Nokia N82 review: Comes with xenon

Christmas comes early

The retail package of Nokia N82 is as packed as Santa's gift bag. The 2GB microSD card is a nice thingy to start with and it comes complete with a SD adapter. TV-out cable and a microUSB cable are next in line. It's nice to have the microUSB data cable as these are rare enough due to the fact that virtually no other device than a mobile phone makes use of them.

The handsfree is quite stylish but unluckily its remote and headphones cannot be separated so you cannot use the remote with another set of headphones. The box also contains a whole bunch of manuals and quick start guide introducing you to the phone's main features. A CD with the PC sync software is the final ingredient in this delicious retail package recipe.

Nokia N82 retail package

Nokia N82 360-degree spin

Silver all over

Nokia N82 is a bar-shaped phone, measuring 112 x 50.2 x 17.3 mm. With a volume of 90 cc and 114 g of weight the N82 is somewhat on the wrong side of compact. But hey, we're talking 5 megapixel phones and only the LG KU990 Viewty and Samsung G600 are a tad lighter than N82. Plus, it's by all means pocketable, after all.

We are pleased with the build quality of Nokia N82 - no creaks or strange noises detected for the time of our review. Quality materials have been used and we think none of those are likely to appear in the long run.

The phone is finished in silver-tinted plastic with a glossy front and line-patterned back panel. The front panel is quite susceptible to fingerprints but they are not that visible on the silver surface.

Nokia N82 feels great in hand with great weight balance, so slipping off your fingers is quite unlikely.

Nokia N82 in hand - weight is very well distributed and the handset is quite comfortable to hold

By a longstanding tradition, we start our hardware inspection with the front panel. In the upper left corner of Nokia N82 is the ambient light sensor, while the video call camera is placed slightly to its right. The earpiece grill is dead center right above the 2.4" TFT display.

The light sensor, video-call camera and the earpiece right above the display

The D-pad is under the display with the two selection keys on each of its sides. The Menu and the Clear key are under the selection keys, while the Call and End keys are on the very edges of the phone. Finally, the newly adopted by Nokia multimedia key is accommodated between the right selection key and the Clear key.

All these keys are large and convenient enough to render no obstacles to usability. We wished the outer rim of the D-pad was just a bit wider so we won't accidentally press the confirming center now and then when scrolling, but the situation is good enough as it is.

The D-pad could have been a tad wider to completely rule out wrong presses

On the left side of Nokia N82 are the microUSB slot, the memory card slot and the charger plug. The microSD slot has a neat plastic cap but the other two apertures aren't covered in any way, which somewhat spoils this particular side view.

The left side of Nokia N82 - microUSB and microSD slots and a DC charger plug • The memory card slot is covered by a silver lid

The right side hosts a whole bunch of controls. The stereo speakers are placed at its ends, with the zoom/volume key, the review key and the camera key in-between. The speaker placement is the same as on Nokia N95 and is obviously meant for using the handset in landscape mode. With such an advanced camera, it goes without saying that the camera key has half-shutter mode. The review key is a convenient and quick way for jumping to your lastly saved photos.

Nokia N82's right side hosts the stereo speakers, the camera and gallery keys and the volume rocker

Jumping to the Nokia N82's top we find the Power key which, like in all other Symbian phones, is also used for switching profiles and locking the phone. Next to it is the 3.5mm standard audio jack and the neck/wrist strap eyelet. It is quite convenient to have the audio jack at the top, so it is far easier to use with the phone inside a pocket.

The 3.5mm standard audio jack nestled between the Power key and the lanyard eyelet topside

The only thing to find at the bottom is the microphone pinhole.

The bottom of Nokia N82 is pretty plain

"...Standby is quoted at 225 hours, while Nokia claims talk time is 4 and a half hours. Though not necessarily the most impressive figures, the battery is good enough to power the handset for about three days of moderate usage..."

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The back side of the N82 is far more interesting and, you have our word, the strange pattern is by far not the only reason. There, we see the 5 megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss optics and the Xenon flash. As it turns out, the flash is the most powerful one we've seen in a mobile phone but this will be discussed later on in the review. The camera also has a lens protecting cover that opens by a small silver slider right above it. It is easy enough to locate with a fingertip and still not prone to accidental sliding.

The 5 megapixel camera and the Xenon flash are the stars backstage

Removing the battery cover you will find the BP-6MT battery with a capacity of 1050 mAh. Standby is quoted at 225 hours, while Nokia claims talk time is 4 and a half hours. Though not necessarily the most impressive figures, the battery is good enough to power the handset for about three days of moderate usage. In our case moderate means about half an hour of talk time and trying different application for about an hour each, plus taking a few shots with the flash on. It is a bit more than what you can expect from Nokia N95-1 for example.

Nokia N82 torn apart • The SIM card slot