I can't help thinking that the reviewer didn't really grasp the fundamental concept of the N8x0 series, although he's bang on the money about the PIM functionality.
"Ultimately, it's a niche product with potential. If we'd been able to slip a SIM into it and use it anywhere, it would have been a whole lot more."
I don't understand where the reviewer keeps his head.. he's got a phone with a SIM card in it somewhere on his person anyway, doesn't he? Completely independent of whether he chooses to bring the N810 along or not. So what keeps him from using the N810 "anywhere", as he says?
(I would have added the above as a comment to the review, but as that requires a rigorous registering process including even my phone number I won't bother.)
This just hammers in what I've noticed for a while - Nokia has NOT successfully marketed the Internet Tablets, as every single negative review mentions either the lack of a cellular antenna or office editing.
It's an Nseries, not an Eseries. That means the focus is on video, internet, music, and imaging. That's it. Anything else is fluff.
EDIT - actually, after reading the first paragraph, I'm almost convinced that putting the Nseries moniker on the tablets was a poor choice.
In any case, I've noticed that reviewer after reviewer knocks the thing for 'missing' something that was never advertised to be included. I personally love my tablet, but like I said, Nokia's done a horrid job of actually marketing the thing.
The reviewer is just Slumbering Away, like so many others, through the greatest social transformation since the telephone - the Walkaround-Web!
The entire Internet Tablet line from the 770 to the N8X0 family (including support communities like Maemo, itT, Thoughtfix and others) has been steadily building towards a future that is now, finally, within months of being here - the Always On/Everywhere Walkaround Web - on the Nokia WiMax Internet Tablet.
But, you wouldn't know it from the PCPro article, he's still working from the soon-to-be-ancient cellphone-mentality.
The entire Internet Tablet line from the 770 to the N8X0 family (including support communities like Maemo, itT, Thoughtfix and others) has been steadily building towards a future that is now, finally, within months of being here - the Always On/Everywhere Walkaround Web - on the Nokia WiMax Internet Tablet.
I have a feeling a lot of people are going to be disappointed with the WiMAX tablet with outlooks like this.
That depends: if you're talking about people who don't do their homework, don't learn what WiMAX is and where it is or isn't... then yeah.
Mostly I'm thinking about three things:
Availability—Not only the issue of the limited number of metropolitan areas you can get it in, but also signal quality within those areas. 3g is spotty within supposedly "covered" areas (just like regular cellular access, except worse ), there's no way WiMAX will surpass 3g in this regard right off the bat.
Cost—I haven't researched this point as much as I should, but $40/mo (the price I've heard quoted) is a bit steep for single-device access (well, if you factor in a true cellular plan as well, though VOIP is probably an option).
Battery Life—3g certainly can't manage an all-day always-on connection, so it seems highly unlikely that WiMAX will be able to manage it (although I imagine powersaving could be better managed with it than with a negotiated Bluetooth connection).
In the end, I think a lot of people are overhyping what it is and what it offers. Not that it isn't a great piece of tech that's a great first-step in the always-connected revolution, but it is a first-step.
I have a feeling a lot of people are going to be disappointed with the WiMAX tablet with outlooks like this.
Maybe less than you would think; If you're in a place with WiMAX coverage, it would suit their outlook quite well. As well as GSM cellphones a few years ago, when it was easy to fall off a GSM network. You stay where you live, it keeps working, with no "OMG teh clunky 2-Device solution!".
Some people probably will see it as a fulfillment of what they're after; others will take the "use it anywhere" line, and still want GSM. Oh, well.
I can understand that to many people a $400 device that in their eyes is mainly useful for browing the web (since they are not interested in vnc, Gameboy emulators and whatnot) is an expensive toy. I also suspect many here would rather have a one-device solution but are willing put up with the tablet's limitations because there isn't such a thing right now.
), there's no way WiMAX will surpass 3g in this regard right off the bat.