In-depth Review: Nokia N82

Overview
Anticipation has been high for the Nokia N82, ever since it was announced. Here, finally, would be the phone to end all phones, the phone that does everything. It would be packed with features, look beautiful and essentially, it would do anything.
All along, this was to be Nokia's big shot at utter genius; the phone that does everything right, that everyone loves and adores. Nothing but perfection is acceptable. It's curious, as well, that during the run up to Christmas, and into this new year, the news of the Nokia N82 has been more or less overshadowed by the news of its elder brother, the N95 8Gb. Why is it curious? Because this is easily the more capable phone of the two.
As the evolution of Nokia’s famous Nseries of mobile phones, the N82 was always destined to follow a certain design ethos, specifically that of the Nseries as a whole: “discover, capture, share”. As a design ethos, it reflects the goals of the N-phones, but it focuses specifically on the later models, such as the N95, N95 8Gb and N82.
It's a very enticing slogan, as well. being deliberately evocative, but without really telling you anything about what the phone actually does. We’ll come back to this notion of discover, capture, share later in this review, but first of all, let’s take a look at the Nokia N82 as a whole.
Design & Construction
Nokia, in their Nseries range, have always made very striking handsets. It’s been a feature of the range since the very first models in the range. Think back to some of the other N-phones, like the N91, the N80 or the N95. Very handsome phones, to be sure, and the same tradition has carried through into the N82.
The look of the phone, and the build quality, are undeniably well pulled off. It’s a very pretty phone, with the softkeys almost flowing round to the sides, and the back of the phone, as is de rigueur nowadays, being rotated 90 degrees to make it look like a digital camera (which is an obvious move to make, as it has a xenon flash – see later – so making the side that actually faces people LOOK like a digital camera is a natural thing to do)
However, it should be noted that the Nokia N82 also retains one of the less desirable attributes of the earlier Nseries phones. There’s no getting away from the size of the phone. For a smart phone, it’s not THAT big, but it is certainly bigger (roughly the same size as its predecessor, the N73) than its main rivals, phones like the Samsung G800.
First Thoughts On Using The Phone
From the second the Nokia N82 is turned on, it’s immediately apparent this is a Nokia phone, with the trademark startup animation and music signalling the phone powered up and ready to use. In terms of menu layout, if you’ve ever used an Nseries phone, you’ll be right at home here. The icons are laid out almost exactly as you would find in an early Nseries phone, and it’s, once again, very intuitive to use.
However, there has been some controversy over the keypad design, built as it is with small keys, and set very low down on the body of the phone, making one-handed usage more difficult than it is on some other phones. In fact, in terms of user friendliness, the keypad is alongside the N91, which isn’t a glowing reference, as that phone was fiddly to use. The low-slung keypad also makes the phone top-heavy, given its size, which make it not sit properly in your hand, until you get used to the keypad position.
However, the N82 more than makes it up for its shortcomings in the design, when you consider its powerful feature set.
Discover
Ah yes, the advertising slogan: “discover, capture, share.” With the first part, “discover”, we’re into the territory of the Nokia N82’s big feature: built-in GPS. This exceptionally useful feature adds not just a GPS receiver to your phone, but also Nokia Maps. For the first time on an Nseries phone, as well, this feature is completely free. All you will pay, for any access of the GPS and maps, is your data rates on whichever tariff you go for.
The implications of this are obvious, as it makes the N82 the first mobile phone in the current era to give you full GPS navigation for absolutely no cost (aside from your network’s data charges). The key thing, though, is that Nokia provision of their part of the system for free further develops GPS’s big push into the mainstream phone marketplace.
But, of course, the question is whether the GPS is actually useful, and whether it works as described. The answer is a resounding yes, with the simple input and navigation system directing you to your destination with ease. I really cannot find anything to fault with this particular area of the Nokia N82.
Capture
Once you’ve reached your destination, using the built-in GPS, the Nokia N82 can seamlessly shift into “capture” mode. This is where the 5 megapixel camera comes into play.
There has been a glut of 5 megapixel mobile phones recently, as all of the big handset makers have scrambled to bring their own into production and to the masses of customers waiting for one. Phones like the Nokia N95, the Samsung G800, the Sony Ericsson K850i… they all have their merits, and they all have their foibles. But it’s very clear that, entering into this cutthroat market, the Nokia N82 has its work cut out for it.
