September 22, 2009

Nokia E72 Full Review - The Verdict (Updated 15/12/09)

at 10:40 PM

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!


REQUESTS
(updated regularly)

1. I would like you to test the browsing speeds, and see if the browser renders the website faster than the E71 or is it the same. - It renders it slightly faster.

Check the adobe flash version if it's the updated version. - It's still the same 3.0 version but I expect a FW update to introduce the 3.1 version.

Try to open many apps at the same time and see how much it can manage simultaneously. I've tried opening 24 applications and RAM was down to 5MB or so. It does pretty good although at start-up it didn't have as much free RAM as Nokia claims it should or as much as the E71 has.

Does it have the same procedures to connect to a local wireless network or somehow better now? Feature Pack 2 allows you to organize access points and prioritize them. Also, it can allow you to add different access points and divide them by destinations (Internet, Multimedia, WAP...) so it's pretty handy because you can then choose the default connection to be, say, "Internet" and the device will automatically detect which access points should be used.

Does email still show text or HTML is now implemented? Email shows text by default and you get a "show HTML" option in every message you open. Freedom of choice ! :) check below image.


2. Does geotagging pictures work with the E72 prototype? How does the feature work? NO, looks like it's not there in this proto. It's a shame if it's not native, but since I'm not sure about it, I did not add it to any of the above lists of improvements.

3. How about dust under the screen? Nothing appears to have lurked under my screen so far.

4. Can you do a test with a high bit/frame video and see if there are any lags? I’ve tried playing 640, 715, 925Kbps, 1.2, and 1.5Mbps videos on it with no significant lag. You’re all good to go.

5. Is there an option to remove the "big clock" from the home screen
?
- Anyway to hide the big clock in the home screen? I saw early pictures of the E72 where the home screen is like the E71x one without clock.

Yes there is, however it’s not like we’ve seen it in early photos. The clock can only be removed if using either of the two non-active standby screens. The first is the BASIC screen which shows no shortcuts, only soft keys and you can assign your d-pad to do the work for you (left does something, up does something else…)so the clock is gone there. The second is the TALKING THEME where you have no clock but shortcuts with TTS (text to speech) meaning the phone will read out lout anything you have selected. Those are the only two options to remove the big clock in my phone. Please check the screenshots below for a better understanding of things. It would be nice, however, to be able to remove that clock from the Active Standby mode. Maybe an option that can be toggled in upcoming firmware?


6. I was wondering if you could show a pdf file on the E72, so I can see how it looks. I'm planning on buying the E72 when it comes out but I'm curious how such a pdf file looks on the E72 screen. Voila!

7. Could u please test the email functionality of E72? Specifically does it support HTML emails and seamless attachment download and viewing??
- My question is about the performance of the Gmail tool. Does it work or should you go with the Nokia standard e-mail app?
The Nokia Messaging app is the same as the one on the E75. It works very well once it is set up correctly. Currently, I cannot set multiple inboxes simply because the phone is not supported. I cannot even update my FW because the phone is not supported either. My Gmail worked great on it, but nothing else seems to work. I’m not even getting an error like it sometimes happens with NM. I set up my mailbox but it never appears. The only thing that worked was Gmail. It supports HTML and seamless attachment download, I’m sure, check the pictures for that. Back when I had the E75 on test, I had 7 inboxes set up on it and it was working flawlessly (Ovi, Gmail, Hotmail x2, Yahoo, GMX x2).



8.How about posting some full-size camera photos, including night shots?
Here you go, let me know if you need more. (night, inside, dusk, closeup, outside)






9.Performance/stability when using full card/ram encryption. The new CPU might help with this. Well the phone memory encryption went smoothly, about 1 full minute to encrypt all the data on the phone; however the card encryption was pretty weird. While on the E71 an 8GB card took my 1 hour and 40 minutes to encrypt and almost the same time to undo that, the E72 did that in a flash, which I think means it did not encrypt/decrypt. Once I chose to encrypt the card, I was prompted to enter a passphrase. I did. Then to enter the key name and I did. And suddenly card encryption was “on”. That’s it, no waiting. I believe it was improved but not that greatly. So I’m guessing it’s a firmware bug, because the card doesn’t seem encrypted when used elsewhere. Note that encrypting the phone memory took almost the same time on both phones meaning it’s not vastly improved.

-GPS performance. It’s better than the E71’s, but wait for my article, I will elaborate more.

-Magnetometer performance (is there a built-in simple compass tool?) No there isn’t (a tool or an app); or at least my device doesn’t have that. You can check the compass once you have a lock on the satellites. I’m uploading a pic for you to check. But it’s accurate enough when navigating. More on that is coming up, the article is ready; unfortunately all my screenshots got wiped out/disappeared for no reason. I will have to take the necessary screenshots once again; I’m talking 30+ pictures. Hopefully I can do that tomorrow after work.




-Some more comments about the optical navikey? Is it useful? Like I said in the browsing part, you only find it useful within the browser, sometimes maybe the gallery if you have too many photos. Around the menu it gives you a headache because you can never aim and hit, you’ll always end up clicking another icon… I’ll be working on a video showing how it can be used with the browser.

-Overall firmware stability? Any crashes or problems like the E52 is having? So far, no crashes whatsoever, but I wouldn’t say it’s final. Maybe the commercial version of the device will occasionally crash, but that’s extremely unlikely. The proto I have hasn't restarted once yet.

10. Did Nokia fix the "Light Leak" where white light would be visible around the D-pad area when in a dark room? Everyone always brags about the E71 build quality, but that light leak still bugs me on my E71. You can slide the whole QWERTY keyboard to "fix" it, but it slides right back. There is a light leak, however a very small one. The keyboard is rock solid; you cannot slide it. The leak is not visible unless you are holding the phone at a certain angle and only over the two soft-keys, unlike the E71 where you could slide down the keyboard and view an entire "line" of leaking light. Correct me if I'm wrong, but that's what happens with my E71 now. Anyway, attached is a pic showing the leak we're talking about.



And by the way, check out this picture below, I think the volume keys look way better now when they are lit.


11. Navigation:
As you might have all noticed, the majority of the requests had something to do with GPS and navigation, so I’ve tried my best to carry out some tests in order to see how the E72 behaves when used as a GPS unit. There are, however, a couple of things you should keep in mind:
- What I always repeat in all my reviews: the unit I have is a prototype and sometimes it behaves awkwardly. Both hardware and software on this device might not be final, so I will be waiting for a retail package to be able to judge it.
- My country – Lebanon – does not have detailed maps from Nokia, yet. I hope we get them sometime soon so I cannot tell you how Nokia Maps behaves when turn-by-turn voice guidance is activated or Walk option is turned on. You have to bear with me until we get a decent set of maps.

Navigating with the E71 was never a hard task for me. Although I’ve read and heard complaints about how hard it was for the E71 to get a lock on the GPS satellites, I’ve tried it both in Europe and the rest of the Middle East (by rest I mean excluding my own country) and it never took more than 4 minutes to lock. I understand that’s a long time to wait but 4 minutes was the worst case while I had some good times like a minute or two in the UK. I’ve tried Garmin and Nokia Maps on it and they both worked fine.

On to the E72; The experience is a bit weird but I relate it to the fact that what I’m using is nothing but an early handset, one which has been over half the globe and through rough testing before it got into my hands. I’m saying that because while at times the E72’s behavior was amazing, at other times it failed to connect, trailing behind the E71 which showed great results.

I’ve been carrying out some tests for the past week and came to realize the following:

- At a given spot, when the E72 WANTS to act normal and connect, it does it in less than a minute, which amazed me.
- The magnetometer works great, as per the shots below, and takes between zero to 4 seconds to shift from one direction to another depending on your status: if you’re standing still and messing around with the phone, it will not detect your moves that quickly. But when driving and you make a turn, the switch is almost immediate.
- I don’t have detailed maps but I do get the positioning, the trip distance, the speed and everything else. And I do get the country’s name (thankfully) so it’s not that bad after all. So it locks and shows me my position on the map but no details around me whatsoever. Just barren land and a blinking red dot.
- When the E72 refuses to connect – for some reason which I ignore – the E71 succeeds after a while, leaving the E72 with the message “GPS works poorly indoor and in closed areas”
- While in “Satellite Status” mode, you can choose to change the view and visualize the satellites as squares on a radar-like map instead of the usual displayed bars.
- You can turn off the compass.
- I never used any Internet connection to aid the phone when trying to get a lock.
- While inside the car, it took almost double the time to lock (compared to when walking outside), which was roughly around 2 minutes.

Overall it was not a bad experience, but I believe the sensitivity can be much improved, just like it’s promised to happen with the N97 in the upcoming FW. Another weird thing was the Garmin XT was never able to get a lock; the signal was always too weak even when I was navigating on foot. It would have been great for me to able to get a lock with Garmin since I have the maps installed, but even though I had linked it to the internal GPS, it always failed to lock onto more than 3 satellites.

As a short conclusion, I cannot assume that navigation will be way better than the E71, but I cannot deny the improvement. When the E72 worked normally, it was great, and yes, better than the E71. But when it didn’t, it made me realize that nothing had changed, and that this aspect of the phone hasn’t been taken to the next level. Only time can tell. Hopefully, the next test I carry out will be on a retail unit with the final hardware/software.



12. I'm grateful if you could show me the photos about the difference of main contacts list in between E71 and E72.
Sure. Notice that the E71 (on the left) shows an icon next to each contact (whether it's a mobile number, normal landline number, fax, etc) but the E72 doesn't, even if you set those as "defaults" from within the settings menu. Hopefully it will be fixed, i used to love that feature although some find it to be a bit silly.


13. To answer all questions related to email (especially in comparison to BB services), Nokia Messaging and MfE (Mail for Exchange), here’s a brief piece:
- Nokia Messaging is native, meaning you won’t have to install anything out of the box.
- You will not find Mail for Exchange in a separate folder or as a separate application anymore since it is merged with NM (Nokia Messaging); you can choose how to set up your inbox at the start by selecting MfE or POP/IMAP or Lotus Notes (Traveler).



