Good things come in small packages… 7.5 x 9.4 x 3.2 packages to be precise. The Nokia N800 Internet Tablet PC is one of the new breed of web-enabled devices that use 802.11b/g Wi-Fi to connect to the world with Internet calling, IM and multimedia capabilities. Is it worth the low $239.00 sale price we have featured?
The device is described by the manufacturer as including:
4.1-inch touchscreen has an 800 x 400-pixel resolution with up to 65,536 colors. You can access controls with your fingers or use the included stylus, and the N800 provides intuitive handwriting recognition and a full-screen finger keyboard.
Rechargeable battery provides up to 10 days of standby time and up to 3 hours of continuous Web browsing or media playback.
256 MB of on-board flash memory and 128 MB of RAM. It also offers two expansion slots that are compatible with Secure Digital (SD), MultiMedia, miniSD, and microSD memory cards with a size limit of 2 GB. (Adapter required for miniSD and microSD.) You can also connect the N800 to a PC using the included USB cable to update software and transfer files from the PC to the a memory card. For multimedia playback, the N800 is compatible with MP3 and WMA digital audio files (as well as AAC, M3U, and WAV), Real Audio streams, and video files encoded as AVI or MPEG4. The UPnP media server lets users share music, video, and photos with others on the same Wi-Fi network. The device uses two integrated speakers as well as a headphone jack for personal listening.
Features the Opera web browser, which provides Flash 7 multimedia support. Other applications include an RSS feed reader (for accessing all your favorite news sources), a PDF reader, image viewer, Internet radio player, and instant messenger with voice and video conferencing capabilities (using the Jabber and Google Talk services).
Built-in chat programs and easy-to-use onscreen keyboard.
While there are a few three star reviews, most self-professed “gear heads” rated this device with 4 or 5 stars. Here’s one user’s detailed review:
INTERNET - I am a little frustrated over Internet visibility, even though the resolution is excellent. When I magnify the webpage for text, the icons also magnify and crowd out the visibility of the text, so I cannot read all the information. My laptop is obviously much more accommodating. The I-phone does a better job with the visibility issue.
NOKIA DOWNLOADS - I am having trouble finding just where there might be a complete list of available downloads for this great little thing. The ones recommended within the device are good, but the list is small. I am looking for something like OPEN OFFICE, so I have good calendar and address book programs. I would also like a good Bible reader and recording software, which I am not finding.
SKYPE - I downloaded SKYPE right away, and when I call my friends, they say they can hear me just fine, so the microphone and speakers are adequate. My one criticism of the software is that I cannot type in the name of someone and just isolate that person. I have to scroll to find the person I want to call.
RADIO - One of the most pleasant surprises for me as been Internet radio. I can easily download the radio stations I want to listen to and pick them up when in a WIFI environment. The Sound Quality is excellent. As for local radio, I love the fact that I can pick up local FM stations. I just wish I could also pick up AM stations. Is there software out there to do that?
MEMORY - I appreciate that there are two SD card slots for external memory. I have downloaded a lot of my digital music, and it is easier to use for choosing selections than my daughter’s mp3 player. They say the maximum capacity is 2 gigs for each card, but I am going to try an 8 gig card in one of the slots to see if it will play all of the digital music I have stored on my laptop.
TEXT - So far, the only useful software I have downloaded is the PDF reader. Nothing Microsoft can be read by the Nokia N800 as it has come, and I have not yet found any software that will allow me to read my documents from Word, Excel, Power Point… I hope there is software that will allow me to store my documents with Microsoft software on my SD card, but allow me to read and even edit my documents on this handheld.
EMAIL - I am enjoying the email software this device came pre-loaded with. I have two different servers sending my emails to this little device, and it has been very handy for reading, but not for editing, just because the keyboard is so small.
So if you’re the type that likes to have multiple gadgets, this is a low cost option. From what I’m reading, though, those interested in the MOST power and the MOST options should probably look elsewhere. Anyone with another opinion?
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