’ve always had an obsession with the Communicator form factor from Nokia, to be honest. The form factor is a phenomenal combination of T9 and QWERTY text input, and that larger internal display is nothing but beautiful, on any of the past models. However, given that the 9500 was never made available with the GSM 850MHz frequency, I skipped on the few chances to purchase it, and the lesser 9300 just didn’t have the specs I needed in a phone.
Enter the Nokia E90. Quad-band GSM, WiFi, GPS, a decent 3.2 megapixel camera with autofocus, and that same beautiful form factor. If you recall when the phone was announced, I was instantly obsessed, naming it as the phone I was most excited to see at the Evening with S60 Chicago, which took place at the Nokia Flagship store up there.
However, after having the Nokia N95-3, my first S60 experience with HSDPA, I was reluctant to trade HSDPA for that QWERTY/T9 combination goodness. Luckily, I was able to check it out without giving up my Nokia N95-3, so here I am.
I won’t be doing a full-on review of the E90, as there are already one, two, three, and more great reviews on the net. I still want to let you know what I think, though. So here’s a list of things that I love about the Nokia E90, and why:
1. The keyboards – the external one is about the size of my N95’s, if not bigger, and is thus tremendously easy to use. Flip her open, and that QWERTY keyboard is simply magnificent. The keys offer a great tactile feedback, and are large enough that I’m not constantly pressing the wrong button. The 5th row of number keys is also a BIG plus, and really makes a difference, moreso than you would think.
2. The build quality – this thing is built like a rock, seriously. The hinges are sturdy and don’t feel cheap, and there aren’t any squeaks or moans when you use the phone.
3. Shortcuts – the E90 is definitely built to be a serious work machine. The outer ‘phone’ is simple, with standard S60 keys. However, when you open it up, there is a full row above the keyboard with 8 shortcuts, and there’s an additional shortcut to the left of the keyboard. These are all pre-mapped, with no option to change, to Desk (home screen, and I’m not a fan of the different terminology), Contacts, Messaging, Web, Notes, Calendar, My Own, and the S60 menu key. The other shortcut is another My Own key. These two keys can be mapped to nearly anything on the phone (mine are set to Jaiku and the Music Player), and I find that these are my most used functions. The ‘Chr’ key can also be used in conjunction with several other buttons to perform certain actions, as noted by the blue icon on some buttons. For instance, Chr+B turns the volume up, and Chr+V turns it down.
4. The internal display – you really don’t get the full effect of this one until you’ve seen it in person, in use. It’s huge, and crisp. Internet browsing is breathtaking, and if you’ve put Global Race on your N95 and think it’s cool, you have no idea. I’m normally pretty indifferent when people start ranting about wanting higher-resolution displays for S60, but the E90 will convert you quickly.
5. The email client – I’ve been using the built-in S60 email client, in conjunction with Gmail IMAP for several months now, and it serves my purposes easily. The enhanced views on the E90’s internal display, paired with the ability to set the mailbox on my Active Standby, is just great, and something I miss when my SIM is in the N95-3.
I really can’t say enough about the internal QWERTY keyboard. It’s miles ahead of my Nokia N810, and I like that one, alot, as well. If you want to use your phone for massive amounts of email or document editing, you really can’t go wrong with the E90.
Before you ask, there is plenty to ‘like’ on the E90. The camera quality, GPS, WiFi, and overall speed are likable, but they don’t especially stand out, specifically when compared to my N95-3. There’s plenty of RAM and internal storage, and I’ve got a microSD shoved into it for extra storage. I don’t intend to leave these things out, but they don’t stand out on their own, among the bunch of other S60v3 handsets I’ve reviewed.
However, things aren’t all peachy-keen with this phone, which I’ve lovingly named Behemoth. Check back tomorrow to find out the things that keep my SIM card in my N95-3, most of the time.