My phone is right now charging itself without being plugged into the mains. I swear. Let’s go on.
Once you've established a connection, entered your email address and password, and things are up and running, you can go through the following:

Within the global email settings, you can choose preferences such as previewing body texts, the emails list layout, notifications on screen (header, pop ups, unread mail) title dividers, etc.

Inside the settings menu of a particular mailbox, you can set a reply-to address, signature (something like: sent from NM on my E72), what to retrieve, additional folder subscriptions (like say in Gmail where you have set up some labels), and finally “when” to sync. Here you can choose to do that all days or simply work days, or maybe no day at all. You can also choose connection hours, meaning auto-sync would be disabled outside the brackets which you set. As for the update frequency, you can set it to update every 5, 10, 15, 30 minutes, or every 1, 4, 12 hours, 1 day, after notification or Manual where you would have access the application and choose to sync.



If you ask me, this works quite well and it ALMOST seems like it’s push email once set to update every 5 minutes.

As for Mail for Exchange, well that’s pure push email but you have to have a corporate address (Microsoft Exchange account) mainly associated with the company you work for. You can also sync calendar and contacts and tasks with this application as long as all settings have been entered correctly. And that's done immediately, real-time, no bull. Now that Gmail supports push email, I recommend redirecting your email accounts to your Google Account and setting it up with MfE (by defining the server address as m.google.com) and then you can have all your emails from all you accounts pushed to one application on your phone.

BlackBerry Enterprise Service and BlackBerry Internet Service have been there for quite a while and they work great, one has to admit. But you’re bound to using only a BB device, not more. With NM, you can use any Nokia device you like (at least the ones that support it) and make sure you’re getting your email on your homescreen whenever you need to be.

The reason why I had previously mentioned in this post that the E72 “doesn’t have the world’s best push email service” is because NM was and is still suffering a bit in certain countries and on certain handsets because it's still on trial, while BES and BIS are solid. Maybe one day, and hopefully soon, we can say the same about Nokia Messaging, because honestly, it works flawlessly on my E71. However, on the E72, I was never able to set up more than 1 mailbox: Gmail.


I hope this was helpful. Please keep sending in your requests, I will try to answer them all. Meanwhile, it’s time for me to move on to other handsets. I’ll be keeping an eye on this post and my emails of course in order to help you with your inquiries.


14. Could you possibly post an image of a newspaper clipping? Possibly one whole page of a tabloid and another of half the paper.
Here-below are images of a page from Wired Magazine. I haven't resized or done anything to them so you can check the quality. Let me know if you need more snaps.





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202 comments:

  1. Anyway to hide the big clock in the home screen? I saw early pictures of the E72 (like this http://phonearea.net/files/2009/06/nokia_e72-img_3347-470x392.jpg) where the home screen is like the E71x one without clock. Thanks.
    ReplyDelete
  2. Yes, but not in Active Standby Mode. I'll upload pictures to this page shortly showing you how it looks.
    ReplyDelete
  3. Thanks for the great job you did! :)
    It would be nice to see the telefno also a nice video review! :):)

    One thing that is particularly close to my heart that I ask you ...
    E72 as construction quality is really good as E71?? Or do you think that the materials used in this model soon leave space noises, creaking and sagging different?

    Thanks
    ReplyDelete
  4. I would like to hear more in the next review, regarding GPS positioning, maps speed, autoroute speed and so on. Please treat Nokia Maps or whatever you have installed (I preffer Garmin, a cracked version), it would be nice to see more about this part.

    Try to say something about authonomy and also, about the inside sensors. I would like to hear more about how you calibrate them, activate/deactivate and how they are used by phone (rotation of UI, rotation of maps and so on).

    I would like mandatory to hear something about 3rd party application installed, in order to make geotagging with your device. I'm taking photos all the time with me and I would like to have them imported somewhere in Flickr or Google Maps, to have them exactly as GPS coordinates inside the .jpg file.

    What can you tell me about my suggestions? What do you think?

    Andrei
    ReplyDelete
  5. It will definitly be my next phone. Next steps would be a better screen and revamped OS in my opinion. Overall, one of the best review I've read, thanks!
    ReplyDelete
  6. More updates on the GPS please. The E series arent meant to for navigation purposes, but that doesnt mean that Nokia puts a crappy GPS chipset and call the phone GPS enabled. The E71 that i have takes upto 10 mins to lock on, even when i am outdoors.

    Has this improved in E72? Would appreciate some comments on the digital compass too - i think its a cool upgrade!
    ReplyDelete
  7. I understand that GPS matters for most so I will update you all on it. I'm getting there, just going through the previous comments on earlier posts and answering them one by one :)
    ReplyDelete
  8. Thanks Ant1 - will wait for the GPS reviews.

    Great review man, greatly appreciate it - let those awesome reviews keep coming.
    ReplyDelete
  9. Hello!

    Thanks for a great review.

    I read in your part 1 you talked about the colour (topaz brown) is it a good colour for this phone - because I'm a bit hesitant to buy the E72 in brown if it's too bright like the silver one - so you can't see the letters when you are outside...

    And would you say it takes much time to go from a "normal phone" to one with a full keyboard like the E72 has...?
    ReplyDelete
  10. Hey there, well to tell you the truth, the Topaz Brown color is dead stylish! I love it. Never thought I'd go for such a color but now I'm convinced. On the other hand, both the silver and brown colors (I've had the silver E52 for a month) are tricky when it gets bright, you can barely see the keys. It's not a problem for me as I can type without even looking at the keyboard - I'm a hardcore E71 user. But for you it might be tricky during the first week. Switching from a normal phone (the N82) to the E71 last year took me around 5 days of moderate typing to get used to. It won't be a big deal and you'll love it. If you want to stand out of the crowd, go for the Topaz Brown, it's OK, you'll get over the bright keyboard!
    ReplyDelete
  11. Clap Clap Clap. This is the best review I have ever readen. Thanking you again and again.
    ReplyDelete
  12. Good review indeed with plenty of detail. I was already going for the E72 after observing all the 52/55 reviews but this helped decide.

    But I'll refresh my requests for some extra review aspects if you have the time:

    1.Performance/stability when using full card/ram encryption. The new CPU might help with this.
    2.GPS performance
    3.Magnetometer performance (is there a built-in simple compass tool?)
    4.Some more comments about the optical navikey? Is it useful?
    5.Overall firmware stability? Any crashes or problems like the E52 is having?

    thx
    ReplyDelete
  13. Matthieu, thanks for that, this sure will keep me going :)

    Everyone else, I will post an answer to all your requests, looks like the E72 is here with me for a while so don't worry :)
    ReplyDelete
  14. Hi, I am sorry if this is a rather basic question, but I just don't seem to be able to get a definitive answer anywhere.

    You have said in your review that it does not have the world's best push email service, so in which ways is it below BlackBerry? I am currently using a Pearl on BlackBerry Internet Service (I work as a freelance and do not have any kind of BB server). The push email works really well, as it should. Will the E72 give me the same push email capabilities? I have various email accounts and would like them all to be pushed to the device, as now. Here in Spain Vodafone has a "Real Mail" service which appears to be like BB, at the same price as BIS. I believe that the technology behind Real Mail is Visto. Do you know the answer to this? If I cannot get push email in the same way as BIS I will wait for the new BB Bold 9700. Many thanks.
    ReplyDelete
  15. Do myou know when it will be available?...as i heard it will not be out before the end of the year :(
    ReplyDelete
  16. Bob, Beowulf, everybody else, thanks for being patient. I'm uploading some replies with screenshots and continuing the GPS test.

    E71user, I hope not. I'm counting on its arrivel mid October.
    ReplyDelete
  17. I've been doing Google Blog searches for weeks looking for a REAL review of the E72 and your site just appeared for the first time today. Glad to see you're getting listed now!

    I only have one question: Did Nokia fix the "Light Leak" where white light would be visible around the D-pad area when in a dark room. Everyone always brags about the E71 build quality, but that light leak still bugs me on my E71. You can slide the whole QWERTY keyboard to "fix" it, but it slides right back.
    ReplyDelete
  18. Hey Brad, thank you. It won't be just the E72 - I'll do the same for all new Nokia phones. But it's a great thing to start out with the E72, one of the gretest devices ever.

    You are totally right about the E71. I do that all the time, sliding the keyboard up to stop the light from seeping out. With the E72 it's fixed. Almost. You can actually see very little light (like an extremely thin line of light above the two soft keys, which is barely noticeable). It did not bother me like the E71 used to, and I'll try taking a shot in the dark to show you what I mean. The keyboard is rock solid; it's well fixed and doesn't slide up like the E71's.
    Hope this helps :)
    ReplyDelete
  19. Hi there, nice review as usual. :)

    How about posting some full-size camera photos, including night shots?

    Can't wait to experience this sweet phone from the nearest Nokia store.


    Regards,
    Rem
    ReplyDelete
  20. Haven't forgotten about you Rem! Shots coming up tonight. I'm just a bit busy changing the template for the blog, it's still new you know :) and reviewing other stuff... The GPS, encryption, and full-size photos are coming next.

    Thanks!
    ReplyDelete
  21. Thanks for a wonderful review! It's great you do a in depth review! And you take request!

    Thanks again, take care, and I'll definitely be back and check updates and new reviews! =)

    - Bxx

    (Thanks for the pdf-file pictures!!) E72 is sooo gonna be my new phone. I contacted a e-shop in my contry today and they say in about 10 days it should be out!
    ReplyDelete
  22. Hi, one quick additional question... How easy is it to change input language? I need to write emails and SMS in various languages and so need to change it in a moment. It's pretty quick and easy with BB. When you get a moment after answering all these questions, if you could have a look at that I would really appreciate it. Thanks!
    ReplyDelete
  23. Hey Bob, it's pretty easy with the E72, too.
    You just need to press 2 keys successively. The shift key followed by the Sym key (they are next to each other, on the bottom row, on the left of the space bar) and then you get a pop-up window with a list of available languages to choose from :) Let me know if you need screenshots.
    ReplyDelete
  24. Hi. I am from the Philippines. I was searching for a fab review regarding E72, and I'm glad I was able to find yours. I'm so excited about this phone. Thank you for the amazing ang very detailed review that you have made. :)
    ReplyDelete
  25. Great, that's good to know, one fewer potential negative point. I will await with baited breath your comments on the push email issue, which is the key one for me. Thanks for taking the time to do this review and also to answer questions and requests.
    ReplyDelete
  26. Anonymous, thank you. I'll carry this on with other phones as well. Let me know if you have any request.

