Nokia E90 review

Nokia E90 Review

Reviewed by: Andrew Lim

Reviewed on: 29 August 2007

Accessing all the features you'd need while out on business is made easy using the dedicated keys on top of the Qwerty keypad. The large screen splits certain sections into two halves and lets you view all your message folders, for example, without needing to go in and out of every one.

In many ways the E90 is like the Nokia N95 in a different casing, but where it comes into its own is when you need to type out a long email. This device is an email machine and once you've set it up (or got your IT administrator or a tech-savvy mate to), you'll really appreciate its mini-laptop-like design.

Reading and writing emails on the E90 is quick and easy to do and you can view and edit attachments using Quick Office.

Fortunately, it's not all calendars and emails. Nokia has crammed in some media functionality, too, letting you do much more than just work on it. There's a 3.2-megapixel camera, for example, that features autofocus and an LED photo light.

The camera is relatively good compared to other smart phone cameras but not as good as the Nokia N95's, and the lack of xenon flash means that shots in low light don't come out too well.

The E90 has a 3.2-megapixel camera on the back, but unfortunately no xenon flash

Should you choose to, you can make video calls on this handset using the secondary 0.3-megapixel (VGA) camera.

You'll also find an MP3 player that supports AAC files, and an FM radio. We're disappointed, however, to see a 2.5mm headphone jack instead of a standard 3.5mm headphone jack, as found on the Nokia N95.

Performance
Audio quality during calls is loud and clear and the speakerphone works really well, even with the speaker on the bottom side.

Browsing the Web and accessing applications was relatively smooth, a noticeable change from older Communicators.

Picture quality from the 3.2-megapixel camera was clear and sharp when viewed on the screen, but less so when printed out at full size.

We found battery life to be good, lasting for over two days, even when moderately using HSDPA or Wi-Fi, but it noticeably drained faster when using GPS. It's quoted at up to 5.8 hours' talk time on GSM and up to 14 days standby on GSM.

Conclusion
The E90 is big, bulky and not for the faint-hearted. It's the kind of phone you could use to defend yourself with in a fight -- and win.

If you're a veteran Nokia Communicator or Psion user you'll definitely appreciate the improved features. If, however, you're not, and you don't want a huge handset that won't fit in your pocket, you're better off getting a Nokia N95 or a smaller Windows Mobile handset, such as the HTC S710.

Edited by Jason Jenkins
Additional editing by Kate Macefield