I have tried many touchscreen devices and always go back to numerical keys. Here’s why.
- I can touch type on a keyed device. A touch screen has no tactile feedback making it useless for non-sighted use.
- With a keyed device, the numeric keypad is by far the most gracious design. It constrains the input area sufficiently that I can operate the device using one hand and I need very limited movement in my thumb to operate it. Held in either hand, the side-keys on my Nokia E51 are in easy reach of my fingers and the main keypad sits nicely under my thumb. With a touchscreen, you need two hands if you are to avoid very awkward stretching and balancing.
- After a little time, T9 input is faster than QWERTY. Because I only have to move among 12 keys, I don’t have to look and optically digest an entire keyboard. Tengo provide a QWERTY version of T9 for Windows Mobile devices (I think they may have gone under).
- Constraining input to fewer keys removes the awkwardness of a multi-faceted input UI. There is no doubt that the back key on my device will always perform back functions. Even on the iPhone, this is performed by an on-screen button which isn’t always in exactly the same place. This is more true of the ’send’ or ‘green’ button. For touchscreen devices this is often anywhere on the screen which means you have to hunt for it.
- Keys offer me precise control. I know when I have pressed the key and I get immediate feedback. For a touchscreen I have often experienced a ‘dead touch’ where the screen hasn’t registered my finger.
Stylish business organiser
Sturdy black plastic, styled with exaggerated curves give the Pre the look and feel of a glossy, river washed stone. It slides open easily revealing a portrait QWERTY keypad and powers up displaying a 3.1 inch vibrant capacitive touchscreen at 320 x 480 res. Initially fiddly to type on, the keys are carefully spaced and have a pleasing, raised gel-feel. Having no touchscreen keypad is limiting to use in landscape mode.
WebOS features multitasking and multi-touch support. Apps run within a unique activity card, managed via a ripple-effect toolbar. They can be flipped around, rearranged, and shut down by fingertip flicks. Universal search makes a fab addition to usability, and discreet, self-sizing alerts don’t annoy like pop-ups can.
Palm Synergy allows combined and logical access to Yahoo!, Gmail, Exchange and facebook inboxes, plus the calendar functions synch and colour code appointments, allowing one page daily viewing by compacting free time.
The 3MP camera has a basic flash but the OS makes a real improvement, back loading image processing to allow shots at a faster rate than rivals. It doesn’t take video though, D’oh! A 3.5mm jack, Wi-Fi, GPS and stereo Bluetooth all complement the Pre’s functionality and Palm’s App Catalog is available for a small, but growing range of downloads. 8GB storage is healthy, but can’t be expanded.
A dismal battery life of less than a day is almost negated by the bundled Touchstone conductive charger. Magnetically stick the phone to the mount and it charges automatically. Coolest charger ever.
Messaging big beast
The sequel to Nokia’s best selling E71, the E72 begins life with a secured following. Visually similar, pimped with a bit more chrome and a sleeker finish, you have to look inside to fully appreciate it’s beefier than it’s younger brother.
Running Symbian and powered by a 600 MHz processor, the first improvement is in speed. Menus are instant and applications load swiftly. The 2.4 inch QVGA screen is glass-fronted and displays 320 v 240 resolution. Default colour and styling imply work, not play.
Placed mid-range for media with a 5 MP LED flash camera, video editing, music player and a 3.5mm jack. 250MB user space, a 4GB microSD card can be Expanded 16GB. 3G access via HSDPA is great, max speed 10.2 Mbps future-proofing the phone, as the fastest advertised UK carrier speed is 7.2 Mbps.
The strength of the E-Series remains the full featured 39 key, sculpted, QWERTY keypad. It gives tactile, responsive, comfortable and most importantly accurate input. I’m was tempted by touchscreen, but Nokia prove to me here that keypads remain the one true path.
Battery life is excellent. I’ve gathered lots of user data and the average is around 5 days from a full tank. A hefty punch to other smartphones, a knockout if you’re away from charger access for long.
If messaging, battery life and the E-series brand are your priorities, this is an excellent choice. It might not score highly with new users hungry for personalisation and download options.
The all-rounder
Friends will know I’ll be immediately drawn to the QWERTY slider and touch screen combo that the N97 presents on first look. One blink later though, and I’m startled at only having three rows of 11 keys. What’s this going to be like to type on? Turns out to be ok but the off-set space key on row three is certainly quirky until you get used to it.
Beyond cosmetic reactions, I’m quite impressed with the N97’s statistics. 32GB internal memory sets the phone up as a multimedia and download workhorse. The 5 MP camera with Carl Zeiss optics and autofocus takes nice snaps plus Facebook integration and customisable widgets all make the social networking and online experience smooth and easy.
The N97 was mentioned in just about every category of the recent Mobile Choice consumer awards. But it didn’t quite win anything. The networks need to cut the price to catapult the N97 into being a real bargain.
Nokia fan? Then snap it up. If you want a specific application to be perfect then hunt elsewhere. If you want a solid contender for just about everything then this one will do the job.
Update! An update and patch has been released via Nokia’s web site to offer a host of improvements and fixes. A mini version of the N97 is also due in Q4 2009 so expect the original to become better value soon.
