Yesterday I switched my Cingular SIM from the N73 to the N80 as I am testing a piece of software and needed to use the WiFi in order to make use of certain features…
This morning I took the N80 from the charger at about 7:30 and at 11:40 it was dead. I had burned through all the battery had to offer and was without a charger in the car. Fortunately I was only a few miles from my home base and able to reconnect soon enough, but this is simply dreadful performance.
I actually really like the N80. I love the form factor (great slider and keyboard), love the WiFi with VOIP support (though use it sparingly) and today for the first time, seriously noticed how much faster it felt than my N73. I’ve installed fewer things on the N80 as it’s been more of a secondary device, but it’s seriously fast when moving through the UI and in particular when dealing with SMS messages.
This am, soon after disconnecting from my charger, I activated Twitter SMS and began to receive a steady stream of updates. I checked a few links out via EDGE while still in the house (keeping WiFi off with scanning off) and checked GMail once before taking my daughter to school. At that time, my N800 Tablet switched from my home WiFi connection to bluetooth DUN with the N80 and continued to be connected that way until I eventually ran out of juice before Noon. Through the course of the morning I made 4 calls, checked GMail on both the N80 and N800 and did a slew of SMS (probably close to 50 messages) with Twitter. While waiting to pick my daughter back up at school at 11:30 I noticed I had two bars left on the battery and received my first low battery warning shortly thereafter. The phone died before I got back home…
This is a great device that is severely hamstrung by an abominable battery. The N73 I’ve been using daily for months easily handles the same tasks (though perhaps with considerably less SMS) and can easily go well into the evening without issue. When the battery on your phone can’t even make it to lunch you start doubting how you can even use it without being near a constant power source — which completely kills the mobility!
Technorati Tags: GMail, Mobile, N-Series, N80i, Nokia, Battery, Twitter
I have to agree 100%. The battery, coupled with my dissatisfaction with the camera, is the reason I got rid of my N80 for the N73.
However, everytime I see an N80, I long for it. The form factor and size are KILLER, and in black, the thing is just plain sexy.
Hopefully we’ll see a black N95 someday, as by most accounts it seems to be the upgraded N80.