    Bob, push email testing under way, especially that Google Mail now supports push service, meaning you could sync your email-calendar-contacts using the MfE that comes preloaded on the phone. It this sounds too complicated, I'll elaborate more under the REQUESTS section. Keep in mind that you could sync your contacts and calendar a while ago with S60 but not email, and Google has added that service a couple of days ago. I've tried it on my E71 (with the Mail for Exchange application) and it works great. Now I will try it on the E72.
    ReplyDelete
  27. Great review, enjoyed reading such a detailed comparative writing !

    On email side, what about the default S60 email app, the one that display text only email ?
    Since NM was introduced and included through automatic download with the latest firmware on E71, it has been inscreasingly difficult to use the legacy email app. NM tends to be forced on the user in the E71, how is it on the E72 ?
    ReplyDelete
  28. Hi, forgive my ignorance, but doesn't Mail for Exchange require some kind of server? Right now I just use BlackBerry Internet Service, and email from all my various email accounts is pushed automatically to the BB. Do you know, will the E72 be the same, using the Real Mail system from Vodafone (which is powered by Visto)? Sorry if my questions don't make sense...
    ReplyDelete
  29. Ant1... amazing write-up on our fav phone. but i really hope to see how you rate the e72 gps.

    i've notice that my e71 takes ages to lock onto the satelite signal. at least 5 minutes. and that was with me standing still outside.
    ReplyDelete
  30. Ant1.. i love your review, it is very elaborate and details. I would like to ask you question that has been bothering me, does E72 has any messenger? Lately there is quite an interesting phenomenon in Indonesia. People are so into messenger devices like blackberry, and some of them has been arguing that E71 is not as good as those blackberry device and one of the reason is the blacberry messenger. I want to know if this E72 support any messenger applications? like MSN or whatever..
    ReplyDelete
  31. Bob, I will make sure to sum up all our conversation and put it under the requests section with additional details and screenshots :)

    Merlin, I'll be sure to answer that like I said above, but note that I've been trying to create a mailbox outside the NM to no avail. Nothing works but the Hotmail box because it gets set up once you install the messenger.

    Speaking of which, Anonymous, MSN messenger works perfectly well on the E72 and you can download it from the Ovi Store for free. You always get Nimbuzz, Fring, Slick (my favorite) or any other app that does the same, and you sure don't need a BlackBerry for that. I cannot tell you BlackBerrys are not good, I've used a couple, but I'm more into Symbian. It's a matter of habit I guess, and for me Symbian does the job well. The E71 has been my ultimate messaging device for a strong year now and I'm counting on the E72 to continue the saga.

    Doofus, GPS review almost over. Been facing some ups and downs - I guess it's the proto issue - but I'll post about it soon enough.
    ReplyDelete
  32. HOT HOT HOT! I think you should be adopted by Nokia itself.
    ReplyDelete
  33. Thanks for your review.

    I'm now considering to buy this E72 phone. But, I have one query about the phone
    I have ~1,000 contact person's information and these are categorized in each category in my microsoft outlook. Could these information be syn to the phone? And could I search these guys by category in E72?

    Thanks again!
    ReplyDelete
  34. i have an E71 for ten months now replacing my trusty N9500. i Love Slick as well, but i'm wondering how good is IM (yahoo, MSN, Gtalk) integrated into E72. i mean, can we change the alert tone as we like; will there be visible notifications on the screen when theres a new message. how good is the Instant messagaging. the Nokia Messaging and the said integrated IM are the big reasons im upgrading to E72.

    - Borehole
    ReplyDelete
  35. most amazing review...i thought only eldar and gsmarena did good reviews.
    some questions: ive had nokia e61i now e71 ...thinking about e72. I already know the advantages of this qwerty device but these days with the big touch screens coming out is e72 better. (big screens do matter)?
    on a personal note what will be better n97 or x6 or omnia II compared to e72. (video recording at 30fps do matter to me and i think its time for bigger screens)?
    E71 had some problems recognizing mp3 files with certain tags. (with some files I had to clean all id tags in mediamonkey and then transfer them to the phone)how does E72 feature on this count?
    or will someone like me be happy with e61i's grandson?
    ReplyDelete
  36. Percy that's a good question. I've never tried that before since I haven't synced my Outlook contacts with my phone at work. I guess I will have to try it in order to answer your question. However, what I do know is that now you can set your Contacts application to access your remote contacts and search them if you do not find the one you are looking for. I'll try attaching a picture of that. You can access your "Mail for Exchange" by going to setting -> contacts -> Remote search server; and then choosing either Intellisync (NM) or Mail for Exchange. That way your phone will connect and fetch the desired contact if it does not exist on your phone's memory. I think that solves part of your issue but not all of it. I'll try my best to see if I can simulate the scenario you've given me but not with 1000 contacts for sure :)

    Anonymous, I'll upload some shots of various IM apps I've used.

    Karam, they do a great job and I'm here to add to that :) hopefully. In my opinion, big screens do matter, and with the upcoming firmware 2.0 for the N97, it makes me think about it twice. Omnia II is great but you've got no hardware keys, same for the X6. I've seen it in Germany and it wasn't THAT amazing. It's too close to the 5800. The N97 could seriously compete with the E72 because both are powerhouses. Some mornings I wake up loving the N97, some others I hate it in favor of the E72. Hopefully, the next firmware will allow me to decide once and for all. No issues with the IDv3 tags that you have mentioned, but I'm not sure if that's because the E72 is great or because I have no issues with those ID tags in my songs. We could do a test if you have a certain song that's not working on your E71. I'll get in touch with you and download the song then try it on the E72.
    If you've had the E61i or the E71, don't switch to another series. I'm certain you will love the E72.
    ReplyDelete
  37. Thanks for the reply.
    I cant send you the file now cause i wiped the tags and retaged it. But this happens when i send 100 or more mp3s to the phone . On refreshing the player it just keeps refreshing, but ads nothing. The prob is only with one or 2 files. But this problem makes it unusable as a music player, cause you have to send batch of 5-10 files to the mem card. ( i have a collection of 30 gb)
    This happened after the latest firmware update. Ive read some forums on the net with some nokias having these problems (5800 etc)but no clear solution or source of problem.

    Also you said the sound was good in the headphones. In e71 with the nokia phones in the kit, the bass produced is horrible. actually its not there at all. some drum sounds are not heard at all.(because of the smaller jack i have not compared it to other headphones) how does e72 compare to that?
    more so could you compare it to sound produced by n97 and ipod?
    See now questions are cropping up in my mind!
    a very irritating point in symbian is firmware update by pc.(taking a backup and reinstalling applications is a big headache) does e72 support ota firware update like n97?
    ReplyDelete
  38. I just read the comments you added about the optical navikey in the requests section.
    I have one more question about that navikey. Since it's annoying in the menu, can you disable it and still use it to focus in the camera app ? Or is it disabled in the camera app too so that you must take the pictures without focusing (unless you re-enable it system wide) ?
    ReplyDelete
  39. Merlin, I've mentioned this earlier in my review, but here it goes again: yes you can disable it. It's either on or off. When it's off you can still focus the camera with it but differently. You'll have to press it fully to focus and when you let go the camera takes the picture. When it's on, you just need to put your thumb gently on it and it'll focus. So no worries here, if it annoys you, just turn it off and you can still do everything normally.

    Karam, you're right about that, I did not get you the first time. It happens with me sometimes with the E71, but like I said in my test, I sent 206 MP3 files to my E72 (around 1.6GB) and refreshed the library normally. If you need more tests let me know and I'll carry them out.
    Regarding the audio qualit, see I've never used the bundled earphones with the E71, I always went with Bluetooth stereo headsets or, occasionally, with the 2.5 to 3.5mm adapter that ships with the 5610, pictured in my review. Audio quality on my E71 has always been more than decent, and now the E72 adds more stuff to the equation; it reproduces bass extremely well just like any other Nseries device, and having rated the N86 recently, I'd say they offer the same quality. The iPod is definitely better in terms of clarity and bass especially if you use it with a line out (link it to a set of speakers). Here, you need to set the volume up to max in order to get an average sound. I couldn't spot any differences compared to the N97. Finally, yes it supports FW OTA, that's a characterisitc of the FP2, this is why it wasn't there with the E71. I've recently updated my 5800XM OTA, it worked amazingly well, downloaded a 6MB file and installed it, no issues. I believe it'll be the same for the E72, as long as Nokia makes those FW available OTA because the N97 has been updated twice so far but none OTA.
    ReplyDelete
  40. ive seen some videos of firmware update v2 on n97 on youtube. when you test it and decide the better one between e72 and n97, please post it on your blog.
    Also do you think x6 could be compared to music output with ipod. (the specs say they have some new dedicated sound chip)
    thank you
    ReplyDelete
  41. Oh that light leak, they should have worked on it and fixed it. You are right, the E71's keyboard was somehow movable and you can see the whole line of light leak. I am waiting for this damn phone since a year maybe, I hope it will be released in the coming weeks. Thanks Antoine for the BEST REVIEW ever!
    ReplyDelete
  42. Hi!

    Excellent review! I have just one small question. On E52/55/75 there is a stupid bug: if you assign the envelope key to start writing a message, and place a contact with multiple numbers (however with a default number selected for sms), the editor ignores the default number and asks you to select a number for that contact. If going thru menus no problem. Can you check this on E72?

    I also am a happy E71 owner.

    Keep the good work!

    Paulo Neves (Portugal)
    ReplyDelete
  43. Karam, sure thing, it'll be my main concern because I'm hesitating between the two (I love the E71, I'm currently using the N97 and I've fallen in love with the E72). It's a tough decision, so why not go for both ?! :) As for the X6, I'd like to believe it will be better. I mean the current sound chip on the E72/N97/N86 does a pretty decent job except when using "line out" and a set of big-ass speakers, or sometimes with some huge headphones. But adding a better sound chip is always welcomed, especially on the new Xseries. I'll be sure to test that once I get my hands on the X6!

