This article is more than 1 year old

Nokia N86 8Mp cameraphone

The serious snapper's smartphone?

Video capture is quite decent too, recording at maximum 640 x 480 resolution at up to 30f/s in MP4 format. Playback is smooth and looks pretty good for a phone. Again, the dual LED illumination doesn't do a bad job for night shots.

Nokia N86 8MP

There's a fold-out viewing stand, but the 2.6in screen isn't ideal for watching video

Nokia has provided a regular set of S60 video player options: RealPlayer is pre-loaded and Nokia’s own Video Centre app provides fast access to and management of a selection of streaming and downloadable video services. Video playback looks impressively smooth and rich, if small on the wee screen. The N86 supports MP4, 3GP, H.263 and H.264 file formats, and can be connected to a TV, though Nokia doesn't bundle a cable.

It does, however, include good quality in-ear buds that present a detailed and pleasingly well-balanced sound. The N86 has a 3.5mm headphone socket so you can easily use other earphones. The bundles remote control unit has a 3.5mm socket too.

The N86 8MP’s music player puts in a fine performance. The user interface is familiar and easily controlled from the navpad or the upper slide-out button panel. Radio entertainment is well covered too. As well as a slick FM radio, there’s an internet radio app, making it easier to find and tune into services online. A podcasting app also allows you to find, subscribe to and download podcasts.

Additionally, a built-in FM transmitter enables you to broadcast tunes playing on your phone to FM radios within a 3m radius, whether in-car, at home or even another radio-toting phone. It’s simple to tune in to an appropriate radio frequency and works very effectively.

Nokia N86 8MP

The secondary slider gives you extra media controls

With Wi-Fi as well as 3.6Mb/s HSDPA 3G, the N86 8MP’s Nokia Flash-friendly browser is able to work its away around websites speedily. It has a shortcuts toolbar you can pull up with a long press on an empty area of the page. Alternatively, you can use numberpad shortcuts to help navigate around the screen, save bookmarks, go to your homepage and so on. Granted, it’s not iPhone slick, but it is an improvement on earlier N-series browsers. Pages are tidily rendered, and you can use the upper slider zoom buttons for fast zooming.

Next page: Verdict

More about

TIP US OFF

Send us news


Other stories you might like