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(More customer reviews)This is Nokia N78 North American version as sold by Amazon. It can run on the 3G frequencies of AT&T. It is brown back cover and black in front. I know in other markets you can get other back colors like blue, but North American version only has the brown back cover.
The phone looks really cool. It is all black, cant see any keys when it is not lighted. When phone is lighted, you can see the keys and number keys due to backlighting. The number keys are flush on just four horizontal lines. I did not find any problems pressing the particular number keys.
The box advertises 3 months of free voice guided navigation, but inside there is no license code. I contacted Nokia over email and they asked me to call them. Now I dont really need voice guided navigation so I am going to save the hassle of calling customer service, but just to let you know, you shall have to call them to get it. I have googled and this is a widespread problem in other asian markets too, seems like a goof up on their packaging side. Apart from that, of course the Nokia Maps application is free. But even better is the Google Maps free application.
The voice quality is good, volume is a bit low, but I am bit old fashioned in those regards, these days all phones have this kind of volume. The surfing speeds are great, especially with WiFi. 3G on AT&T is fast too. You dont need to configure anything, just put in a AT&T SIM card and it auto configures all it needs for voice, sms, mms, internet. Pretty cool.
This is the only phone I have ever seen where I was blown off by the firmware upgrade process. Most phones ask you to connect the phone with a cable to a kludgy application on the PC, and after lot of headache, half of the time you are able to connect. For N78, the manual says the same, but inside the phone is a FOTA (Firmware over the Air) app provided by Nokia, I used it over AT&T 3G, and it downloaded the latest firmware from Nokia server, upgraded, rebooted and ready to go in like 5 minutes. Really really impressive.
The phone has it all, GPS, Wi-Fi, suports SIP profiles for Voip (you can use Fring), you can use the phone as wireless accesspoint using JoikuSpot, bluetooth latest profiles are supported including Remote Sim mode (an external device can use the SIM inside your phone via bluetooth, howz that for a modern car interface), text to speech for reading messages, man the list goes on and on.
You dont need to record voice tags for Contacts, whenever you enter a contact, the software automatically renders a voice rendition for the name, and then for calling, you just say the name, and it finds the right one like 95 out of 100 times, even though I have a indian ascent. Same way when some one calls you, the phone can say the name aloud, like john doe calling.
The camera is 3.2 MP and I am fine with it, I am not big fan of huge MP cameras in general. It does fairly good job of taking photos and videos. You can pause and continue videos which means you can make a big video in small parts. You have all the usual stuff of mode settings for camera, auto focus, flash. Dont expect this camera to be the only one to use, expect it to be a side camera, not your main camera. You can share directly to Ovi, Flickr or Vox. I have tried Ovi and Flickr, and Ovi seems to be bit buggy, hopefully will improve over time.
The OS itself is cool, does job pretty well, has some minor bugs, but those can always be repaired by Nokia via firmware update. This one has latest feature pack 2, which is more eye candy basically.
The phone does not have a accelerometer, which means it will not change screen orientation automatically when you tilt the phone around, and you cannot play accelerometer based games. Not a big deal for me. The new model N79 has it, but its priced higher.
Instead of using Nokia browser which is good too, go for Opera Mini and you will be absolutely stunned. Very fast, great rendering, you can see any web page just normally like you would on PC (ie you have option to say that hey website, don't treat me as phone, give me what you would normally give), and its quite usable. There is also a beta version browser called Skyfire which even showed me Flash!
For the price (around 300) right now, I think its smart decision. And yea, it comes with cool headset and data cable. Only thing missing from box is car charger which anyway doesn't come with any phone.
I waited for 2 years for the iPhone 3g and finally I bought the Nokia N78 instead, and I am not regretting my decision. I don't want to be slave of AT&T and Apple, instead with Nokia I am master of my device.
I am really impressed. Go get it for this price at amazon.
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Nokia N78 Unlocked Phone with 3.2 MP Camera, 3G, Wi-Fi, GPS, MP3/Video Player, and MicroSD Slot--U.S. Version with Warranty (Black)The Nokia N78 multimedia smartphone combines music, navigation and photography with the benefits of mobility. It's designed to take advantage of the new suite of Nokia services, including the Nokia Music Store, Nokia Maps, and Share on Ovi--a new online service that enables consumers to share their personal media. This unlocked quad-band GSM phone also offers 3G connectivity compatible with U.S. HSDPA networks, as well as Wi-Fi networking so you can connect to open hotspot networks while on the go. Other features include a 3.2 megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss optics, Bluetooth stereo music streaming, MicroSD memory expansion to 8 GB, assisted GPS for navigation and location tagging for images (dependent on wireless network), digital audio player, FM radio, and up to 4.3 hours of talk time (GSM)
This unlocked cell phone can be used with a GSM network service provider and it provides quad-band connectivity (850 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 1900 MHz). This phone also operates on 850/1900 MHz HSDPA 3G networks found in the United States (operated by AT&T). It does not come with a SIM card, and it requires that you provide a SIM card for usage with your selected service provider. This phone comes with a one-year warranty from a third party provider.
