The Nokia N80 was a revolution in mobile smart-phone design. It promised so much and in principle it delivered. With a high resolution beautiful screen and 3 megapixel camera, you could be sure that the N80 was destined for greatness.
The Nokia N80 was one of the lightest smart-phones to ever be released. At just 134g in weight, it did not feel bulky compared to other phones in the marketplace that it was competing against. On the other hand, if you want style and panache, there are many other phones out there that can fulfil that criterion much more effectively.
The slide design on the Nokia N80 was unique for its time. The sliding mechanism is smooth and feels great. There is a slight problem with the phone unlocking in your pocket and making calls, but this does not happen all that frequently.
The Nokia N80 is a 3G mobile phone and as a result it benefits from high speed data transfer capabilities. This was one of the first Nokia mobile phones to support streaming mobile TV. Because of the size and clarity of the Nokia N80 screen watching mobile TV is possible, but make sure that you use the headset provided.
The display on the N80 deserves a mention. It measures 352 X 288 pixels and supports 262,144 colours. This really is the best aspect of the N80. Although the camera is 3 megapixels, it lacks the clarity found on models such as the Sony Ericsson K800i. Video quality is very good however.
Battery life is where the Nokia N80 really falls down. In standby mode you will be lucky to get a maximum of 2 days from it. This is not great if you are away from a charger for long periods of time. If you are looking to use the MP3 player or the wi-fi connectivity then you will really struggle with the battery life.
Initially the Nokia N80 had a lot of software bugs. These have been fixed with recent firmware upgrades, but it is still worth bearing in mind in case you purchase one of the older models. You can get the latest firmware upgrades for free at any Nokia service centre.
Overall the Nokia N80 was a breakthrough in Mobile phone technology. It was one of the first phones to combine a phone with multimedia capabilities and wi-fi technology. The Nokia N95 has since succeeded it, so if you are looking for a new mobile phone you would be better choosing this.
