Gadget review

NOKIA’S new N96 may be what multimedia phone lovers have been waiting for all this while. It is packed with such features as video and TV, Music, maps, photos and the internet. The models is quite big. It is wider & bigger than other N series models and comes with a generous 2.8-inch display which translates into better Multimedia viewing and playback.

The big screen makes web browsing easy as a full web page can fit it nicely on the screen. What’s more, despite it’s bigger size, the N96 can sit comfortably in your palm and be handled with one hand, which makes it practical.

One of the best things about the phone’s display is its ability to adjust itself to suit your viewing. For example, the image will stay vertical to the eye mo matter how the phone is held-vertically or horizontally. A forward slide will reveal a T9 numeric keypad while a backward slide will show a small selection of dedicated music player control keys and wide screen mode selection.

Picture quality-wiser, the 16 million colors display proves its worthiness as images display are excellent, with acceptable brightness and contrast even when the phone is used outdoor. 5 Megapixel Carl Zeiss camera lens with dual-LED flash is a plus. You basically can do away with digital cameras with this huge pixel quality.

A major technological advancement that the N96 brings is the built –in digital video broadcasting-handheld TV tuner, which is enables the phone to receive DVB-H broadcast signals for mobile TV channels . Beside having a DVB-H tuner, the N96 ia a step ahead in connectivity. It comes with Wi-Fi signal finder, USB 2.0, Bluetooth.GPRS,3G, EDGE and high speed downlink packet access, making it one of the most connectable devices available today.

For music lovers, the phone is a noteworthy musical box, supporting a number of music formats. We can sort songs by artiste, album, genre or composer. The only grouse with this N96 is its flat keypad, which makes a nit challenging to tap on the keys. We may need dome time to get used to it