Once you have actually experienced the N82’s camera, though, you’ll realise it accomplishes its goals with aplomb. I have absolutely no hesitation in saying that this is simply the best camera phone on the market today. It manages that feat by having the aforementioned 5 megapixels, but tying those in with Vario Tessar lenses from Carl Zeiss (the premium lens maker), a whole raft of top-end software, and most importantly, the best flash I’ve seen on any mobile phone. It makes shooting photos in low light a joy, and easily outclasses every other camera phone I’ve seen.
As with the GPS, I really can’t find ANY flaws in this particular feature of the Nokia N82.
Of course, it can also record video through that amazing camera, and once again, it performs very well, with a very high frame rate, and significantly higher quality videos than you’re likely to see from its nearest rival, the Sony Ericsson K850i.
You can, of course, view any media you capture, be it photos, videos or even sound, through the N82’s amazingly capable media player. And as another bonus, it shares the similar auto-rotation feature, seen in the K850i, whereby the screen switches to portrait or landscape mode, depending on how you hold the phone.
Share
Once you’ve discovered something, then captured say, an image of it, the final step is to “share”. With the Nokia N82, there are a huge range of options to do that.
As with nearly every phone nowadays, you would expect to get Bluetooth, and indeed you do get it. What you get in the N82 is the faster Bluetooth 2.0 standard, complete with support for stereo Bluetooth headphones. In other words, you can also double your phone up as a music player, and listen to music wirelessly, with Bluetooth headphones.
Also, the phone supports just about every data standard you could think of, from GPRS, through EDGE (although, that’s not an issue over here in the UK), to 3G and the fastest standard of them all, HSDPA, which can run at speeds of up to 3.6Mbps. By comparison, the broadband connection I most commonly use runs at 1Mbps. The difference in figures is made very real when you se the performance of the N82’s HSDPA connection, and see for yourself how fast it is. You also have WiFi built in, providing yet another option for connecting to the net.
Once you’re connected, there are a number of options for sharing, be it by email, or MMS, or even by automatic blogging of your photos. To put it simply, the Nokia N82 makes it VERY easy to share what’s on your mind and on your phone.
Telephony/Messaging
As you would expect from a Nokia, the call quality of the N82 is superb, with crystal clear audio in every test condition I tried. The earpiece was loud and clear, and never once left me feeling that I’d run the risk of not hearing the other end of the conversation. As for messaging, once again, if you’ve used a Nokia, you’ll be right at home here.
The only downside in this area goes back to my original complaint about the keypad: it’s simply too small, and set too low on the phone, to be instantly intuitive. I found that dialling numbers and texting were hampered by the small keys. It IS useable, and you WILL get used to it, but it takes longer to get used to than it should.
Other Applications & Games
As has been noted in my previous reviews, games aren’t really my area of expertise, so I tend not to get too excited about them. However, there is one thing of note in the Nokia N82’s gaming setup, which may make some prospective customers of the phone very happy.
Basically, the N82 has inherited the N-gage gaming system, along with its sliding sibling, the N81. As a mobile games platform, the original N-gage did set a new benchmark in games, with 3D graphics and impressive sound. That legacy carries on to the N82, so if you ARE a gamer, you’re going to find the N82 particularly fun to play on.
Conclusion
As you’ve probably worked out by now, I like the Nokia N82. I like it a lot. It has an impressive, nay phenomenal, array of features, and each feature is pulled off with panache. It’s not without its fault, though. To summarise:
Pros
Gorgeous design and typical Nokia build quality
Simply the best camera phone ever
Intuitive menus
The auto-rotation of the screen is wonderfully well executed
The built in GPS is a joy to use, and absolutely free
Massive choice of connection options, from GPRS to 3G, HSDPA and WiFi
Cons
Keypad is very small and set too far down the phone’s body to be comfortable
Despite being a smart phone, and packing so much in, I still feel it’s a bit big
At worst, you can call the Nokia N82 a flawed genius. But the flaws are tiny, compared to what you can do with the phone, what the phone can do FOR you. To put it simply, it is very rare in the world of mobile phones to see a feature-set as rich as this, and handled so well (particularly the camera, which is hands-down the best camera on any mobile phone). It may not be perfect, but it comes very, very close. And if you buy one of these, you will have made a VERY smart choice.
Overall Score: 9.5 / 10