Nokia N97 on the way

Nokia recently announced the N97, which is the latest in a long line of business phones from the Finns. The most notable thing about the handset is the great touch screen (which Nokia finally appear to have "got right") and the raft of features that put the handset up there with most mobile internet PCs like the Eee and its raft of imitators.

Nokia Maps has had an upgrade. This was perhaps inevitable, for two reasons. Firstly, people love the GPS functionality. Personally, I use Nokia maps regularly, especially when stumbling around a big city like London, or when sitting on a train and curious. The second reason for stronger GPS functionality on phones is probably more significant.

Location based mobile marketing is being touted as the "next big thing" in advertising/marketing - just ask NMA magazine (not to be confused with the rather less rock 'n roll NME). It has, of course, been touted as such for about five years but the technology is finally reaching a point where people are regularly consulting their handsets for directions. "Wow" say the marketers, "if people are looking for directions, what better time could there be to shove advertising down their throats? GO TO CAFE NERO. GO TO CAFE NERO". This is, of course, a dramatisation, but the techology is becoming more and more popular and mobile marketers are pushing clients hard to go down this route.

Back to the handset. Good camera (same as the N95), good keyboard (nicely spaced), useful tilty screen (to help with glare), good MP3 and video compatibility and 32gb of internal memory make this an attractive proposition. The digital compass is a nice touch too.

All in all, another strong offering from Nokia.

Merry Christmas!

New Sony Ericsson handsets

Sony Ericsson has recently revealed a raft of new handsets which are causing something of a stir.

The K530i is my personal favourite.


Looking remarkably similar to the K510, this is a lightweight 3G phone with a QVGA display, 2 megapixel camera and expandable memory. It is the first Sony Ericsson handset to work with the HGE-100 GPS Enabler, which is an exciting development.

As you have probably gathered, I am a big fan of 3G technology and firmly believe that the public should be more aware of its usefulness. Tied in with the GPS enabler, phones like the K530i are nudging us towards locally targetted mobile internet services, which is where we will see the next great breakthrough in mobile technology.

Another new handset revealed by Sony Ericsson is the impressive W960i.


A walkman phone, the W960i has 8GB of memory and features a touch-screen display which is sure to set hearts racing. Another model aimed at crossing the boundaries between electronic devices, this handset offers TV quality video playback and a 3.2 megapixel camera to boot.

This is a straight upgrade to the W950i and is surprisingly feature laden, while not compromising on style.

Nokia E90

I've always admired the Nokia Communicator series from afar, waiting for the right time to switch up to the beasts. As I see it, there are two necessary requirements for owning one of these phones. Firstly, you have some need to check your emails on the go - maybe you travel away from your computer a lot - and secondly you need to wear a suit for work. For some reason these phones just seem perfect to fit into a suit pocket.

Sadly it doesn't seem as though I will be fitting either of these criteria in the near future. The umbilical link between myself and my laptop shows no sign of being severed any time soon and I work in shorts and a tee-shirt. Woo hoo! The joys of working at home.

The latest installment - the E90 - is one of the most advanced, feature-packed mobile phones ever released. Interestingly, the phone uses a Symbian S60 operating system as opposed to the S80 used on the 9500 and 9300. This may seem like an unusual step, but S60 offers E90 users access to a much wider range of applications. A quick straw poll suggests that S60 is every bit as easy to use as the newer system and ultimately more flexible. Good work Nokia.

This is a business phone. Smart features include onboard GPS and a high-resolution screen. The system can handle PDF files and read documents in Microsoft office. Unlike the previous generation of Communicator, the E90 comes fully-loaded with 3G, which can only be good news.

Features which you may be surprised to find on this phone include an FM radio and 3.2 Megpixel camera. Many businesses do not like to have cameras onboard business phones (however employees generally love them). I imagine the phone is there for those long, dull train journeys from London Euston to the Midlands to meet clients. Hmm... maybe that's fair enough.