N96 Problems and disspointment

Question

I have been evangelical about the quality and service of nokia phones since i had my first analogue device in early 1990's - which is a loooong time to be a fan of one company. My n95 was great , i didn't get the newer 95 as i didn't like the lack of camera cover and the lack of card port and the new flagship device was on way.
The n96 has no camera cover so the lens gets scratched rapidly - YOU HAVE TO GET A CASE OR COVER - even then it gets scratched very quickly same as the N95 8 gig ( even with the non belt looped nokia case)
The pencil button has dissapeared so you now cannot quickly change modes when using any charactor based applications , it is now hidden in a menu !!!!???? .
The actual device has a few problems if you use it for much other than toys. From looking at symbion forums these are mostly resolved with the 11.1 firmware update BUT we can't get it - most of these relate to data transfer from usb but also the internal data storage transfer which is at best unreliable .
The camera by the way takes lower quality pictures than the N95 original but takes as good quality video ( with a far higher capacity) bear this in mind if you get one. Also buy direct from Nokia - the service provider crippling on the N96 effectively makes it into a very pretty brick. None of the application I use on my 95 ( generic nokia symbion) work on the n96's i have ( 3 so far for me on VF but my friends have been through 3 or 4 each this week on other networks)
All in all I am a long last disappointed with a nokia flagship product - ordinarily the flagship nokia device has no competitors - the N96 has many and if you want something specific then it is likely that one of them can do it far better. I hope this isn't the death of Nokias flagship. It was far easier not to have to think and just buy the newest Nokia as one knew it was in a class of its own - the n96 is only just able to apply for the top class now rather than being alone. Nokia Please pull your socks up again.

Answer 1

@Ninja Granny and gerberairis
It takes me less than a second to rip the velcro and pull my phone out and click open the shutter protector, its the software that takes longer to load up! but thats a minor bug. Thats why I use a Samsung i6 Digimax just because it starts up so fast. Adding a Neoprene (other spellings available)case even with custom holes cut would raise the surface area over the lens halping to protect it but nothing beats a full cover with fast velcro access, but if it has holes cut it wont stop possible KEY DAMAGE or COIN damage. I recommend using a crystal case as well if they are out yet just because ive dropped my N95 so many times on concrete or hard floor they are so cheap £4 1st I broke the face cover but the important thing is "It did bot break the phone or the screen!" and the rear of the crystal case I still use and it's taken a beating! all for £4, In my boring Creative Labs grey velcro case I've got a layer of Radiation and RF proof material to stop any immediate signals pulsing near my leg or precious eggs available here http://www.handy-fashions.com/indexE.html . I never put my phone in my normal front pockets due to FLUFF, KEYS, COINS, irradiating my eggs! did you know that school kids in science get 2 mobiles and put them either side of the EGG and get one to call the other and the white of the egg goes hard!! :/ but thats for another story I digress, There's some nice full cover gadget cases out there, on amazon theres a "Case Logic" mini harddrive case, these look like theyd fit an N96 quite well, and check the Sony Shops for gadget cases and PC World but check the sizes first before you buy, if you want a small front pocket phone dont get an N96, its so easy to break a screen i cant tell you, i broke my Iriver 40GB players screen by foolishly putting it in a coat pocket that was not zipped up, leaving it flapping by is own weight, it pinged a pole just walking onto a bus and it was ruined and no gadget insurance either!, so unless you use combat trousers like i do with big side pockets, you need to put it in your back pack or where ever you stash your precious gadgets.
N95-1 (8GB-MicroSD),LCG-Audio,Fring,Nimbuzz,Skype,Youtube,iPlayer,Garmin4-GPS.Googlemaps,SkyFire,ZoneTag,Gravity, Sennheiser CX-400-IIs,500-IIs,TR-120 Wireless,HD215'S.AudioTechnica ATX-M50's.BT B-Tube BT Speaker.