    Paulo, unfortunately, the bug is still there. I performed a test just to make sure and the phone prompted me to choose the number I wanted although I had clearly preset it to use a certain number for SMS. It's one of the things which really irritated me with the E52. I guess it's a minor bug in most of the recent phones since my N97 kicks me out of the contacts application if I try to assign "defaults" for my contacts. Something that should be addressed soon.
    Now you cannot even see the icon (mobile, landline, fax...) next to the contact in the main contacts list whereas you could see that with the E71. I think it's an FP2 thing. Shame, I used to like that...
    ReplyDelete
  44. Thanks for the comments on encryption. Given your description I assume something went wrong as it was really too fast. I think the E52/55/72 have significante improvements in encryption speed due to new hardware but I doubt it is that fast.
    Regarding the compass, shame Nokia didn't include a stand-alone simple compass app but I'm sure we'll find that easily as a 3rd party app.
    Keep up the good work, this review will become a prime reference when it comes to the E72 in the future.
    -Beowulf
    ReplyDelete
  45. Referring to your reply to Paulo above, I'm grateful if you could show me the photos about the difference of main contacts list in between E71 and E72.
    ReplyDelete
  46. Are you comfortable with the colour combination of the brown e72's keyboard? Are the letters of the keyboard clearly visible in all light conditions? I think it might be a problem in the grey and brown versions of E72. I infer this from most of the pics I see on the net.
    ReplyDelete
  47. I was disappointed to see ngage not working on e72. Its not really fair for nokia to do this....

    Anyway, do the remote buttons(play pause...etc) on the wired headsets work with the e72?
    ReplyDelete
  48. Thank you very much for your fast answer!

    For me it's not a FP2 feature, it's Nokia latest software that is buggy. E71 is now more than 1 year old, and only on v210 most of the bugs disappeared. It's a shame they are treating the customers like that. Even more on E75 that is still waiting for a firmware for 4 months now...

    Think I will stick with my E71 until E72 is 1 year old and a decent firmware to show. Oh, and by then it will be cheaper too ;).

    Oh, and yes, I was also one of the many who bought N97 and return it back on the next day because the software was... yeah, buggy!

    Kind regards,

    Paulo Neves (PT)
    ReplyDelete
  49. Hi,

    Thanks for the full size photos! The pictures (especially the night shot) are excellent, almost like N-series quality. Looks like this will absolutely be my next phone :)

    The second photo (indoors with blue light) has a grainy feel on it though, hopefully it will improve further through firmware updates.

    Good job!

    - Rem
    ReplyDelete
  50. Ajit, a pity N-Gage is not there, and no FM transmitter too. The music buttons work perfectly well, even if the music player is sent to background and no tracks are playing, you can always press "play" and get the music going. As for the keyboard, the brown color is a bit tricky, I've been asked this a couple of times and yes you are right about both the silver and brown colors. However, I don't think it's a big problem, I can live with it for the sake of having a nice color. If not, just go for the black one.

    Rem, Paolo, Beowful, thanks guys, check back for the GPS part which I was able to finally put together yesterday.
    ReplyDelete
  51. Hi Ant,

    Amid all these requests I hope you can do one more test. Can you please check the performance of E72 while playing youtube videos (especially in full screen mode).

    I got Nokia 5800 xpress music phone to test and the stutter on the flash videos is horrible (even after I upgraded the flash player).

    Thanks again for the extensive review.

    Preston.
    ReplyDelete
  52. Great review (and I've read most all)!
    Your sample pictures are much better than others in terms of quality. What were the settings on the E72 for those?

    Also, can you turn off the optical nav-key in settings? If it is bad, turning it off should be allowed. Ideally it would be great to only turn on for certain applications, like the browser.

    Thanks!
    ReplyDelete
  53. Also, other reviews state that you cannot listen to Internet Radio (app is absent). Can you download the Nokia app for the E72? Are the other reviewers wrong?

    Is there an option for threaded SMS or can you download Nokia Conversations?

    You list the Active noise cancelation as a "cool" feature rather than "Crucial." Can you comment on this?

    Finally, I believe I read the Magnetometer is used during the "walking" mode of Nokia Maps to orient the display properly.
    ReplyDelete
  54. Great how you listen to your readers and the in-depth review you give !

    But i really doubt whether the final retail handset will differ much from the one you have there. I hope it does (as for the loose back-cover plate and other things) but really doubt it.
    ReplyDelete
  55. Percy, the screenshot you have asked for has been posted :) still haven't tried the 1000 contacts thingy...

    Preston, I will try that and get back to you.

    Anonymous, pictures settings are as follows:
    - Image quality Print 5M (large)
    - Scene mode: automatic.
    - Flash mode: automatic
    - Sharpness: normal
    - ISO, contrast, brightness, are all set to automatic. Basically, I just took it out of my pocket and shot...
    Don't be surprised, the E72 can take really good quality pictures :)
    And yes, you can turn off the Navi Key, but I wish it could be turned on/off in selected menus/applications.

    Anonymous, about the Internet Radio, I'm on it! No threaded SMS (native) but you can download Nokia Conversation and install it. It works.
    Noise Canceling: what i meant was that the E71 performed pretty well in that area so this was not a huge step for me. It is, however, more than welcome.

    Next up is Email and IM
    ReplyDelete
  56. Well this phone has been delayed yet again in Europe. I had a preorder at expansys for October 12 and have been waiting for months since the announcement... but now the listed date is NOVEMBER 23! This is too much. I'm afraid I will wait no more and will probably go for another model... there are now interesting Symbian and WiMo alternatives that were only a mirage when Nokia announced this E72 vapourware.
    -Soon to be ex-Nokia owner.
    ReplyDelete
  57. really this is too much if E72 will not be available at mid october i cant wait anymore i will go for another device :S
    ReplyDelete
  58. what is nokia doing with E72? Another 2 month wait - this is utterly unacceptable! I am now considering getting E71 and upgrade in a year's time.
    ReplyDelete
  59. Getting the E71 eh? Well you're just showing why Nokia is delaying the E72... they're probably waiting for E71 to sell a bit more, plus maybe delaying it until they have better firmware ready.
    I have waited for a long time after their press release and have now given up. Can't keep waiting. I'll probably go for a WiMo Samsung in the next days.
    ReplyDelete
  60. Buy HTC HD2, it was announced yesterday and will be released at mid Oct. 09. It's damn good and more perfomant than E72!!
    ReplyDelete
  61. Yes, I agree. HTC HD2 looks so cool.
    If Nokia is still not releasing E72, I believe most of potential buyer will shift to consider HD2.

    I don't understand what their marketing strategy is. If HTC released HD2 earlier than E72, it will absorb most of their target customer. Finally, the sale performance of E72 will be poor.
    ReplyDelete
  62. It does seem strange that Nokia seems almost hesitant to release E72 - could it be there have been bugs or something which they have tried to avoid by delaying the release?

    I'm definitely getting impatient!

    The HTC HD2 looks fantastic - however, it is more expensive, it's touch, it's huge and heavy... and it has Windows which some might...well dislike to say the least.
    It does look tempting though...


    To you E71 users - is the E71 screen big enough - or do you sometimes wish for a bigger screen? - because let's face it, the screens on the E71 and E72 are not that big...
    ReplyDelete
  63. I, for one, sometimes wish I had a bigger screen or/and higher resolution on my E71 while surfing the web.
    For everything else it's just fine though...
    ReplyDelete
  64. REQUEST:

    How does the calendar work together with Google Calendar? Are multiple calendars supported?

    Best,
    M
    ReplyDelete
  65. Guys, just keep it cool. If you've been waiting for this phone for a while, keep waiting...it's totally worth it. I'm not trying to talk you out of buying something else but I'm pretty sure that if you wait and see the phone and test it, you'll understand what I'm talking about.

    It has been delayed, it will be available in November, different dates for different countries.

    Percy, the HD2 is an amazing device. However, I don't believe it'll be much of a competition to the E72. Different segment, different fans, different OS, touch vs. hard keys... it's just not clicking, literally :) I've used WinMo for a long time and I like what HTC has done to cover up some of its flaws with a sleek interface, but I don't believe many would be interested in it after having waited for the E72. Maybe iPhone users or N97 users or Omnia users might consider the switch, but I wouldn't make the jump from an E71 to the HTC Touch HD2. Besides, it costs twice as much as the E72 :)

    Meanwhile, I'll try shooting some videos of the E72 and uploading them. Either they keep you entertained till the device hits the shelves in your area or they'll get you even more impatient and you'll end up hating me :)
    ReplyDelete
  66. Hi Ant1,

    Great review of the E72. Am really eagerly waiting for it to be available in Manila. Have a question about the font size for text messages (SMS). Am far sighted and have a hard time reading SMS on the E71 without my reading glasses. Is it now possible to resize the SMS font on the E72?

    Thanks!
    ReplyDelete
  67. Hi,

    I was at the Vodafone MOVE event in Barcelona today, and the guy on the Nokia stand told me that the E72 launch has been put back further to January...it was just one guy, he may be wrong, but he seemed pretty sure.

    On the questions I had regarding email, it seems that Vodafone Real Mail, which is from the company Visto/Good, is not true push when it is not used with an enterprise email server (in other words it is not push when used in the equivalent way to BlackBerry Internet Service). It simply connects every 15 minutes to see if there is email, and downloads it if there is. I guess that a maxiumum 15 minute wait is not the end of the world, although it does seem a less than smooth solution, and also potentially more draining on the battery. Any thoughts?

    I am still between the E72 and the new BB Bold 9700, leaning towards the Nokia but may get swayed if the BB comes out first... Any comments anyone has on the comparison between the two for a freelance user without email servers (ie using POP and IMAP) would be much appreciated.
    ReplyDelete
  68. Hey bob, I hadn't forgotten about you... Was a bit tied up lately though. Hopefully, my last update on the post will help answer your questions. Let me know what else you need.

    As for the release date, my sources say it's towards the second week of November, but that might depend on regions/countries.