Phone Features The candybar-style Nokia N78 has a large 2.4-inch screen with a 240 x 320-pixel resolution and support for 16 million colors--perfect for enjoying the rich color depth from images captured from the 3.2-megapixel camera. The screen also provides a wide 160-degree viewing angle and an ambient light detector to optimize display brightness and power consumption. It offers up to 70 MB of user accessible internal memory, and it can be expanded via optional MicroSD memory cards (up to 8 GB in size). The N78 runs the S60 third edition user interface.
The digital audio player is compatible with MP3, AAC/AAC+/eAAC+, and WMA formats, and supports playlists, album art, and equalizer settings. You can synchronize your favorite tunes using Windows Media Player 10 or 11, or convert and transfer music using the Nokia Music Manager software. You can also listen to your favorite radio programs via the integrated FM radio, and the Visual Radio feature lets you see information about songs or artists.
The 3.2-megapixel camera can capture still images up to 2048 x 1536 pixels (as well as several smaller resolution settings), and it includes also includes a secondary CIF camera (352 x 288 pixels) on the front of the phone for video calls (requires network compatibility). The main camera features a 20x digital zoom, autofocus, LED flash, white balance controls, several scene choices, and color effects. The camera can also capture video in MPEG4 format up to VGA resolution (640 x 480 pixels) at 15 frames per second (fps). When in video mode, the camera has an 8x digital zoom and several white balance and color effect modes. You can capture up to 60 minutes of video to be stored on an optional MicroSD memory card.
Carl Zeiss, a world leader in high quality camera lenses, brings an award-winning legacy to the Nokia N78 with state-of-the-art optics for mobile photography and mobile video. The Zeiss name has been associated with cameras from Hasselblad, Rollei, Yashica, Sony, and Nikon.
Taking advantage of its integrated A-GPS functionality and 3.2 megapixel camera, the Nokia N78 introduces the increasingly popular online practice of 'geotagging' to a Nokia device. The Nokia N78 automatically tags images with capture location metadata, making it possible to view the capture location on a map either on the device itself, or online. With its high-speed internet connectivity, over WLAN or HSDPA, uploading photos and videos to online communities like Share on Ovi, Flickr or YouTube is a single key stroke away.
This smartphone has an integrated Wi-Fi LAN (802.11b/g), enabling seamless connectivity with wireless networks at work, at home, and on the roam via Wi-Fi hotspots at airports and coffee shops. Because the N81 is Bluetooth enabled (with version 2.0 + EDR), wireless communication headsets can be configured with the phone for total hands-free operation. It also offers Bluetooth stereo audio support (A2DP), enabling you to enjoy your music without any wires. If your laptop is Bluetooth enabled, you can connect wirelessly and enjoy dial-up networking (DUN)--surf the Internet, send email, and access files from a server.
The N78 has all the bases covered when it comes to messaging. Support is built in for sending and receiving text, video, graphics and sound via messages. It also enables you to check your email on the go (supporting POP3, IMAP4, and SMTP protocols). T9 text entry, which is a technology that makes it easier for people to enter words and text on handsets, is built into the unit--a plus for mobile text messaging users.
View web pages as they were originally intended with the integrated Nokia Web Browser, which enables you to zoom out to a full screen view of the entire page using the Mini Map feature. Find the section you want and then zoom in to the content you need. The text instantly adjusts to the size of your screen. The browser also keeps a history of your browsing so you can quickly get back to where you started.
Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) technology means that this Nokia phone will discover, interact with, and control other compatible home electronic devices. This includes PCs, media centers, home entertainment systems, new smart appliances, home automation systems, networked peripherals, and Web-based services. With compatible equipment, you can stream video from your Nokia device directly to your TV, or hear music tracks stored on your PC through your living room's sound system.Other features include:
Integrated Assisted Global Positioning System (A-GPS) with Nokia Maps application for downloadable maps
Call logs, speed dial, voice dialing, voice commands, and talking ringtone
Dual Mode WCDMA 850/1900 (HSDPA) with simultaneous voice and packet data
Nokia XpressShare: share easily from Photos application or after capture via email, by using Bluetooth connectivity or MMS.
Nokia XpressPrint: online printing service or direct printing via USB, Bluetooth connectivity (BPP), WLAN (UPnP), from compatible memory card
Web feeds support (RSS)
Advanced S60 PIM features including contacts, calendar, to-do list, notes, recorder, calculator, clock, converter
Quickoffice supports viewing of common e-mail attachments and Adobe PDF Reader
USB 2.0 high-speed through micro USB connector
3.5mm Nokia AV connector
Nokia Nseries PC Suite connectivity with USB, and Bluetooth wireless technology (requires compatible computer, PC suite is available free)
Full-screen video playback to view downloaded, streamed or recorded video clips (MPEG-4, H.264/AVC, H.263/3GPP, RealVideo 8/9/10, Flash 3.0)
Vital Statistics The Nokia N78 weighs 3.59 ounces and measures 4.45 x 1.93 x 0.59 inches. Its 1200 mAh lithium-ion battery is rated at up to 4.3 hours of talk time on GSM networks, up to 3 hours of talk time on 3G networks, and up to 320 hours (13+ days) of digital standby time. It runs on the 850/900/1800/1900 GSM/GPRS/EDGE frequencies and U.S. HSDPA 3G frequencies (850/1900 MHz).
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