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Home / Cell phones / Music phones
Hands-on with the Nokia N81 8GB music phoneBy Sindre Lia, 24 October 2007
GALLERY
Nokia N81 8GB
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Nokia N81 8GB
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Nokia N81 8GB
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Nokia N81 8GB
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Nokia N81 8GB
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We've spent some time with the Nokia N81 8GB at the CTIA show floor; read on to find out what we think about Nokia's latest music phone.

We're still waiting for N-Gage to launch for real, so the Nokia N81 didn't take our breath away at first sight. Still, we think the phone is a compelling choice due to its good mixture of multimedia features on one hand, and its calling and messaging functionality on the other hand.

As a music phone, the 8GB version will easily compete with other phones of that kind. As a gaming phone, it'll likely be the best one available for quite some time. Worth noting, however, the N81 is no über-smartphone of Nokia N95 or i-mate Ultimate 9502 caliber.

As a music phone, we think the Nokia N81 8GB performs pretty well. That said, the N81 has its flaws and shortcomings, such as the lack of HSDPA and microSD slot. But so does most of the other 8GB music phones available.

Although we were skeptical when it was first announced, we think Nokia's N81 8GB may become a popular choice in the multimedia phone market.

The Quad-band Nokia N81 8GB should be available as an unlocked phone soon, selling for approximately $600, initially.
Best Multimedia smartphones
Name Score Price Carrier
C
Nokia N95 8GB NAM 85% $650 Unlocked
Nokia N95 80% $530 Unlocked
Apple iPhone 75% $400 AT&T
Helio Ocean 72% $200 Helio
RIM Blackberry Curve 64% $200 AT&T
Nokia N76 60% $500 Unlocked
Motorola Q9m (Verizon Wireless) 58% $250 Verizon Wireless
Nokia N75 55% $200 AT&T
HTC Touch (Sprint) 55% $250 Sprint
HTC Touch 50% $530 Unlocked
Click here to see full and advanced chart »
 
 
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