    Cheers!
    ReplyDelete
  69. Hello,

    I have a question pls, have you tested the music player capabilities? Such as connecting the mobile using it's jack to a large speakers, car speaker, or so? This is important to me.

    Thank you.
    ReplyDelete
  70. does the FM rds radio work well?
    ReplyDelete
  71. RDS works quite well, just like any other phone I've tested before. Nothing fancy here.

    Ayhamov, I've used many speakers with it (a 2.1 surround system as well as a mini hi-fi system) and I wouldn't say the sound is amazing but it's decent. Let me put it this way: compared to an iPod, it doesn't beat it, but it comes close in reproducing good bass and clear sounds. A dedicated music player is always capable of producing louder music through a line-out. Let me add that the N97 does a better job here (it beats the E72) by giving out louder music. I'm gonna have to say the E72 is average here. If there's anything special you'd like me to note, let me know.
    ReplyDelete
  72. so ant...E72 or N97? in one word only :D
    ReplyDelete
  73. Hi,
    Could you possibly post an image of a newspaper clipping? Possibly one whole page of a tabloid and another of half the paper. Something in English cos i can't read arabic and want to read the content. Thank you
    ReplyDelete
  74. Hi,
    I'm the anon poster above. I ask for a picture, not to read the content as such but to see the quality of the pictures and check if the content is legible. Thank you
    ReplyDelete
  75. Karam: E72

    Anonymous: shot coming up under the "requests" section.
    ReplyDelete
  76. Thanks for the infos and effort man!

    With love from Holland
    ReplyDelete
  77. Bobby From IndonesiaOct 27, 2009 04:19 PM
    How is the user friendlyness of e72? does it beat the userfriendlyness of blackberry 8900 ?

    can it copy and paste any txt in any application ? or atleast most application?

    how comfortable is e72 for web browsing ? hows the support, i'm using n78, and the support for web browsing is terrible, i keep on getting "BAD REQUEST" all the time.

    many prefer to use blackberry due to the operating system, it is really configurable and very user friendly, i've seen ppl choose blackberry over nokia even though the hardware specification is way less than the Nokia.. blackberry really serves you

    there are not many reviews regarding the user friendlyness and how configurable the OS is on smartphones, i'd really apreciate it if you could fill me with some info about e72's OS.

    by the way, your review is almost perfect, it explains MANY details, hard to find reviews like yours, I love it.. and keep up the good work

    Cheers..
    ReplyDelete
  78. Will someone be good enough to let me know if the e72 will sync with Outlook contacts, calender and e-mails?

    Cheers
    ReplyDelete
  79. so you flicked every picture and the complete blog from mobile-review.com.. lol.. pathetic
    ReplyDelete
  80. It seems u dont check both sites regularly. mobile-review had a preview and not a full review. I came across this website while browsing and the review was up before mobile-review.com
    ReplyDelete
  81. If only this phone would become available when announced. I'm tired of waiting. What a shame for Nokia... unable to keep up with annoucements...
    ReplyDelete
  82. ps: outstanding review, thanks. wish you'd keep your eye on the E72 after production release.... firmware upgrades and all.
    ReplyDelete
  83. hey is this phone all right for a teenager? cus i dont know if i wait for this one or the n900, the e72 is less expensive so, but im not quiet sure of witch one
    ReplyDelete
  84. Ant1 - thanks for this great review and for looking into people's requests! You've already covered many of my concerens, so now, I only have two:

    1. You mentioned that the Optical NaviKey was difficult to use when going into menus. You also mentioned a d-pad, in the article. Does this mean that the E72 has BOTH a central Optical Navi Key, AND the 4-way d-pad style buttons, surrounding it? I'm thinking, when I browse, sometimes, I want to scroll the page, itself up and down, and sometimes, I want to move the cursor, just around the visible part of the page (say, to get it out of the way, when reading a thorough review of the world's greatest handset). Can you elaborate on the use of the OptiNaviKey & the 4-way d-pad and if the phone has both? I'm super psyched about all the other new features, but hesitiant about this one, as it is such an often-used function.

    And...

    2. How long will the flashlight stay on, by itself, when 'clicked on' from the space bar?

    Thanks,

    maria
    ReplyDelete
  85. Lots of comments to answer, let's start: (Oct. 24 up till today)

    Anonymous: thank you for the support, hello from Lebanon and greetings to Holland!

    Bobby: I find it to be very user-friendly, that's the reason why I've been a Nokia user my entire life. Yes, you can copy and paste text in most applications by holding down the shift button -> selecting the text with the d-pad -> choosing copy (soft-key) then doing the same (without selecting text) for pasting. The OS is pretty mature now. Many handsets running on it can prove that (i.e. N86, E52, N79, and of course the E72). Despite the fact that my handset is a proto, it hasn't crashed on me, and I've had it for over a month now. You'll notice a big difference in browsing, it has been vastly improved. Let me know if you need further clarification.

    Anonymous: Yes, it will sync with Outlook contacts, calendar, and emails.

    Anonymous: Check the dates buddy, and thanks for the NICE comment anyway :)

    Anonymous: thanks for your support. Keep coming back.

    n: Yes, it is a shame the handset was delayed but I believe it's for our best. Maybe some minor tweaking before release? I will keep everyone posted about anything related to the E72 after its release.

    Anonymous: both devices are great, though the N900 would rather be a new experience. If you're a Nokia user who's looking for some change go for the N900 but keep in mind it's new, it mostly works in landscape mode, and it's bulky and heavy compared to the E72. I'm even finding it hard to use the N97 after having used the E72 for a month. I'd say go for the E72; just because it's an Eseries doesn't mean you have to be a businessman to use it ;) it's great for music, chatting, texting, and photography.

    Maria: thanks for the kind words. Yes it has both: in fact the 4-way d-pad surrounds the 5th key which is usually used for clicking in normal devices. Well here, this 5th key is both the touch-sensitive Navi Key and the "click" key. While browsing, you can use either of options: Navi Key or Normal d-pad. You cannot switch between them on the spot. You have to go to settings and turn the Navi Key on and off. I just hope Nokia will introduce a keyboard shortcut for toggling that Navi Key on and off. It would be great.
    As for the flashlight, it will stay on till you run out of battery, I guess. It's been on since morning and still hasn't turned off :)
    ReplyDelete
  86. Oh, and by the way, Anonymous who has asked for an "image of a newspaper clipping", I'm uploading three pictures I've taken with the E72. Let me know if you need more pics. Cheers!
    ReplyDelete
  87. hey thanks for answer my question about the e72 if its an allright phone for a teen you said it's great for music, chatting, texting, and photography. yeah nice lol one las thing what about the wi-fi is it fast? and do you know if most of the pages in the e72 are mobile versions? cus i dont like that i guess, also if it is fast what if u go online it frezeez?
    ReplyDelete
  88. Hi i got a question the four biggest hey like the green and red phone call button are with the other two one big button with a hole in the middle for the navi key and my question is; are they working fine or are whey like for example in n78.I had this phone for 2 months was my worst nokia mobile ever.I sold it because of the construction and buttons that were working worser than in an old siemens.
    ReplyDelete
  89. My god, this phone will be the first product on earth which lifecycle has ended before it was even released at all.

    It just takes too long .. Symbian will probably be dead, reincarnated and death again when this one is released.
    ReplyDelete
  90. hey so is this the top of the e-series??? the best e-series phone so far?
    ReplyDelete
  91. Hi Ant1, thanks for your reply..

    i went to Nokia store few hours ago, and was disappointed after hearing that e72 will be delayed till December especially after she added that shes still unsure about it, i was expecting it to be released by mid November at the very least. not that i want to trouble you... but can you please give me 20 reasons of why E72 is worth the wait for another 30+ more days... and tell me why it is better than BB 8900?

    it'd be alot more expensive if sold in December


    I am sorry to trouble you,


    Thanks,
    Bobby from Indonesia
    ReplyDelete
  92. HI.. i think your E72 review is FABULOUS..Detailed & Decisive.

    I been waiting for the E72, but after the wait got too long.. i began to start getting fedup.

    Finally, I was on the verge of buying the 8900 Curve.. but now after reading your review - I'm convinced to wait some more..

    -Vishal (Mumbai, India)
    ReplyDelete
  93. rominem2@hotmail.comNov 5, 2009 01:32 PM
    Hi man kifak? I don't know what to say but I mean this is the most extensive review of any phone available in the market! plus you're using professional words like in the real reviews! 2 thumbs up!

    i came across your website cz i was looking for the price of the e72 in lebanon on google ( weird ). i actually have the e90 communicator and i said that maybe the E series is very similar but it turned out to be ( the e72 specially ) a bit different than my e90 when it comes to the OS and the general display ( gallery display ).

    So here's my question : what would be the catch, the best phone for the moment to buy ? i want a good camera 3.2 and up,3G( cz i travel a lot) , wifi, fun to use and responsive OS??? i'm still in Lebanon for the moment so i'm definitely gonna buy it from here!
    would have liked to contact you in private without posting it here!

    Please reply to rominem2@hotmail.com

    All the best Ant1!
    10x for your reply
    ReplyDelete
  94. Hi,

    Still seems to be no news as to when it will be available. Have seen some rumours that it will be this month, but others that it will be next year.

    If the new Bold/Onyx BB9700 comes out first I might end up going for that, although I think I would prefer the E72.

    Anyone heard anything?
    ReplyDelete
  95. Bob - from what I've heard from several people and looked up myself some say it'll be released on 23nd Nov. - but who knows.

    I still find it odd Nokia has not said anything as to why E72 has been delayed...

    I wouldn't mind if they said that they'd found some buggs or something - rather that than this silence...I think many has lost their respect for Nokia.

    (However, it will not stop my from buying the E72 - IF it comes out this year!)

    - Bxx
    ReplyDelete
  96. great keyboard, beautiful screen, connect to everything easily Love the stainless steel back..
    ReplyDelete
  97. Is MS office communicator supported on E72? any idea?
    ReplyDelete
  98. Very in-depth and thorough-- excellent review!!

    I know that the E72 is very much a business phone as it is a multimedia phone; I was wondering if the icons could be changed at all? I find that the icons look a bit generic and old and was wondering if there were themes available that had smoother, rounder etc icons?

