The Nokia 9000 Series has been integrated with Nokia's new Eseries portfolio to produce the E90 Communicator. It has retained its original folding design, but added new features and more power, meaning this handset is faster and offers more than any Communicator device to date.
The E90 is currently available for free on a monthly contract from several major networks.
Design
The Nokia E90 looks like a giant phone from the 80s when it's shut, but open it up and it transforms into what looks like a mini laptop. It's definitely not pocket-friendly in any way, but is one of the most stylish Nokia devices in its class and has a solid feel and quality finish.
As with all the previous Communicator handsets, the E90 boasts a large internal colour screen and full Qwerty keypad. The latter lets you tap out long emails and read them in relative comfort, thanks to its long, wide design.
The keys on the keypad provide a good amount of tactile feedback although we did find the space bar a little stiff. The internal display is sharp and great for using to view emails, photos and Web pages.
Of course, you wouldn't want to make phone calls on the E90 when it's open, which is why there's an external screen and keypad. Both are well laid-out and convenient to use for calling and writing quick text messages.
Unlike previous Communicator external displays, the E90's gives you access to every feature available on the phone. This is very useful and less fiddly than having to open the phone up.
Holding the internal and external sections together are two chunky metal hinges that prop the screen up at varying angles. These allow you to view the large internal screen on your desk or hold it up completely flat, which is good when writing emails.
Features
This is one of the most feature-packed smart phones Nokia has produced so far and, unlike previous 9000 Series handsets, runs on the S60 platform. You can keep in touch practically anywhere you go via infrared, Bluetooth, quad-band GSM, HSDPA (3.5G) and Wi-Fi.
As with Nokia's consumer-based smart phone, the Nokia N95, the E90 comes with built-in GPS and Nokia maps. It serves its purpose when looking for an address on foot, but we found it a little slow to pick up a GPS signal and you need to pay to get step-by-step and voice navigation.
Browsing the Web was also a little less exciting than we expected because certain pages took a while to render properly, but once they did the large screen made them much easier to view than on smaller phones.
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User reviews4
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haddock 29 March 2008
Good: Screen, keyboard, potential huge functionality
Bad: It's just too slow
Comment: I have given up on the E90 after about 5 months - and with 13 months to run on the contract. It would be wonderful if it worked, but it doesn't work well enough. Collecting exchange email is absurdly slow, takes minutes just to check. GPS takes up to half an hour to lock onto satellites. Firmware updater software is hopeless, and even after battling through to install updates they don't really do much to improve things.
If this phone worked instantly, responded to key presses immediately (instead of taking seconds to even register that the key has been pressed), worked smoothly with email and just generally didn't keep you hanging round for far too long, it would be the perfect phone for me, the one I hoped it would be and the one I signed up to this stupid contract to be able to get.
Instead it's a real disappointment, an expensive mistake. It might impress in the reviewer's lab but in the real world it's an encumberance.
Now I have a Blackberry and am wondering, when it comes to email, if they can do it why can't Nokia?
Paul Mulvey 29 February 2008
Good: a swiss army knife of a phone
Bad: it weighs so much that it is damaging the pocket in my suit
Comment: I'm a veteran of Psions and Nokia Communicators - and this is the best one yet. Not as elegant as the 9300i, but far quicker, more reliable and packed with just about every feature you could imagine. The build quality is superb - and that is not something you could say about all its predecessors. On the downside - the GPS is a bit slow to lock on to satellites and (a perpetual issue with Communicators) the Office suite has rather limited functionality, even when you have paid-up over the website to upgrade it. Overall, however, it's great fun and good value - as long, that is, as you don't mind the large bulge it makes in your pocket.
Rodolfo Crespo 5 December 2007
Good: You can use it like a lagtop but it is also a very good phone!
Bad: Price!
Comment: It can replace your lagtop when travelling but it still a very good telephone. It is heavy and strong and you feel you can trust it!
See all 4 user reviews