The Nokia N97 Mini is a 3.2-inch touchscreen device that packs in a full QWERTY keyboard with individually mounted keys. The keys are made of rubber and sit in isolation, making typing a far easier exercise. Find out how we’ve been getting on with it in our Nokia N97 Mini keyboard review.
The Nokia N97 Mini keyboard sits tucked away under the screen. What’s more, it uses the same hinge arrangement as the Nokia N97, so once you flick open the keyguard you’ll find the screen opens at a 40-degree angle exposing the QWERTY keyboard.
The most obvious change between the Nokia N97 and the Nokia N97 Mini is that the D-pad has gone. However, this isn’t the only difference as it has allowed Nokia to tweak and re-address some of the issues users had with the original keyboard, namely the layout.
Check out our Nokia N97 Mini Full Review
Nokia has added four directional buttons (Up, Down, Left, Right) to the layout and can be found down in the right-hand corner next to the Space bar. As a result, the Symbol button has been moved to the left-hand side and is joined by a secondary return button.
This Space bar is still not centrally positioned but with the general move around of the keyboard it now at least feels in a better position.
Is it easy to use? As with any new keyboard, the Nokia N97 Mini keyboard takes a little time to get accustomed to but we found that within a short time we’d mastered the art of thumb-typing and balancing the weight when using the outer keys. However, with a little bit of practise your word count will soon be up to speed.
The keys on the Nokia N97 Mini keyboard have quite a shallow travel to them, which is fine if you’re typing while stationary but we’ve found it less so when on the go.
Sadly, you’re not about to start using the Nokia N97 Mini keyboard single-handed. The positioning of the keys is such that when holding it in two hands we found that our thumbs sit naturally over the T and U buttons, which is reasonably central. What’s more, it’s only when you need to use the outer keys that you need to start moving your hands around.
What we like about the Nokia N97 Mini keyboard is that you’ll find yourself readily writing longer replies, simply because it’s not a chore.
Nokia has made a number of improvements to the Nokia N97 Mini keyboard that we like and while the overall device isn’t as big as the Nokia N97, it offers the same degree of usability, which is great news for anyone thinking of opting for the Nokia N97 Mini.
Check out our Nokia N97 Mini Review (Keyboard) gallery:
