Nokia N8 at Rs 26,000 a good buy? Let's find out

Nokia N8 at Rs 26,000 a good buy? Let's find out

Nokia has finally revealed the MRP for the the much anticipated Nokia N8 smartphone. The Nokia N8 (with a 12MP camera) will sell for Rs. 26,259 at stores across India. Pricing for this high-end mobile phone seems very competitive - consider that their previous flagship device, the Nokia N97 was launched at around Rs 30,000 just over a year ago. So, is the Nokia N8 worth all the waiting or are there better options for you?

If you are a Nokia fan considering the N8 phone, it looks like a very promising buy. But for a prospective smartphone buyer who has Rs. 25,000 to spend on a device, the decision rests on many other factors apart from the pricing. The Nokia N8 pricing has made it clear, in terms of choices available for a prospective buyer.

So here are the options that you have, competing alongside the Nokia N8. We shall highlight the strengths of each of these devices against Nokia's latest offering available in shops, to try and help you arrive at your buying decision.


HTC Desire: The HTC Desire is a smartphone with a 3.7-inch screen that runs on Android 2.1 (upgradeable to Android 2.2) and an MRP of Rs. 26,799. The first aspect of the Desire that comfortably beats the N8, is the 3.7-inch AMOLED screen with a higher resolution of 480x800. While the Nokia also has an AMOLED display, it looked surprisingly dull (which may have had something to do with the Gorilla Glass it uses) during our hands-on test. The Desire is powered by a 1GHz processor and 512MB of RAM while the N8 has to make do with a 680MHz processor and 256MB of RAM. The Desire also has a more powerful battery, rated at 1400 mAh while the N8 has a 1200 mAh battery. Also, thanks to its Android OS, the Desire has a much better integration with Google's ubiquitous online services than the N8 could ever hope to.



Samsung Galaxy S: The Samsung Galaxy S priced at Rs. 27,749 is an excellent smartphone that beat out the Apple iPhone 3GS to claim the top spot in our list of Top 5 High-End Smartphones. It also runs Android 2.1 with Samsung's intuitive TouchWiz UI and has a 4-inch screen. Like the Desire, the screen of the Galaxy S outshines that of the N8 with its size and resolution of 480x800. The UI and OS is also much more evolved than Symbian^3. As a result, not only do you get more homescreens - you get to play around with more widgets and the touch response feels smoother than that of the N8. The hardware innards of the Galaxy is also more impressive than the N8's, as it includes a 1GHz processor and 512MB RAM.




HTC Legend: The HTC Legend carries a price-tag of Rs. 22,769 and is an Android 2.1 smartphone. It has a 3.2 inch screen, and a 5MP autofocus camera with an LED flash. The basic Android UI of the HTC Legend is overlaid with HTC's Sense UI (like in the other HTC Android phones) which gives the Legend a greater usability factor than what Symbian^3 offers the N8. Also, the Legend might have specs that are a bit lower than the N8 (like the 600MHz processor and 3.2-inch screen) but it is also close to Rs. 3,500 cheaper.








Motorola Milestone XT720: At Rs. 26,119, the Motorola Milestone XT720 might call itself a tablet, but it is actually a very good Android smartphone. It runs Android 2.1 and has a 3.7-inch display with a 480x854 resolution. Apart from the screen (in which it beats the N8, at least in terms of size and resolution), the XT720 also has a 720MHz processor and an HDMI port (like the N8) that can output 720p video to an external display.












Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10: Sony Ericsson's first Android smartphone is showing its age with an Android 1.6 OS but its hardware still manages to impress. The Xperia X10 is also powered by a 1GHz processor and has a huge 4-inch screen with a resolution of 480x854. The X10 is pretty pricey though, at Rs. 27,399.









Where the Nokia N8 Wins Out: The Nokia N8 isn't Nokia's new flagship phone for no reason. It has plenty of features that excite and impress. To begin with, there is the 12MP camera with Xenon flash which hands down, beats not only all the phones mentioned above but quite probably is the best ever camera on a phone. Nokia has made the N8 a powerful multimedia device and predictably, it rules in terms of multimedia features. Its HDMI output feature is only matched by the Motorola XT720. The N8 has a dedicated 3D hardware accelerator which will help in driving games. The N8 also offers 16GB of internal storage along with microSD card expandability, which is a great feature. Other unique features such as USB-on-the-Go and scratch resistant Gorilla Glass strengthen the case for the Nokia N8 as the smartphone to buy.




In conclusion, like we mentioned earlier, if you have the dough for it and are a Nokia fan, buying the N8 is a definite yes. If you are looking for a super-charged multimedia phone, then again the N8 is a great choice. However, if you are expecting Symbian^3 to provide you the same usability as the Android OS or the iPhone OS, or provide the same degree of customization and performance as the Android OS, then you would be better off checking out the other phones mentioned above.