    Thx again :D
    ReplyDelete
  99. Well, it's out in the UK, let's see when it reaches Spain...
    ReplyDelete
  100. Just bought E72 yesterday, I have questions regarding the camera:

    1. How to change the default setting of the camera? Every time I set the camera to something else than the automatic setting (for example landscape), it will return back to the automatic setting ("A") if we exit the camera and return back to the camera.

    2. How to turn off the flashligh during the focusing process in the "dark" environment? The light is so strong that it will surely hurt your eyes when taking a picture of your face in the "dark" environment.
    ReplyDelete
  101. Hey everyone, here's another session of replying to comments, starting with the ones after my last comment on Nov. 1st:

    Anonymous (Nov. 2): Browsing is cool, I only had minor issues with the browser because of the unstable firmware, which were mainly when loading pages with lots of content and too many images, the browser would just quit at a certain point. Nevertheless, it never freezes or anything, and no, most pages are not mobile versions, unless the page you are accessing is enabled to display in mobile mode.

    Anonymous (Nov. 3): Keys are working fine and I know what you mean, I’ve used the N78 for a little while. I like the keys better than on the E71 knowing that the latter had a good layout of keys and d-pad.

    Anonymous (Nov. 3): You are right, it has been delayed several times and we are yet to find out why. I like to think it’s for our own good and not for something else; I’m sure Nokia has been ironing out some bugs and working on the phone overall to make it even better. About your thought on Symbian, my input here is that phones like the E72 are the ones that will help keep Symbian alive. Both N86 and E72 are great examples of how Symbian can be a friendly OS for mobile phones. With a 600MHz processor and FP2, Symbian does just fine.

    Anonymous (Nov. 4): Yes, this is surely the top of the Eseries, the best in the lineup so far.

    Bobby, I like the challenge and it’s no trouble at all. In fact, your request made me think about doing a standalone post for it, so expect a “20 reasons to get an E72” post soon!

    Vishal, glad I stimulated your curiosity some more. I’d say wait for it to come out and do a live comparison between the two. I’m not saying the Curve is a bad device, never, but if you are a Nokia user you’d want to get the E72. I think most Nokia power-users should get this device, and this is coming from a guy who is uber-picky when it comes to mobile phones.

    Rominem: I’ll send you an email with more details but I can say the E72 is pretty much what you’re looking for. However, if you like the E90’s keyboard you’d be better off getting and E75 because the keys are spread over a larger area. That’s if you have large fingers. I never had issues with the E71 or E72 but some friends have told me it was tough to move from the E90 to the E71 so…

    Bob: It’s starting to surface in many countries, mine included. It still hasn’t popped up at retail stores but the shipment is here waiting for the hungry consumers.

    Anonymous (Nov. 10): MS Office Communicator is not supported.

    Diza: One of my favorite things about the E72 is the new OVI icons that replace to old crappy grey icons on the E71. If you’re still dissatisfied with those, you can always use themes with custom icons like the ones designed by Tehk7, Pizero, Dhanu Saud and the rest of the gang. Each have their special icon sets which, I have to say, are unique and fabulous.

    Wira: 1. What you are facing is not a bug or anything, you just have to save your settings inside the “User defined” mode and access them every time you fire up the camera. The “A” or Automatic mode is set by default every time you start your camera so you have to change that.
    2. You cannot stop the flash from turning on briefly while focusing; it’s the whole point of having an AF camera, it needs the flash to focus in order to “see” what it is shooting then adjust. Just close your eyes while it does that  Without the flash how can you focus on something completely drowning in darkness?
    ReplyDelete
  102. Could you please confirm that correct exchange meeting requests for contacts can be sent ? e71 cant do this so i am curious if the e72 can.
    Thanks very much
    ReplyDelete
  103. Thanks for the clarification. I still have question though. This time is about Garmin GPS. I tried to use Garmin XT Mobile on Nokia E72, both real time mode and simulation mode. After certain times (around 5 to 10 minutes), the application is stop responding. The map and the vehicle on the screen freeze. The voice still continue, but the screen looks hang. What I did, I press the menu, after 2 - 3 minutes I have the control of the handphone again. Try to find out, what makes this bug. Any idea? Thank you.
    ReplyDelete
  104. Hi again,

    Well..here's the thing - I have waited over 2 months for the E72 and is frankly quite upset Nokia has delayed it without explaining or at least saying something.

    It appears to be out now (finally) in several countries - but not in my country yet.

    All this time I have been looking around for other phones - because if I'm gonna buy the E72 it's gonna be the first Nokia (in a loong time) and also the first one with a full keyboard.

    So here's my problem. I once had a touchscreen phone and I was in the end quite irritated when it came to writing txts - which is why I was planning on buying the E72 - buut now I have checked the N97 out - and it really looks good. It has both a keyboard and a touchscrren. Besides it has a more appealing screen and many wigets (which I'm not sure would work the same on the E72).

    Would you still say I should go for the E72? Or should I try the N97 mini?

    I really like the E72 design, keyboard and everything on the inside - but I'm thinking that the N97 has just a tiny bit more to offer - when it comes to entertainment - since the E72 is a business phone first and foremost.

    Would the N97 mini be better if you want the best of both worlds (touch and keyboard) - or would you still recommend the E72?

    You are probably gonna tell me that it's a personal call - but I would love to hear your opinion...and experiences?
    ReplyDelete
  105. I was just wondering about the keyboard on this device. This is always the point where devices win or lose for me, and the main reason I am yet to own a device without a physical keyboard.

    Are the keys on the keyboard "hard" plastic like on the E71, or are they like those on the E63 where they have a slightly rubberised feel to them, making it hard to slide your fingers around when typing.
    ReplyDelete
  106. Hi! Ant1,

    Thanks for the great review! I'm a PDA window mobile user, I'm wondering if this will be a good upgrade from my PDA. May i know the Nokia E72 can display appointments on the home screen as normal PDA do?

    Thanks & Regards,
    mike
    ReplyDelete
  107. Could you please advice whether I would be able to copy all my contacts to the E72 (FP2)from E51 (FP1) through PC Suite or Switch.
    Thanks in advance for your kind reply,
    Sreekumar
    India
    ReplyDelete
  108. Thanks for the great review here, i've just got my E72 and waiting for it to be fully charged for the first time...
    ReplyDelete
  109. Dear Reviewer,

    I must say I am very impressed with the Reveiew. I recently lost my Nokia E71 phone which I personally believe is the best phone on the Planet. And now reading ur review I am convinced, that I shud wait for Nokia e72.

    My quick Question to you is, that for my last Nokia e71 , I had taken a Data Back up for msgs and contacts using the Nokia PC SUITE. Now would it be possible to use the same S/W and restore contacts and msgs from back of Nokia E71 to Nokia E72????

    Please help me with the answer or mail me at vidhiraj@yahoo.com
    ReplyDelete
  110. I have read somewhere that tha messaging app of the E72 is different. Can you show me how different it is compared to E71?

    Thanks.

    regards,
    venom
    ReplyDelete
  111. what i meant in my previous message is the SMS messaging app.

    regards,
    venom
    ReplyDelete
  112. Like to thank you for a fantastic write-up on the E72 - better than most dedicated review sites I have visited. Was thinking of getting the E72, but now, I will most likely get one. Your review did helped me a lot. Thanks for the info and please keep up the excellent work. Take care!

    Regards,
    Jester
    ReplyDelete
  113. Hello,

    do you have some more detailed informations about battery life? Haw long you can generally work with E72, how often you have to charge, how long can you work with enabled GPS navigation and other impressions with batteri life?

    Thank you a lot!
    ReplyDelete
  114. Hello,

    Thank you for your really great review.
    I have a question about the audio player:
    when you fast-forward or rewind a song or podcast, do you hear the sound?
    I ask this question as I actually own a 5310 Musik-Express and I cannot hear anything when fast-forwarding, which is bad for long podcasts.
    ReplyDelete
  115. hi i'm from malaysia i loved loved your review..

    but i really need to find out.. which would be better N86 or E72??
    ReplyDelete
  116. Answers to comments starting November 14:

    Martin, I haven’t tested that. I’ll see what I can do and get back to you.

    Wira, I am not sure what causes this to happen but it’s not because of the E72, I guarantee that. I have Garmin installed on my N97, 5800, E71 and E72 and it behaves the same way on all 4 devices. Sometimes it hangs, sometimes it doesn’t. Same issues you are having…

    Anonymous (Nov. 15): Truth is I’m using both devices in parallel (N97 and E72), every day, both with a SIM card. While the N97 does great overall - especially photos and videos – I find myself writing more comfortable on the E72. You’re right, it is a personal call, but don’t forget the N97 and N97 mini are a bit bulky compared to the E72 which looks extremely classy. Let’s put it this way: N97 mini combines the best of both worlds while the E72 is the best performing full QWERTY compact device. If you want to stick to touch devices then go for the N97, it’s lovely. However, if you don’t care about having a big touchscreen (and I stress on “big” here), then you should go for the E72. To me, the deal breaker is the screen size because I really love a big screen. Don’t be fooled by the E72’s corporate image; it’s a great entertainment device, too.
    I’ve been holding back on posting a full review of the N97 mini because major sites have done that already, but if you want I can treat it the same way I’ve treated the E72, and so you can decide based on both reviews.

    Anonymous 2 (Nov. 15): The E72 sports the same keyboard of the E71 (except for the additional keys of course). Keys have the same feel. If you’ve used the E71’s keyboard then you’ve used the E72’s.

    Mike, sure it does! Appointments, to-dos, anniversaries are all displayed on the homescreen. The difference here is that you cannot see more than a couple of entries because the screen is not that big and is wide unlike i-mates or HTC devices. It will only show you today’s appointment if any, or the first upcoming appointment. For me, it’s more than enough, as I’ve never missed an appointment and I’m always able to keep track of what’s coming next from my homescreen.

    Support and Comfort: PC Suite and Switch both work. I’ve copied all my data from the E71 using switch, and recently after updating the FW on the E72 (now running on v21.024) I restored it to factory settings and restored the content using PC Suite from an N97 backup. I was even able to copy contacts to an S40 (6700) from the E72 using the switch application.

