Nokia N80 review

Features
As a quad-band handset with 3G support the N80 is versatile, but over the air connections are only part of the story -- Bluetooth, infrared and Wi-Fi are also present. We love infrared for quick and easy one-off file exchange and think all handsets should continue to offer it. Wi-Fi, too, is a real bonus, and the N80 supports 802.11g connections (though as with all 'g' devices, it'll work with slower 'b' networks too).

The Wi-Fi is very easy to use. Just as with the N91, the N80 will search for various 'access points' including over the air connections and wireless networks. Select the one you like and a connection is made.

The high resolution 352x416 screen shows itself off nicely all round, and rarely better than when Web browsing (via Wi-Fi or over the air). But we are not fans of the browser software itself, which doesn't reformat pages for the handset's screen. The result is the need for horizontal as well as vertical scrolling, making reading text from a Web page really tedious. The 'page overview' is some compensation. It shows a full Web page miniaturised into the screen and you use a select box to pick the bit you want to hone in on, but thereafter need to scroll horizontally.

The 3-megapixel camera is superior to the 2-megapixel variety found in the N91, and not just for its number of pixels. The N80 has a flash and, still unusually for a handset, a macro mode which you flick into using a button underneath the lens. It is a shame there's no autofocus, though -- as a result you need a steady hand to take quality shots every time.

It is not unusual for a handset screen to flick into landscape mode when you run the camera, and that's what happens here. But this is a place where the 'stubby' format of the N80 helps, as in camera mode it feels a lot more like a standard digital camera than many handsets do.

There's a music player built in, and you can use the N80 as a mass storage device, which basically means you just use the provided cable to connect it to your PC and then copy music files over from your hard drive. There is 40MB of built-in memory, but Nokia boosts this with a 128MB miniSD card, and the music player will find music stored in either place. If you'd rather listen to the radio, the built-in one is fine, and its 20 presets mean you shouldn't lack stations. The N80 supports Visual Radio.

Alternatively, you can use the built in UPnP support for music streaming (and other file sharing) to and from devices on your own wireless network, if you have one -- including wireless music players. Devices need to support the UPnP standard for this to function, and while Nokia provides the software you'll need for your PC, you are on your own with the rest of your wireless world.

Performance
There is nothing wrong with call quality on the N80 and we could happily use it as our everyday handset in this respect.

The camera shoots nice quality images but without autofocus, you may find it difficult to keep your hands steady when taking photos.

Battery life is acceptable, but the temptation to use Wi-Fi when near a free access point will undoubtedly result in faster than usual drain. Bluetooth and 3G use will have the same effect. Rising to the challenge of using these features, plus some music playing for good measure, we found we could run the battery down pretty quickly. If this sounds like you, budget for daily charging.

Edited by Mary Lojkine
Additional editing by Kate Macefield