Back in January 2007 I had the chance to tour Nokia’s N-Series Pavilion at CES in Las Vegas. The buzz was all about the N95, Nokia’s then-unreleased flagship device with its 5MP camera, GPS, and extensive list of other features. But the N75 also caught my eye for two main reasons. First, it was by far the sleekest, sexiest handset I’d ever seen with the Nokia name on it. Second, it was being demoed with big ol’ DJ headphones hooked up to its 3.5mm audio jack.
A sexy Nokia with a real headphone port? Running Series 60? I couldn’t wait. Fast forward several months and the N76 is on the streets as an unlocked GSM handset compatible with AT&T and T-Mobile networks here in the US. While it’s still the slimmest Nokia I’ve ever seen, and has a lot going for it under the hood, two big problems with the N76 led to some major disappointment as I tested it out over the course of a few weeks. First, that slim body necessitates a slim battery, and that slim battery wasn’t always enough to power all of the functionality that comes with an N-Series device. Second, whoever decided to put the headphone jack on the phone’s hinge needs to head back to design school. More on that later ...
The N76 is basically a sleeker version of the N75, but it drew a lot of comparisons to the Motorola RAZR when I showed it to friends. At 106 x 52 x 14mm, the phone is long and flat like the iconic RAZR, and also features an etched metal keypad inside. My review sample was black with silver and chrome trim (a red version is also available), and while I didn’t care much for the silver band that wrapped around the outside front of the handset, I have to give kudos to Nokia for trying to step outside of their normal “practical” design aesthetic. On the down side, the glossy finish used on nearly all of the phone’s external surfaces is amazingly fingerprint-friendly. Use the N76 regularly and you’ll simply give up on trying to keep it smudge free.
An external display and three media player buttons grace the outside front cover of the phone, while the back panel features the camera sensor and LED assist light and a sliding battery panel - separated, of course, by said sliver colored accent band. A covered microSD card slot and uncovered AC adapter jack are found on the left edge of the N76, while its right panel houses volume controls, a shortcut key, and a dedicated camera button.
Open the clamshell and your reward is a huge, bright 2.4” LCD screen on top and that RAZR-esque etched metal keypad on the bottom. The standard 12-key dialing layout is augmented by additional buttons found on all of Nokia’s S60 handsets: beyond the five-way D-pad and Call and Cancel, you’ll find two softkeys, and four more buttons for menu, multimedia, edit, and clear. The shiny keypad was responsive and easy to use - typical Nokia functionality despite the fancy etched metal.
The back of the N76 is the site of the phone’s biggest design flaw. There on the hinge, next to the miniUSB port, is the 3.5mm stereo headphone jack. 3.5mm jacks are the bane of my existence as a phone reviewer - so many of today’s phones are marketed as “music phones,” and so few of them include this one 50-cent part that makes it easy to actually use the thing as a music player. Built-in 3.5mm jacks mean access to your favorite headphones without the need for silly adapters or expensive stereo Bluetooth accessories. And yet, so few of today’s handsets have standard headphone ports.
So what does Nokia do? They build their sleekest smartphone with a 3.5mm jack. Hurrah! But they go and put it on the hinge so when you’ve got headphones plugged in, you can’t flip the phone open. Seriously - the plug on your headphones gets in the way of the top part of the phone as you open it, so the best you can do is get the thing part-way open. Same goes for the USB port. Unbelievable.
Next: Display & Audio »
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