A Product Review: Nokia N810 Portable Internet Tablet

It is amazing how far technology has come in the last few years. It seems like yesterday I was paying a premium for an ultraportable laptop that had fewer capabilities than this Nokia N810. This Nokia combines the versatility of a tablet PC with the mobility of a cell phone (although it is not a cell phone), this is a remarkable piece of technology and I'm please to have my hands on one. I'm going to give you guys the run down.

First the stats:

What makes this an amazing piece of machinery is its sheer size, or lack thereof. It is 9.4x7.5x3.1 (length, width, height)

It weighs in at 1.6 lbs

It has a 4.1" LCD wide touch screen

2 GB of internal memory, expandable via SD card.

Integrated GPS receiver

In the box: Headphones, portable charger, automobile platform, cables, documentation

First the connectivity is exceptional. I've had no problems connecting to networks that my laptop considers to have "weak" signals. The 802.11b/g gives you standard connectivity options; I would like to see some of the new wireless formats supported. The screen is a touch screen which makes navigating the software a breeze. The QWERT keyboard that slides out is a great feature as the onscreen keyboard is a bit cumbersome. The screen resolution is 800 x 400 which is decent for its size. I have run into some problems with video that runs at a higher resolution, perhaps the software will be optimized with patches to automatically work through this though, until then the video play performance is sub-par in my opinion.

The software is nice and seamless. It hasn't had any sort of "crash" since I've had it. It is limited with what is pre-installed but there are plenty of free add-ons available on the internet (anything from games to simple word processors.)

The integrated webcam is a great surprise. It truly is an internet machine. What makes it something special is that it's also an MP3 player, and handheld GPS receiver. The GPS receiver comes in handy when traveling, especially in larger cities. With the preloaded maps you can look up locations by address and even use it to find hotspots. This isn't an option in my area but if you're in a large metropolitan area it would undoubtedly come in handy. Although if your cell phone supports data transfer you can just use it's connection and you won't have to worry with finding a hotspot. The GPS feature although a novelty the software / maps are substantial enough to replace your car's GPS.

The integrated speakers leave a little to be desired, the same is true with the headphones. You'll need to have your own headphones to get the most out of this. Another point I'm a little disappointed in is the battery life. With about 3 hours of run time (their materials claim 4) while connected to the internet it seems to fall a little short. The battery life is considerably longer when the wifi is turned off reducing it to a glorified MP3 player. Although very small, its way too big to ever act as a primary MP3 playing device.

In summation sitting weighing in at the $300-400 price point it all depends on your need. Don't expect a PDA, its not. It's a web browsing machine and if you're an internet junkie and a blackberry is inadequate then this is probably a good option for you. If you enjoy doing things like typing up a blog or browsing youtube.com on the fly, then this is you. The GPS is a cool feature but not terribly useful. Ultimately I think it is worth the money. If you give it some time you might see a little bit of a price drop, it is a deal now, but in 5 months it will surely be a steal.