Nokia N82 Review - Introduction

Nokia’s N82 has received multiple awards for being the best camera phone available today on the global market.  While the LG Viewty might have something to say about that, the N82 is certainly amongst the top two or three, anyway.  Packing a 5MP Carl Zeiss lens backed by a true Xenon flash, sliding lens cover, and VGA (640 x 480) video capture at a full 30 fps with stereo audio, this latest N-Series handset is a true imaging powerhouse.  The N82 even bests Nokia’s flagship N95 by packing a more powerful Xenon flash instead of the latter’s LED photo light.



When I bought my N82 I did so for its camera.  I’d gotten tired of iPhone’s lackluster 2MP shooter that’s basically useless in the dark and decided to look for a great camera first, and other features second, in a replacement.  My search quickly narrowed down to the N82, Sony Ericsson K850i, and LG Viewty.  The N82 won out thanks to its integrated WiFi and 3.5mm headphone jack; Viewty’s a decidedly non-US model and lacks even EDGE data (it works on 3G overseas), and while I was put off a bit by some bad press the K850 had received, I was soon delighted by my SE rep getting me a review loaner.  So look for a separate review the K850i soon.

I picked up an N82, popped my T-Mobile SIM card into it, and spent some time customizing the theme and wallpaper, loading up a microSD card with some music to use on the phone, and tweaking my Mac to sync contacts and calendar information with it.  For about three weeks I left the iPhone behind and carried the N82 daily.  During that time I also got half a dozen or so new handsets to test in the post-CTIA deluge.  Point being that even though I’d set out to find the best camera phone around, it became impossible to ignore the other aspects of the N82: namely, style, usability, and fun.

The N82 lists for over $550, so my expectations for it ran quite high.  How’d it fare?  In a nutshell, the phone’s imaging capabilities were everything I could have hoped for, if not more, and the S60 platform makes this Nokia a true smartphone.  But actually carrying and using the N82 left me a little cold. 

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