    Anonymous (Nov. 18): Congrats! Let us know your thoughts…

    Vidhi, glad you enjoyed the read. If you have used PC Suite then I don’t see why it should fail to work. Like I have previously mentioned, I backed up my N97 using the same SW and then restored the E72 in a matter of minutes. It shouldn’t not cause you any problems.

    Venom, that’s weird. Can you trace back where you’ve read this? Because I cannot see a difference in the short text messaging app but in the native email app. Let me know what you’ve read about this…

    Jester, thanks for the compliment, I’m trying my best to turn this site into a dedicated review site much like the ones you visit regularly, and from the feedback I’m getting it looks to be on the right track.

    Huncut, battery life is excellent and can be compared to that of the E71. Moderate usage means you’ll have to charge every 4 to 5 full days, while very heavy usage will leave you out of juice by the end of the 3rd day. I’ve rarely charged before the 4th day. I haven’t focused much on battery life in my review because it definitely continues the saga created by the E71. That thing is a monster and the E72 doesn’t compromise on battery life either. When I was testing the GPS it surely drained the battery and had me recharge every couple of days.

    Anonymous (Nov. 20): The audio player will not let you hear anything while you fast-forward. You are right, it’s bad for long tracks.
    ReplyDelete
  117. Anonymous 2 (Nov. 20): if it was up to me to decide, I’d go for the E72 – I need a full keyboard. However, if you ask me to choose a non-full QWERTY handset then I’d definitely pick the N86. I say choose depending on your needs:
    - Camera go for N86
    - Gaming/Music N86
    - Messaging/Emails/Office E72
    - Classy and more serious looks E72
    - Longer battery life E72
    - Narrow and smaller body N86
    ReplyDelete
  118. Fantastic review man, I wonder how talented person like you can go to zero-credit land :-)
    well I have 2 questions.
    1) Is native browser same as N86? improved?
    2) Is Photo editing available? I saw it on RDA.

    Suyog
    ReplyDelete
  119. i'm actually from anonymous 2 haha sorry...
    i'm so torn between these 2 phones.. i mean they have great specs and all and i love the both of them..

    oh can E72 works with N-gage?? the now version not the prototype.. and i'm also afraid that since it has been recently released many have said that its not stable.. so.....

    but N86 is kind of bulkier and heavy no?? and music wise for E72 is not that bad right??

    oh no i'm really torn and having a real headache cause its going to be a really long term usage.. i want it to be good and last and nice to use

    i'm really sorry for asking so much..
    ReplyDelete
  120. oh and the connectivity and softwares are they both almost the same??
    sorry :(
    ReplyDelete
  121. Great review! :)

    One question though, how is the optical Navi-key? Can it be disabled?

    I'm not quite familiar with QWERTY phones but does the center button work even though the Optical Navi-key is disabled (if it can be disabled)?
    ReplyDelete
  122. Hello again Ant1 - I would loooove it if you would do a review of the N97 mini!

    I've tried finding good and trustworthy reviews but they seem to be rather mixed and therefore very hard to understand what is really good and not.

    For example; GSMarena has done a review but I don't think they go in depth as much as you did with the E72. I am especially interested in the text message part but they don't really show any screen-caps or anything like that.
    Their review do leave me wanting to buy the device but then if you look at some of the comments (I know one should not believe everything) there just seems to be a lot of people ending up being disappointed with for example battery, speed, keyboard etc.

    One of the reasons I am in doubt whether to buy N97 mini or E72 is the screen. If it was only a question about keyboard then I would definitely go for the E72. It's just I would like to use my next mobile phone to surf on the internet and therefore I am in doubt whether or not I will get tired of the small screen E72 has. Plus it seems to me it is easier to navigate with touch on the internet than a keyboard - or is that just me?

    Anyway, I would simply love a review! =)

    - RH
    ReplyDelete
  123. hi ant1. i followed ur review since the november review, and u inspired me to owned one! i have already owned the e72 for almost two weeks now. i dont regret waiting it because it is a fantastic device! never had any e series before, and im glad this is my first one! the only gripe is that, after using it for four days, the back panel of the battery starts to loose a bit. u did mention that the prototype unit that u have a bit loose due to some cruel testing, but i found mine is none the less like the one u have rite now. an e71 of a friend of mine that is almost a year old is even better than mine! (in terms of physical aspect). few forumer from gsmarena also suffer the same thing that happened to my unit.quite disappointed though..
    ReplyDelete
  124. I have the phone since one day and I found a bug: If the time of the power saver and light timeout are the same, the radio is on, it will restart the phone when screen goes off.
    ReplyDelete
  125. hi! I'm very interested to know whether the surface of the e72 (screen, battery cover etc.) is scratch resistant or not. Thank you very much.
    ReplyDelete
  126. hey , i currently use a sony [K810i] phone and i want to go in for the E72 , however one of my biggest concern is the music speaker . . because of an ear infection i can not use the earphone , so the music speaker matters a lot to me , i tried out the music speaker of N97 but i did not like it , so what i want to know is that is the music speaker of E72 good ?? shall i go for it ???

    Thanks
    Aj
    ReplyDelete
  127. the pitch was unusually high in the n97 music speakers.... and all it did was to hurt my ears....even i'd like to know about the music speaker quality ??? i want to go in for a phone that i can listen to on speakers continuously without hurting my ears....i currently use e90 and i am ok with those speakers....so what do you say ??? are the speakers good ???
    ReplyDelete
  128. How about the VOIP setting on E72 ?
    ReplyDelete
  129. And now the $5.000.000 question!

    Is it made of real metal (like E71) or cheapo faux chrome paint plastics like E52/55?
    ReplyDelete
  130. IS is true : only 1000 contact can be stored in the memory???
    While I have more than 3000 names in my PDA now it seems I can not save all to my E72 to be?

    ALbert S
    ReplyDelete
  131. Thanks for this great review. Although as an E71 user I am not convinced it offers enough to make the switch. Especially since my sponsor (a.k.a. my employer) only pays for a new phone every three years. I am considering waiting for the successor of the E72 (E73?). Sometimes I do wish it has a larger screen when I user certain apps. Especially when I am surfing the web and I see those huge (touch)screens some other people have. Still that costs a lot of juice and I love the battery life of the E71. I do think for the nearby future I will stick with the E71 or one of it’s successors.

    I do have a question. Is the FM antenna still not integrated? In other words, does the headset have to be plugged in to listen to the FM radio? I read that this is the case but I couldn’t get it confirmed yet. Thanks a lot!
    ReplyDelete
  132. BIG PROBLEMS with Nokia E72

    So I got the phone...

    It is great, and everything worked great until I wanted to use Mail for Exchange (like I did before on N82) to sync my GMAIL and my GOOGLE CALENDAR. It just doesnt work and I have NO idea how to solve it.

    I could use Nokia Messaging but that wont sync my calendar?

    What to do? I cant believe this worked on my 2 year old phone but this one.

    Best,
    M
    ReplyDelete
  133. Luc from FranceNov 24, 2009 06:42 PM
    Hello,
    Thank you for your great review... I will buy the e72 as soon as it will be available here in Paris.
    I have a question about the music player: if you stop hearing the music, does it resume the song (or long podcast) exactly where it was when you restart it later?
    And further, is there a way to save the song/podcast position in a playlist?
    ReplyDelete
  134. Is there a bluetooth printer that is really compatible with the nokia E72? I will will be using the Microsoft Office a lot and I'm sure I will want to print a hard copy of an important document as a reference. What bluetooth printer do you recommmend to go with the E72? Also I would like to have a bit a fun so maybe a printer that can print photos or images etc!! I would appreciate if you look into that for me. Thanking you again in advance. Regards JP
    ReplyDelete
  135. hey i would love if you make a review of the n900 just like this one cus this is the best review ive ever seen so please that would help me to choose between the e72 or the n900 for x-mas

    eugene
    ReplyDelete
  136. hi there! i just bought the e72 this morning and i was trying to set-up my gmail account. however i've been trying to figure out why i can't able to make a new mailbox. after choosing the gmail icon on the list and putting in my username and password it just simple exits back to the list of email server. what gives? how can i remedy this. thanks!

    dj
    ReplyDelete
  137. New Nokia e72, after the disappointing Nokia E75 i really didn`t expect Nokia to release another unfinished phone!

    Dont get me wrong, great Phone the E72, solid hardware, but it has the same memory problem found in other nokia devices. 42 M at start up. Tried to go on the internet with the build in browser, 2 big flash sites like CNN and sadly the memory was down to between 356 K to 1 M, and the phone didn´t react anymore. After shuting down the browser, the E72 had 42 M in free memory again. Is there anyone with the same experience?
    ReplyDelete
  138. Hello again,
    Still about the audio player, I just tried the one on the E63 (it't a "chip E71").
    The sound was really awful (lot of noise) and I could not select any track in individual folders on the SD card.
    Could you confirm that with the E72, one can see audio tracks located in individual folders on the SD card?
    Thank you again for the time you spend answering these messages!
    ReplyDelete
  139. It's me again... I just bought the E72, finally!

    How great it is!

    For the audio player, I found that I can browse audio files (like podcasts without MP3 tags) in the file manager.
    It permits to hear podcasts independently regarding the music player.
    And yes, the current track position is saved independently in both players (unless I reboot the device).
    The sound quality is really great (better than the 5310 XpressMusic), with deep bass and crisp trebles; I even soldered good 200€ earbuds on the suplied remote in order to hear the best sound...
    ReplyDelete
  140. Hi, I just bought E72 so far so good, but when I try to use My old headphones from my previous phone N95 8GB It doesn't fit well with my new E72 3,5 mm audio jack can you explain ??? thanks
    ReplyDelete
  141. We made a review about the new E business phone here...http://www.itsagadget.com/2009/12/nokia-e72-review.html
    ReplyDelete
  142. Hi, just a quick additional question. Is it possible to move my contact list from a Blackberry Pearl 8100 to a Nokia E72? Including names, numbers, email address, physical address etc?

    If so, what is the process?

