I've been a Nokia N86 owner for the past 3 months now and my verdict is... it's pretty good. As a previous owner of a Nokia N85 I can sincerely say that branding this phone as N85 8mp would have not done it justice. In doing so, one big, but seemingly superficial characteristic that sets the handset apart would have been overlooked...the the mobile's weight.
A difference is felt from the moment hand meets handset...I like to call it quality weight. Here "quality weight" is defined as weight that is indicative of the quality materials used in the construction of your handset. Don't get me wrong there are some relatively light handsets that will surely surprise in terms of performance..but drop it a couple of times and you'll see how badly it performs.
While the N85 had it's highlights and carried some weight..it still felt..lacking...it lacked the near 400 beans I spilled for it. The explosive sound it would make when it vibrated could only be a sign of it's somewhat danty and hollow construction. Certainly The N86's all glass front, the chrome band that incases the front part of the phone and that lovely 8mp sensor surely point to it's quality weight..certainly it's quality build.
I've owned a Samsung innov8 (i8510), i8910 HD, Xperia X1 and a Nokia N97 for a very short period..and I'd go as far to say that their quality weight shares a positive correlation with the user experience. Perhaps I'm pointing out my own preferences but when's the last time you picked up your mobile and said wow this is really a "smart phone" this is something "special" ,"cutting edge" something that has "presence".
The Samsung innov8 case in point is has presence and is practically indestructible (besides the infamous paint pealing).
Now don't get me wrong..advances in manufacturing have made it easiar to make high quality gadgets out there that don't bare the cheap plastic guts of their ancestors... E71, E72 and most recently the HTC Legend are evidence. But then there's the other wave of high end phones that are manufactured out of "high quality" plastics..your $500 + that's susceptible to cracks, chips,etc. I guess my point is..if the "smart phone" and overlapping "high end" phone market is so vast now-a-days then all manufactures that are producing them should strive to build top-end mobiles out of the best materials available/possible (same difference). Besides mass production I don't understand why building a mobile with a 3.something" +screen and covering it in plastic is a right way to go. What's the real expense? What's so bad about making a weighty phone? What's wrong with adding a tempered glass front to it all.Don't get me wrong I understand sometimes it's the nature of the beast and it can't be helped. When the manufacturer delivers you the plastic unibody ..you soon realize they have created a mobile that's fragile..cheap feeling,cheap looking and inevitably for some ..unsatisfying.
In conclusion... add some more metal, some carbon fiber (think LG secret but more CF) chrome,hardened tempered glass, Kevlar, etc. Companies should invest in their handsets to make consumers feel that spending the chunk of money on their mobiles was part of the end-user experience. Undoubtedly. invest at this level might actually set consumers at easy now that they have the pleasure of owning a mobile that has some "quality weight" to it.
