New N95 (8GB), N81, and E51

I'm happy to say I got a chance to use the new Nokia phones which will be coming out in the near future. While these were still prototypes they gave me a very good indication what to expect from the end product.

Both the N95 and N81 come with a built in 8GB of RAM already inside the phone. What this means is that they do not have memory card extension slots (though I'm not sure if I'd really need on having 8GB to work with). They both offer the latest version of the S60 3rd series OS, with Ngage functionality, WiFi, 3G and Bluetooth 2.1. The N95 still has the 5MB Carl Zeiss camera while the N81 has the much smaller 2MB standard camera. Both look good though I wasn't very impressed with the thickness of the N81, it was nearly as thick as the N95 (which is a more powerful device). Both phones offer standard mini audio jacks (take note iPhone) and while the N95 continues to have a standard size USB port at the bottom, the N81 now uses the mini-usb port instead (the idea is that Nokia would like to see the mini-usb port become the standard in all future phones, an idea I don't particularly like).

Then there was the E51. This is the direct replacement to the E50 which was a good phone. The list of improvements though... was very impressive. The E51 now offers 3G, Bluetooth 2.1, WiFi, a much cleaner display, and much faster performance, all in a very slim package. The 2MB camera is standard and more than enough for most business users. I loved the form factor and thought it was a very impressive update. The menu response was now on par with the N95 and N81 as was the list of features. It does come with the standard MicroSD memory card slot (just like the E50 did) and now even a standard USB plug (a very welcome feature). Expect this phone to be out by the end of the year.