Nokia N810 Internet Tablet

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The Nokia N810 is the third in the Finnish company's series of Internet tablets, following the N770 and N800. It's the first one to come with a slide-out QWERTY keypad and has quite a number of new features to make it more than just an incremental update to the N800.

Upside:

At 226g, the N810 is only a touch heavier than the 206g N800 and is actually 4mm slimmer. Even then, Nokia managed to squeeze a sliding mechanism into the device which reveals a QWERTY keypad. This keypad is similar to those you might find on PDA-phones like the HTC TyTN II and O2 Xda Zinc. We found this keypad to be useful when typing in long URLs and when instant messaging. It isn't the best slide-out keyboard around, but it does the job and sure beats having to tap on the screen for text input.

The browser found on the N810 is based on Mozilla technology and has the Adobe Flash 9 plug-in. Unlike browsers found on most mobile phones and handhelds, this one will allow you to fully enjoy Web 2.0 sites like Facebook, YouTube and Google Docs as if you were using a desktop browser. We tried viewing a few YouTube clips using a wireless LAN connection, which loaded and played back without hitches. Flash games loaded fine too, but only those which were not graphics intensive (mostly word and puzzle games) were playable as the handheld's processor can't handle fast-moving action games.

The screen on the N810 has a resolution of 800 x 480. This is the same as many of the UMPCs including the popular Asus Eee PC. This renders most Web pages well, but does require quite a bit of vertical scrolling for most sites.

Though its main purpose is not to be a communication device like many of Nokia's products, the N810 is capable of most forms of Internet communication. Out of the box, you can set it up to make Internet calls using your Google Talk, Jabber or SIP accounts. Aside from those, it is also possible to download a version of Skype that works on its Internet Tablet OS. Similarly, you can also download the Pidgin IM client that supports all the major instant messaging services including MSN Live and Yahoo! IM.

One of the most significant additions to the N810 is the inclusion of a GPS chip. This allows it to act as a navigation device when used with the right maps. Nokia includes a cradle for use in a car but not a car charger. We were not able to test out this feature for now as the maps included with the review unit are meant for Europe.

Downside:

Though the N810 may seem like a nifty device to have around, it faces stiff competition not from another handheld, but from UMPCs. The Asus Eee PC costs a mere S$598, less than the retail price of the N810. Granted, the Eee PC does not have GPS, Bluetooth or a touchscreen, but it does have a full keyboard and the option to install any OS including Windows XP if you so desire. Some may argue they belong to two separate size categories (the Eee PC is much larger) and that makes them too different to be compared. But the truth is that their primary functions overlap enough so that a user will surely consider them two before shelling out money for an ultraportable Internet companion device.

Even though many applications can be, and have been, created for its Linux-based OS, basic functions like instant messaging still require someone to find and install third-party applications. It would have been great if Nokia gave it more functionality out of the box. Though enthusiasts will love the control they have over the device's OS, we don't think the casual user will appreciate having to undergo a lengthy setup process to make it work the way they want it to.

Outlook:

The Nokia N810 will be available in Singapore end January at S$768 (US$513.95). This will include maps for GPS navigation. But if a user needs in-car navigation features (turn-by-turn navigation with voice guidance), that'll cost an extra S$169 for a three-year license. We are still awaiting confirmation regarding its wider Asia-Pacific availability.