I’ve spent the last week with a Finnish device that has a heavy burden on the shoulders: to stand up to all E71 lovers’ expectations and perhaps draw in a dozen Nseries fanatics. Usually, the more you expect from a certain a device the less you tend to like if it fails to deliver. Like when the N97 came out, we all thought it was going to be THE Nokia device that will replace all. Unfortunately, the N97 needed and still needs a bit of tweaking and upgrading to live up to that hype. The E72, well, it did not disappoint me. Truth be told, whatever I expected it to be turned out a fact, and though I had been a hardcore E71 user and Eseries lover for the past year, I’m totally convinced the shift to the E72 is justified. It should be made.
I’ll make you a check list and you can decide afterwards: (not in order of preference)
Crucial changes:
- 5 megapixel camera (improved flash + panorama mode + focal length)
- 3.5 mm audio jack and located on top
- 600 MHz processor
- Feature Pack 2 (with all the goodies it brings)
- USB and normal charging
- Improved screen (colors and illumination)
- Improved keyboard and d-pad illumination
- VGA video recording
- Faster data transfer in mass storage mode
- HSUPA and HSDPA up to 10.2 Mbits
- Better browser
- Accelerometer (turning and maybe* tapping controls)
- Magnetometer (built-in compass)
Cool Upgrades:
- 250 MB of internal memory
- Optical Navi Key
- Two additional keys for the keyboard and remapped shortcuts
- Improved battery life
- Less crammed one-touch/soft keys
- Usable front camera
- Native Nokia Messaging app
- 4GB microSD card included
- Usable flashlight
- Better located volume keys
- Cooler-looking USB and microSD ports
- Nice choice of colors
- Active noise cancelation
- FM RDS Radio
All that is still crammed inside the same ultra-slim package we’ve all fallen in love with. So if all the above does not convince you to go for the E72, or at least make the upgrade from the E71, I don’t know what will.
Getting a little picky here, here's what I would have loved to see on the E72:
- OLED screen
- 192 or 256 MB of RAM
- A second speaker (2 speakers at the bottom of the phone, one on each side)
- The low dash or “underscore” _ symbol on a key instead of the symbols menu
- FM Transmitter
Maybe on the E72's successor, Nokia?
Looking back at the N95 – end of 2006, it was the most amazing pocketable gadget of that time, and it kept that title for quite a while. Though the E72 doesn’t bring a breakthrough in technology to the Finnish company's portfolio – the GPS, the 5-meg camera, the microSD card, the accelerometer… were and are still here, the E72 can dominate easily. You see my perspective is that in a world where powerful devices emerge day after day, ones that are capable of taking snaps at 12 megapixels, recording video for hours on gigabytes of internal storage, and processing data at higher speeds; ones that sport several inches of screen, multiple speakers, touch-sensitive displays, sliding/tilting/swiveling/transforming mechanisms; ones that come in funky colors, with cool accessories and all the bells and whistles… (you get the point). In this type of world, it’s always nice to settle for the device that does it all, and does it well. That would be the E72.
It doesn’t take 12-meg pics but takes damn good 5-meg ones. It doesn’t have 64GB of memory, but can be upgraded to a decent 16. It doesn’t have a touchscreen but has an AMAZING full keyboard. It doesn’t have the 1GHz processor or the 256MB of RAM, but still works like a dream. It doesn’t mutate into some other kind of gadget or slides up and down, but has the greatest build quality. Like. Ever. It doesn’t have the world’s best push email service, but hey MfE and Nokia Messaging do a pretty decent job for me. It doesn’t have stereo amplifiers but a single loud and proud speaker… I can go on for hours, but I won’t, because once again you get the picture.
E71 users, if you ask me that single question on your minds right now “should I make the switch?” I say HELL YES.
The infrared port is gone, but if that’s reason enough for you to abstain from buying the E72, well, it’s either you’re nuts, or you have a really old laptop running Windows 95. In both cases, you’re reading the wrong blog buddy.
As for other users, it totally depends on your needs, more on your taste. I can only think of one non-qwerty device that's capable of performing equally well right now, and that's the N86. I was asked on Twitter by a friend to choose between the N97 (my current handset) and the E72. I replied “easy, the N97. I’m a multimedia-oriented user”. Well, a week from that reply, and I already feel like a fool for doubting the E72’s capabilities. I do love huge screens; I like the touch displays; I love a nice big keyboard, colossal memories, widgets, etc. But for some reason, I cannot take my SIM card out of the E72 and put it back where it used to belong. I cannot even switch back to my now-old E71. My E72 comes in a much smaller package, yet seems to do everything that the N97 does. Sometimes even better. Let's not go into details here but just think... Generally speaking, this is quite true.
When all is said and done, the E72 remains true to the Eseries saga, more accurately to the saga that the E71 has created. Not the E70 or the E75. The E71. Worth the upgrade? Yes. Worth the money? Definitely. Two thumbs up for it, and all the star ratings that you want.
So my final question to you Nokia is: how will you improve the E72 next year? Go ahead, impress me.
This concludes my thorough review of the E72. It’s been almost a week only, so there’s much room for further testing. That’s why, below, you’ll find the REQUESTS section in which I will try to answer all the questions that have been posted as comments. Also, any aspect of the phone that hasn’t been fully tested within the review will be mentioned hereunder. In case your question hasn’t been answered yet, please be patient; it will be, as I am going through the comments one at a time by date preference. This section will be left open for future request so keep coming back to get updated and please post your recent questions on this page. Thank you!
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