I’d like to meet the design team for the Nokia N91
By Stefan Constantinescu on Tuesday, January 2nd, 2007 at 7:32 PM PST In Ideas and rants
To be able to sit down with the men who gave rise to such an awful looking device and have them justify their reasoning would make for a hell of a video. I don’t want to confront them, just let them explain why they made such a weird looking product. I have a short list of Nokia (NYSE: NOK) phones that should’ve never left the prototype stage, and the N91 is right up there.
It is C|Net Austrilia’s biggest let down of 2006, and it is obvious to see why.
Just looking at this keyboard is giving me blisters:
I think its pretty sexy.. not quite 8800 sexy… but close.. around 8850/8890 level of sexiness.. and more sexy than 8910. It’s still debatable where the 7110 fits into the mix..
You do?!
Different folks, different strokes I guess. Personally I find that phone pretty thick and heavy, not to mention ugly.
Well.. I haven’t held it in my hand, so you may well be right about the thick and heavy part… but ugly I can’t agree upon.
But my money is (literally) on the N95. I don’t think its the best looking phone Nokia ever concieved, but the dual slide is cool, and the features can’t be beat for now. I just hope it comes out before I leave for Shanghai in February, or I’ll have to get an N80 for my voip needs.
You can always buy it in Shanghai
I’ve had this phone. Aside from being heavy and a tiny keypad, there were hideous bugs in the firmware that remained even after flashing it. I had to reboot the phone everyday and the internal hard disk would report read errors at times.
I’ve since switched to an N73…sheer heaven!
How do you think the price will compare to the ~$700 USD price I see floating around for an unlocked one here? Do you imagine it will be released around the same time in China?
Rex: It sounds like you got a bad N91.. I can’t imagine that all (or even many) of the current N91s have those kinds of problems, or the press would likely be having a field day with Nokia right now..
Phone prices usually don’t fluctuate around the world, especially since it’s unlocked.
Its a device that either you like the design or you dont. Nokia has probably sold over a million of these by now so its a matter of taste. I like the design, feels good in the hands, has the best music quality not only of any smartphone but even beats (or meets depending on which magazine tested it) IPOD. As for the firmware, there were some bugs with 1.00 sw (even if you reflashed it) but with 2.10 its been fantastic.
Biggest Let down of 2006 – I dont think so.
music
I own a nokia n91 and the last 2 weeks i’m trialling a nokia n93i.Al i have to say is that the N91i’s “flat” keyboard and joystick is much more difficult and annoying to use that the N91’s.
SINCE I BOUGTH THE N91 I CAN DIFFERENCIATE HONEST PEOPLE AND THE ENVY ONES!! ENVY PEOPLE TOLD ME ITS UGLY!! AND I SAID ,SO ARE YOU !!! THE COOL PEOPLE JUST GET A FLASH OF THE N91 AND SAID WOOOOWWWWWWWW THATS AN AWESOME PHONE!!! THE WEIGTH ? I DONT CARE!!! I WAS A MARINE, I ALMOST WALKED ALL AFGHANISTAN WITH A 70 PNDS BACKPACK!!! THE WEIGTH COME FRON ITS ALMOST HUMBEE STUDIRNESS AND ALMOST BULLET PROOF FEEL,NOKIA NEXT ONE ILL WANT IT WITH A KEVLAR HOUSING AND WATER PROOF!!!!!!!
Are you (the author) crazy???
This is the best design I’ve ever seen or felt. I love the general shape and weight, I love the sliding opening and I love those small keys!
And stop expressing here your unlogical opinions because I’m awaiting the newer version soon (N91 32 or so GB) and such useless reviews can only destroy my hope.
I hope Nokia design team which you wish to meet (???!!!) is not reading such subjective reviews.