Unfortunately, the N97 mini’s battery is simply too weak for a high-end phone. It’s nowhere near the hilariously short battery lifespan of the original N95, but the 1200mAh BL-4D simply doesn’t provide enough juice to use the phone for an appreciable amount of time. The N97 mini will require daily recharging, especially for power users. 1200mAh is plenty to be sure, but it seems like the phone is less frugal with power.

This drawback is glaring enough that I’d actually like Nokia to come out with the N97 mini 2 as soon as possible, the top priority of this desired project figuring out how to cram the N97’s 1500mAh BP-4L battery into the mini’s handier form factor—while still keeping the complete feature set that made the N97 a winner in my book, and the slight tweaks that makes the N97 mini better than the original.

As for new N97 mini owners, keep your fingers crossed. Let’s hope this phone reaches critical mass, enough for third-party suppliers or Nokia itself to come out with an extended battery kit, complete with a bulging backplate necessary to cover such a power pack’s necessarily increased thickness.

In any case, the Nokia N97 mini is available from Buy.com and NewEgg.com:

From Buy.Com ($500)

NewEgg.com ($480)

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It’s possible to switch between conversations, meaning users can chat with multiple contacts simultaneously. On the S60 version (tested on an N97), sending and receiving around 50 IMs via HSDPA added up to about 450kb/73kb of download/upload bandwidth usage. Needless to say the speed of the app depends on network coverage and phone connectivity. Connections are possible through mobile broadband and WiFi.

Palringo also supports the sending of photo and audio messages, straight from the phone’s camera or audio recorder. What’s weird though is the app can’t seem to pull content already available on the gadget itself, limiting multimedia messages to the recently captured.

The IM integration app also needs work with how it manages contacts. While it categorizes them conveniently under offline and online sections, there’s no way to narrow down the list (by search text, IM service, etc.). Locating a contact to chat sometimes requires significant scrolling.

Despite these issues however, the real-time communication allowed by Palringo makes it stand out as a mobile instant messaging application. Visit the official site for more information.

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Aside from a better case, Nokia should’ve included the N97 into its Comes With Music program (currently unavailable for this phone, much less in the Philippines). The phone isn’t as hip or youth-oriented as the 5800, but purchasing a flagship Nokia model always represents brand loyalty and a significant investment for the buyer. Why not reward that kind of devotion?

All things said, each Nokia N97 comes with a lot of useful items. At the very least, the USB data cable, hands-free kit, charger adapter, and the phone’s built-in 32GB of memory means you don’t have to buy accessories to maximize the N97. The bundle is good, but pretty much standard for a high-end phone.

As far as I know, the N97 isn’t under Nokia’s Comes With Music program, which allows new phone owners to purchase as much music as they want within a year from the Nokia music store. Nokia can easily change this, and even make it available retroactively to early adopters. That will definitely provide more value for the N97.

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A complete log of the phone’s usage over two days, accompanied by frequent updates on remaining battery life, is available on Philippine affiliate Technograph.

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You see, the N97 uses a microUSB port for both its USB cable and charger. This means older Nokia chargers won’t work with the phone—unless the bundled adapter is used. At least this means the phone can also draw power through a computer’s USB port.

At least the adapter accepts the older, thicker charger-pin, and the much thinner one found in newer models. This should serve as warning for N97 owners to keep track of what comes with their phone, because if they lose the included charger and adapter, they’ll have no choice but to rely on the USB cable for charging, buy a new charger from Nokia (which comes at a price of course).

Unless of course, this new USB-based charging format represents Nokia’s plans for future models. You never know. (Oh wait, it does!)

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• The N97 is very similar in size to the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic in terms of thickness and width, and slightly longer. Will cause pocket bulge but is still impressive for a flagship.
• Compared to the N96 and N95, the N97 is more responsive. Still a bit slow though, especially when trying to run apps that use connectivity a lot (Maybe using a phone under better 3G or 3.5G coverage will provide better results?
• The sliding mechanism of the N97 is very solid and feels well made. A ribbon cable connects the upper part of the phone to the rest of the device. Very inaccessible, but this is a worrying vulnerability—cut the cable, goodbye phone?
• The QWERTY keyboard feels a bit flat. Maybe the next model should take a cue from the E-series keyboard and use slightly rounded keys?
• Why drop the plectrum/guitar key, used as the stylus for the 5800, and replace it with a detachable pen? Detachable = easily lost.

That’s all I’ve got now. A full review to follow when possible. For now, pics! (Click them thumbnails for the full-size editions)

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It seems the Nokia N97 will rely on brackets to push the top part to the side and up. Definitely not as seamless as the XPERIA X1, but it works for me. At the very least, the mechanism satisfies the gaudy need to showcase the actual model name of the phone, and the specs summary. Who this satisfies I honestly have no idea.

According to nokia.com.ph/n97preorder, the pre-order period for the Philippines will run from June 16-18. Will this apply to other countries as well? Your guess is as good as mine, but I’ll share any info as I find it out.

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N96 buyers, consider yourselves screwed. Nokia’s just announced the N97, continuing the kitchen-sink tradition of the N9x series.

Perhaps taking a cue from the Sony Ericsson Xperia X1, Nokia has made their new flagship a side-slider, which reveals a QWERTY keyboard underneath. Standard high-end features like WiFi, Bluetooth, HSDPA, and a 5 megapixel camera are on-board, as well as the welcome integration of the standard 3.5mm headphone jack. More info, specs, pics, and a video for those who keep reading.

You can expect the N97 to offer the usual Symbian S60 5th edition experience (to be found on the 5800 XpressMusic), but let’s see how it works with the 3.5” widescreen (640 x 360 pixel touchscreen) and 32GB of integrated memory (a microSD slot will accept up to 16GB of additional memory, according to the press release). Check out the company video for a virtual N97 in action:

And see this iPhone-N97 comparison via Robert Scoble (take care of your phone man!):

Perhaps the most important info—aside from the projected price of 550 euros and Q2 2009 release—is the battery capacity. A phone with so much functionality needs juice to run properly after all, and it’s probable Nokia will equip the N97 with the 5800’s 1320 mAh battery (here’s to hoping they’ll shoot for 1500 mAh). Expect updates on this as they become available.

(N97 product pics courtesy of Nokia)

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