    If not, I may end up with a BB 9700 after all!
    ReplyDelete
  143. Greetings from Lebanon brother :)

    A quick one, what about the speaker performance ? I still got an N95 and the dual speaker thing is awesome. the music volume and quality are great, should I expect the same from the E72 ?
    ReplyDelete
  144. For the person asking about the low RAM, take a look at this:

    http://www.mobileinfoplanet.com/blog/blog1.php/2009/12/05/e72-problems
    ReplyDelete
  145. I just bought myself an E72. There are a couple of bugs though... The phone restarts sometimes when exiting certain applications. The navi key gets stuck sometimes and stops working only to pick up later as if nothing has happened.

    P.S: Love your blog. The funny thing is I read it after I bought the phone and you have made me feel all the more better about my choice.. Cheerio
    ReplyDelete
  146. Suyog (Nov. 21) well buying all the devices out there sure doesn't help :) but I'm doing OK I guess. Don't give a crap about credit when I'm having fun with technology. Native browser is similar to the N86's. Photo editing is available.

    Elixis (Nov. 21) in short, hadn't I been a sucker for keyboard the N86 would be my main phone. Not the N97, not the E72, nothing. But I need a decent full keyboard for email/twitter/blogging... The N86 is one of the greatest Nokia phones ever IMO.

    Raffy (Nov. 22) the Optical Navi Key is a bit of a mess at times since it can't be useful unless used in long lists of music or email, etc. Around the menu it's pretty much useless and inaccurate. Yes, it can be disabled. And the center key works just like a normal phone when the Navi Key is disabled. Think of it as an E71 with the option of an Optical Navi Key.

    RH (Nov. 22) N97 mini review remaining parts coming very soon. My full-time job doesn't help me a lot and I've been super-busy lately so... Anyways, keep checking the site for more on the N97 mini. Having used the N97 mini for over 2 weeks now I can confirm it's a great device. Making me decide between the E72 and the mini is just cruel :) I love a big screen but the E72 is just too addictive. I type faster on it, battery is amazing and gets everything done with less bugs.

    CCC (Nov. 22) yes the back panes is loose on my proto, however retail devices don't suffer from that problem, at least not until now. Have you tried reporting it? And you're right, the E71 beats it here, it's still brand new after a year's heavy usage. Maybe it's a certain batch of devices that suffer from that loose panel and not all of them. I'll look a bit more into it and get back to you on this. Glad you like the device.

    Anonymous (Nov. 22) wow that's pretty insane. Mine doesn't do that. Have you tried reflashing it? I'm sure if it's a general bug it will be fixed in upcoming firmwares.

    Anonymous (Nov. 23) screen, battery cover and the rest is not scratch resistant.

    AJ (Nov. 23) the speaker is pretty good, I don't like the N97's either. Try the speaker of the E71, the E72 hasn't changed much. It sometimes add a bit more depths and clarity to the sound, that's all. In terms of loudness both are the same. I find it to be a decent speaker with no major breakthroughs.

    Anonymous (Nov. 23) I would say the speaker is good but nothing beats the real-life experience. I'd say go out and test one, it's a matter of taste at the end of the day. In general, like I said, the speaker is very decent.

    Anonymous (Nov. 24) for VoIP I'm using Nimbuzz. Couldn't get my account to work with the built-in SIP settings.

    Anonymous (Nov. 24) Real metal a la E71.

    Albert S (Nov. 24) Umm I would have to say unlimited number of entries but because I haven't gone over the 1,000 mark yet. Having 3,000 numbers is an awful lot, you should run for president or something :) I'll make sure about that and get back to you.

    Anonymous (Nov. 24) Thank you. I still love the E71, I just thought it could use a couple more additions which appeared with the E72. Yes, the screen is a disadvantage - I love a big screen - but I can manage living with it, for now. Maybe a sliding/tilting Eseries next year would solve that issue? Let's hope... And yes, you still need to plug the headset in to listen to the radio.

    Martin (Nov. 24) Mail for Exchange syncs my Gmail and Google Calendar intermittently, meaning it works on and off... Sometimes it works great, sometimes it says it can't sync. I'm beginning to believe the service and the app aren't too compatible for now.

    Luc, thanks for sharing the info mate. Good to know that, and I'm happy you liked the device. Sound quality is very good, I have to agree.
    ReplyDelete
  147. JP (Nov. 25) I guess all Bluetooth-enabled HP printers are compatible because I had tested one in Ireland (HP Labs) last year and it worked with the N82 so it shouldn't be a problem with the E72.

    Eugene (Nov. 25) N900 full review coming up shortly. Hoping I finish the N97 mini review first :) What I can tell you now is that the N900 will feel very new to you and is a lot more fun than the E72. I'm looking to make it my primary device as I do lots of browsing daily. However, the E72 is more pocketable and does pretty much everything the N900 can do... I'll try my best to post a review before Christmas.

    Jay (Nov. 26) I had that for the first couple of days then it suddenly worked all by itself. One thing I'm sure about is that the service isn't always functional and it depends on the SIM card I had been using during setup. Note that Nokia Messaging is still being perfected so it needs a bit more time to function properly. Try to update to the latest FW if you don't have it and keep trying to create a mailbox.

    Anonymous (Nov. 29) Memory is at 42MB you are right, but hasn't been below 5MB for me lately. Let's see if someone else reports this here as well.

    Anonymous (Dec. 3) All 3.5mm audio jacks should be standard, especially Nokia ones. If I can get my hands on one, I will try it and let you know. I've tried several other headsets/earphones and all seem to be working fine.

    Bob (Dec. 10) I think you're going to have to use Outlook for that. Not sure how you used to sync your contacts but you'll need to do that through your PC.

    Anonymous (Dec. 12) Greetings to you too as well buddy :) glad to have you here. Music quality is nice. It doesn't beat dual-speakers but can sure answer to all your needs. Do it, man.

    Anonymous (Dec. 14) I had the phone quitting the browser at times, nothing important to mention, it happened like 2 or 3 times maybe before the FW update but now it works fine. Not a single restart since I got the device (been over 3 months now). You're right about the Navi Key; hopefully updates will fix that.
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  148. Just got mine: fantastic. Works like a charm.

    Just one question: when i close my gprs connection (T-Mobile NL) and i am connected through wifi. i start up my browser, he still connects to gprs. How can i change that ?

    Thanks, Hans
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  149. Hey Hans, you need to go to the browser -> optinons -> settings -> general -> Access point and choose "Always ask". That way you can be sure it will use the connection you tell it to use.

    Let me know if this works for you.
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  151. Bought 6 days back.works fine.two things i would like to mention.Light leaking not only from menu and camera button but also below the home button and below q and a button.Also the back cover seems to be loose.The steel back is quite magnetic to fingerprints,on cleaning the cover becomes loose.Is it one off case?
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  152. Where the name of the provider appears (in the same place as the name of the website appears when browsing) some words are faded (less lit). Does this also occur in your phone?
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  153. Dr. Frank MehtaDec 22, 2009 07:10 AM
    I absolutely LOVED this review. This is BY FAR THE BEST REVIEW of a Mobile Phone that I have read on the internet. The concept of asking questions and answering each and every one of them personally needs to be applauded and is the best way to know more about the phone! It has yet to be beat by any other review!

    As for my query, I would like to ask if the E72 comes with a SERVICE LIGHT like the N73 etc, which blinks all the time, and sometimes in different colours to alert one of various alerts. I had read somewhere that the optical button in the navi key doubles up as one. Is it true?
    I have more questions, but I know you would be burdened with a lot more from the others, so yea, one at a time!
    Cheers man, You are absolutely fantastic!
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  154. DrParesh, some suffer from loose back covers, some don't. I've tried 3 retail units so far besides my proto, none of the 3 had a loose back cover. However, I cannot presume it will stay the same after several weeks, I've only played around with them for a couple of hours. We're going to have to wait and see what people are saying.

    Anonymous, yes with long names some part of the words towards the end tends to get "washed out". Used to happen with the E71 but was improved with the E72. It's not totally gone I guess.

    Dr. Frank Mehta, thank you for your compliments. I am happy to know readers are enjoying the concept. The idea of this website is to help people make the decision of buying a mobile phone while at home behind their screens, if not, well I can at least help them form a better idea of the device I have in hand. Your feedback is much appreciated. As for your query, yes the Navi Key doubles as one, Nokia calls it "breathing light". It acts as the "pulse" of the phone while the screen is totally off to save power, thus allowing you to know your handset is not turned off but the screen is. And when you get different events (missed call, sms, email) the light blinks for a certain amount of time every couple of seconds and you can control that period of time from the settings menu, even set it to blink indefinitely. It doesn't, however, have different colors, just bright white.
    Shoot the rest of the questions, I'll do my best to get back to you as soon as possible.
    Cheers!
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  155. Dr. Frank MehtaDec 23, 2009 06:03 AM
    Great! Perfect answer. And thanks for your promptness!
    ANy inputs on the 'Tap for Time' feature that is not spoken about too much online???
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  156. Thanks for your prompt response.
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  157. Thanks for all the time you put into answering these questions. I have three unrelated questions:

    1) One issue rarely mentioned about E71 (and possibly other E series) is the slight LED blink prior to taking a picture or video. Despite all flash activity being turned off, the blink happens. Nokia admits this is to prevent people from taking photos of others without their knowledge. But other legitimate reasons exist for wanting a completely disabled flash during picture taking. Can you verify the E72 has the same behavior?

    2) The input language is claimed to be more than just english. In fact the user manual from Nokia mentions an included English-Chinese dictionary and implies chinese input methods. Do you notice such options in your E72? And if chinese language input is somehow included, how does browsing asian (chinese, specifically japanese) websites look? On my E71, I hacked it to include japanese fonts to view such sites well. And localization software exists to allow input as well. I'm wondering if E72 has some of this built-in.

    thanks

    -Henry
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  158. Which version of Garmin did you installed into your E72?
    I had mine crashed on me a few times during driving...
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  159. hmm i just want to ask...

    1) how do u use the wireless?? i've got one at home but it doesn't seem to connect

    2) does this phone actually have smileys.. u know emoticons like other phones have?
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