Nokia N70

Many of you have been writing some pretty strange cons to this phone, such as "It crashes frequently", "Slow to open applications", "battery life" and the classic "not enough memory" - Well this is not only a review, but a, well sort of a "Help File" too for you to get round some problems.

First of all, i will talk about problems i\'ve seen other ciao members discuss.

1. It Crashes Frequently: This hasn't been a problem with me to be honest, and i install a lot of programs on my phone, though if it does seem to crash a lot, you can update its firmware using a computer. This is brilliant, since it repairs bugs in previous phones, and makes it a lot faster too. Also make sure there isn\'t anything clogging up in the device manager. It does have a file explorer, though you can use the freeware FExplorer from gosymbian to view it. Have a look in there to see for any useless files - I know .jar and .sis files tend to build up in folders when they haven't been installed, also, move files, games etc to a memory card (RS-MMC, and a 64mb does come with it), as this will help you. It could also be the software you are using - Some large applications (particulary emulators) can take up a lot of RAM and cause your phone to crash. and check to see if you have any start-up programs - as this slows your phone down dramatically. You can tell if a program does start-up automatically by looking in its settings, or get a process viewer, as this shows all the active theads.

*** Top Tip: To boot your phone in safe mode, hold down the pencil key when you turn it on. This disables any start-up programs ***

2. Slow to open applications: This might be because the program doesn't support the N70, or some products like Adobe Reader generally loads quite slowly (Same as the PC version). The best thing is to check if that version supports the N70 (generally the operating system as a whole [Symbian OS 8.1])
You can also move applications to folders, as this can save some time opening them, and opening the menu.

3. Battery Life: Depending on your phone's settings, the battery tends to drain slightly quicker. Try some of these:
1. Disable 3G
2. Reduce the backlight settings
3. Check volume settings (when playing music)
4. Disable the animated screensaver
5. Make sure the internet isn't always connected

The N70's battery life seems fine to me, though i have 2 other batteries anyway (Its always handy to have 2 extra nokia phones)
And you can get a better battery, though you probably cant use the back cover with it (e.g. the N-Gage QD's battery)

4. Not Enough Memory: Just buy another memory card lol - or you can get either "Stacker" or "Space Doubler" - Which are automated compressors, which compress your programs

5. Difficult To Navigate: This is generally a big problem to people who have just entered into the technology world. All i can advise is just fiddle with the phone to get used to its immense features.

6. Slow Image Viewer: This only really happens in the gallery, and only once. What it does is build up little preview pictures called thumbnails. Once they are all there, it wont be so slow. There is also some pretty good image viewers out on the market too, and you can also use a file explorer (such as FExplorer) to open images.

7. Weak Front Camera: This is because its meant for video calling, and to put a 2mp camera at the front would be stupid, since its easier to call from a 0.3mp (the front camera) rather than a 2mp, due to the fact it'll cost a lot in terms of data usage, and it will make it look very laggy on another phone.

8. Flimsy Back Cover: All i got to say here is, what do you prefer, a scratched camera or a scratched back cover?

9. Big & Heavy: This is because its a good phone - It has many features and is meant for businessmen - Who dont care what a phone looks like

10. No Auto keylock: There is. Look in the settings > security and you will see it there. Also there are programs to lock it, though i prefer the default one

11. Small Keys: They are fine for me, though i am a child

12. Unreliable software: Google for some good software, they are lots of free software about

Generally when there is a problem, its because of you (no offense) - Though most problems can be sorted, which is why it is a very good phone

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Anyway, now onto what i think of it, and i'll start with...

1. Imaging (Camera & Image editing)
The camera as you well know is 2mp, and supports video recording. It has a very good zoom function, and can record in either 3gp or mp4.
The camera has a few tricks too - being able to inverse the colours before you take a picture (plus other effects) is a brilliant feature. It gives pretty good quality and has a flash (which makes a fine torch, though other software is needed for it)

Its editing suite is brilliant too - You are able to add little images to people to make brilliant comedy images, reduce red eye plus a lot more.

2. Connectivity: It comes with bluetooth, SMS, MMS, E-Mail, GPRS and 3G. Its bluetooth is secure, so people wont browse your files, it has a great messaging system, with copy and paste, plus e-mail for those who want to go one further and it has video calling (3G) for that cherry on the cake. 3g is very very fast (i reached very quick speeds browsing the internet using it)

It also has USB (Pop Port), though you will need the drivers for it.

3. Is the built in and extra programs. It comes with "QuickOffice" - a moble version of microsoft office, a nice feature for businessmen on the go. It has Adobe Reader, a great eBook reader, and a trail of Symantec Anti-Virus. I personally cannot see the point in that, you'll never get a virus, though you can show off to friends saying you have a firewall on your phone. lastly is Opera - A marvellous web browser (which is free on N70)

It also has a lot of cool apps as default too, such as the extended gallery, a file manager plus much more.

Also, there is a wide range of software available for the n70 - Such as audio/video players, image editing etc.

4. Audio/Vido Playback: it comes with real player and a great mp3 player, plus a radio for that little bit extra for you. Its quality and volume are brilliant, alongside the video, which displays video's perfectly.

5. The Operating System: Its operating system plays a key part in the phones success (Symbian OS 8) - As it has the most available software for it, and like the above, there is a wide range of cool stuff for it.

6. The screen: It has a great screen, it looks great and the device can be customised via its themes, thanks to its symbian OS

7. Gaming: Since its symbian, it has a wider range of apps, the main area i use is emulators. It has a large amount of RAM (especially compared to older phones) which makes it able to emulate a lot. Its java is great as well, though some gamers wont like it for games, since its the classic candy bar style phone and it can make it hard to play

8. Note that i originally missed out (thanks to COOOEEE for reminding me) is that it has brilliant reception in all areas and networks plus brilliant call quality, the handset does have a loudspeaker and a headset, plus great, odd-looking & feeling headphones to take the calls. Alongside the great quality, it has one of the best call times i've seen - And if you want to take control of call barring, there is great software to block spam messages and completly blocks phone calls, which altogether makes this phone not a phone, but something more...

Altogether (hopefully i haven't missed anything in this 1200+ word essay, it is a very good phone, and i give it 10/10

Quick note: Many people would like to play other formats on this phone, i reccommend you look for OggPlayMMF and CorePlayer - With these two apps it can make your phone a true media station. And as the ultimate cherry on the top, it can play n-gage games too!