Q&A: Battery should see day out
How good is the battery life of this phone? The MeeGo operating system uses energy conservatively, with the result being that the Nokia N9 has a good battery life that will easily last the whole day on a full charge.
What about data storage on the phone? With a camera on the phone that can take photos at a resolution of up to 8 megapixels, this device has to be able to have enough space to store all that data. So, users can get up to 64 gigabytes of space with the built-in storage.
If the phone uses the MeeGo system, what kind of Web browser does it use? It uses a Web browser with HTML5 support, which is the latest standard to offer access to rich Web applications and fast video playback.
The N9 is Nokia's last smartphone to use the company's own software before it switched to Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 system. And the US$650 (Dh2,385) device is an impressive product, from both a hardware and software perspective.
Its minimalist design sports a matte finish, a slightly convex back and no front-facing buttons. Users, therefore, have to rely heavily on its touch-screen capabilities to navigate their way around the phone's settings.
The device's MeeGo 1.2 operating system is a slick interface that lets users easily swipe between screen menus and manipulate even how the icons appear on the screen by dispersing them in different directions with a single touch. Even the icons appear to "float" on the surface of the screen when a user looks at the device from an angle.
A big downside to the MeeGo system, though, is that since it is being phased out Nokia does not have to commit to it anymore ever since it switched to Microsoft's smartphone software.
Nokia has not publicly stated how long it will continue to support the MeeGo system with updates either. So, while you can get popular mobile apps such as Facebook and Twitter using this phone, you may want to consider buying an iPhone, Android or Windows Phone 7 handset for longevity.
Nevertheless, despite question marks about the sustainability of its software, the N9 is still a good product thanks to its technical features.
Its eight megapixel camera, which has autofocus, means the Finnish phone maker is continuing its trend of supporting high-resolution image taking on its phones that started with its N8 range.
Photos taken using the phone can also be viewed on a super Anoled screen, which makes for clear graphics and texting.
Top 5: Smartphone manufacturers
1 Apple
2 Samsung
3 Nokia
4 Research in Motion
5 HTC
Source: IDC Research.
The Quote: We reinvented the home key with a simple gesture: a swipe from the edge of the screen. - Marko Ahtisaari, Nokia's head of design
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