We were gutted when we discovered the US was to receive the N97 first, as we'd not have any exclusives. Anyway after some brain storming we decided it would be useful if we truly put the Nokia N97 through it's paces with a number of stress tests.
Test 1: Screen scratch test. We used the stylus, a coin and a key to test just how scratch resistant the screen on the Nokia N97 is. The result? Hardly a mark on the screen. I really don't think you'd need a screen protector. Though I guess it always adds an extra layer of protection.
Test 2: Pocket test. We placed the phone in a bag, along with coins and keys to see what damage could be done if you accidentally put the phone in your pocket with other stuff. Once again the N97 come out unscathed. Top marks so far.
Test 3: Paintwork scratch test. This time we tested how easily the paint work scuffed and scratched. Overall I we were pretty impressed with how well the paint work held up. The most fragile paintwork was on the rim of the keypad where the paint flaked off pretty easily, though generally this part of the phone will be protected by the keypad
Test 4: Cereal test: So just what happens if you drop your N97 in a bowl of cereal? Well it gets wet obviously. The phone is still fully functioning at this point, minus the menu key.
Test 5: Wash test: If you happen to drop your N97 in a bowl of cornflakes, you're gonna need to wash it off right? Well no, not exactly, but for testing purposes we did. As you'll see in the video, washing with soap and water put the N97 out of action for roughly 2.5 hours, but minus some condensation on the screen, it's now fully functioning and ready for tomorrows tests!
P.S please feel free to post suggestions for other stress tests you'd like to see, we'll fulfill as many as we can.
It really surprised me just how difficult the Nokia N97 back cover was to remove, almost as difficult as the iPhone and that's not meant to come off!. When I first took the N97 out of the box and had to remove the back cover, I was quite concerned the cover was going to snap in two, so it took me about 5 minutes to get it off.
In the end I used my nail in the groove in the back cover, held my breath and give it a good firm yank. And ta-da the cover was off.
Anyway, because of the difficulty we had, we've made this quick demo to help those of you still struggling with the cover and hopefully lay any concerns to rest, it really is quite durable and I'm pretty sure you won't break it, if you follow the instructions in the video.
Last night we were so excited about the launch of the N97, we decided not to go to bed and head in to London at 5am. It's the first time I've been up and out at 5am since.. well perhaps ever! but the excitement was enough to keep us awake.
We arrived at the Nokia flagship store at about 6am and surprisingly there was no queue. I guess my experience with the iPhone launches had me expecting people camping outside, which we almost did btw.
However across the road at the Apple store, which is directly opposite the Nokia store was a different story. There was a strong queue forming even at 6am. By 7am the queue for the iPhone was close to the end of the road while Kenny and I were still the only 2 in line. We felt a little out numbered but we held the fort
Apples doors opened at 7am, letting the first batch inside while we sat across the road freezing our b... butts off. While we were stood inline T3.com popped over and talked me in to giving a short video interview on why I was choosing the N97 over the iPhone. It was nerve racking to say the least but they were really nice. Shortly after another couple of guys popped over and asked if I'd be willing to give a short interview, only this time the video camera was huge and they were from Channel 4!
Anyway Nokia finally opened their doors at 9am for us bloggers to let us have a play with the new handsets Nokia N97 and Nokia N86. I'll quickly mention that the N86 takes an absolutely incredible picture. When inside we met Rafe from Allaboutsymbian, Carl from Nokiapp, Robert from Nokiausers and Emkwan from the Emkwanproject who were all really nice.
Nokia offered us the chance to buy the N97 before the store officially opened to the public and of course we'd already pre-ordered ours, so we went ahead and purchased the very first UK retail Nokia N97. It's our claim to fame.
The fun didn't end their, Adam from the Nokia store had arranged some extra goodies for us including a Nokia Pen, notebook, Candy, Lanyard and some other cool Nokia memorabilia. He then took us upstairs in to Nokia's conference room where they have THE biggest TV I've ever seen, I believe it's 103", it was incredible to say the least. It accompanied by a spread of snacks and drinks. I guess the main purpose of the exercise was to help build stronger relationships between Nokia and it's bloggers as well as a chance for us bloggers to put faces to names. It was a really nice touch and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and were thankful to be part of it, thanks to everybody we met and of course Adam for making us welcome.
You may remember a post I made last month, which discussed the lack of stylus bundled with the UK model. The official Nokia N97 pre-order page doesn't mention a stylus and a Nokia rep reinforced this at a conference, where Nokia claimed the UK version won't come with a stylus.
I went in to Nokia's flagship store in Regent Street yesterday to pre-order my white N97. There were a few demo models flying around the store, all of which had a stylus attached to the bottom of the handset. I spoke with one of the reps and asked why the demo models have a stylus but the retail version doesn't. He told me all of the N97's come packed with a stylus.
I rang Regent street today, twice, and asked whether the N97 comes with a stylus in the box, both reps were adamant that it does. One rep said he had seen inside the boxes and they definitely DO come with a stylus. I find it bizarre that the official Nokia website doesn't list it under box contents.
One of our forum users Stardustuk7 posted this ad of the Nokia N97 "Don't call it a comeback" featuring a tune from American rapper LL Cool J.
I'm not sure it's my favorite Nokia advert in the world but it has a certain appeal and it's bound to appeal to teens as well as fans of the Rap genre. The ad features the Facebook app, though not the home screen widget, which surprised me.
I don't know whether this is ever going to be aired on TV or whether it's just promotional material for Youtube. Either way, the more exposure the N97 gets the better.
When I went to the Nokia event in London a couple of weeks ago, we were shown a storyboard of their main ad campaign, I'm really looking forward to seeing it aired on TV. It will be interesting to see how Nokia turned the story board in to a finished ad.
