Staff Techdrunk 
The news is around that the more polished iPhone 3GS will fail to win the hearts of mobile lovers compared to Nokia N97. We are saying this because Nokia N97 has a sheer elegance and powerful features. But, is it right to say that iPhone 3GS won’t be able to steal the limelight even with its sophisticated features? Let’s compare the two phones before reaching to a conclusion.
Touchscreen and Display
The display size of both the phones is same around 3.5inch but Nokia N97 has higher resolution of 640×360 in comparison to iPhone’s 320×480 pixels display. iPhone gains points on its touchscreen functionality that is very sensitivity and users will need to put a little pressure to operate it. Whereas, the N97 has a pressure sensitive resistive touchscreen.
Memory
The iPhone 3GS will be coming with 16GB and 32GB internal memory, while N97 has the largest storage capacity of 32GM that is expandable by 16GB more with an additional micro SDHC card. So, the total memory of the phone will be 48GB.
Processor, RAM
Similar PowerVR SGX graphics supporting OPENGL ES 2.0 GPU are used in both the phones. N97 uses ARM 11 CPU that clocks at 434 Mhz and 128 MB RAM, where as iPhone 3GS has ARM Cortex A8 processor that clocks at 600 MHz and 256 MB RAM. It means that iPhone beats N97 when it comes to speed.
Operating System
Nokia N97 has JAVA support, whereas iPhone 3GS neither supports Java not has Flash. N97 runs the Symbian v9.4 Series 60 rel 5 OS and OS 3.0 is available for iPhone. The operating system of iPhone is a multi-tasking platform that has an ease of software development. It is more ready for Internet in comparison to N97, which doesn’t have a decent browser..
Iphone 3GS is designed while keeping the Internet usage need of consumers in mind. Making a new e-mail account, sending pictures and general web surfing on iPhone is smooth. However, N97 claims to be Internet ready but Internet accessing on it won’t be a pleasurable experience.
Let’s have a look at the features of Apple iPhone 3G:
App Store / Ovi Store
The Apple’s iPhone is known and mostly purchased for its Application Store. Whereas, Nokia N97 has a preloaded Ovi store so that it can easily pick up any application. N97 users can also pick programs from anywhere online, which means more flexibility.
Keyboard
QWERTY keyboard is a hardware keyboard known for fast, accurate and easy typing, which is a winning feature of N97 over Apple iPhone. If you are someone who have to type a lot on the phone, then virtual keyboard of iPhone is not for you.
Connectivity
Both Nokia N97 and iPhone are Quad Band enabled units that are capable of operating at GSM 850/900/1800/1900 bands worldwide. iPhone uses HSDPA 850/1900/2100 bands while N97 uses 900/1900/2100 bands. An American version of 850/1900/2100 bands is also available. iPhone 3GS supports 7.2 Mbps and N97 supports only 3.6 Mbps speed.
Let’s explore the features of New Nokia N97
Camera
Although Apple has raised the camera quality from 2 mega pixel to 3 mega pixel in iPhone 3GS, but it still cannot compete with the 5 MP resolution and Carl Zeiss optics of N97. You can even shoot at low light by using the LED flash of N97, which is lacking in iPhone. The video and photo editing features are already present in N97 and the DVD quality is far better than of iPhone 3GS.
GPS
Although, both the devices have in-built GPS receivers but iPhone 3GS uses Google Map application and N97 uses Nokia Maps 2.0.
Battery
As of now, there is no information about the battery of iPhone 3GS, but Nokia N97 will have a 1500 mAh battery.
Size and Weight
Both the phones have similar volume, but N97 is thicker than iPhone 3GS by a few milimeters. N97 is heavier and weighs 150g while iPhone only weighs 135g.
Other Features
Both the phones come with a TV out 3.5mm headphone jack and a digital compass, but N97 has stereo FM radio with RDS, FM transmitter and visual radio that are missing in iPhone 3GS.
Finally, these are the areas where Nokia N97 scores over iPhone 3GS:
- Wide Connectivity – MicroSD, MicroUSB, USB for Mass Storage, Bluetooth File Transfer
- FM Radio
- Handwriting recognition
- Camera : 5 MP over 3 MP, High Resolution Video, Flash Light
- Memory : 32 + 16 GB is maximum for a mobile
Features that provide iPhone 3GS an edge over N97:
- Processor : Faster 600 MHz Cortex A8 processor than 434 MHz ARM 11 processor
- RAM : 256 MB over 128 MB
- Touchscreen : Better response and multi-touch capabilities
- HSDPA : Higher 7.2 Mbps speed
- Thousands of App Store Apps
- Light weight 135g over 150g of N97
Nokia and Apple are the two reputed brands known worldwide for their amazing and fully loaded phones. Both the cellphones are best because of their original and unique features. Even after lacking in certain features, the popularity of iPhone has still not faded, while Nokia N97 is a popular gadget with a different segment of admirers.
