British Airways, Heathrow, and hands-on with a Nokia N97

(9am BST, 6/18)
[This post is boring, just what was on my mind at the airport. Lame, I know]


Heathrow is a very nice airport, much more so than I remembered [EDIT: except that all of their power outlets appear to be decoys]. I suspect it's been renovated in the relatively recent past. I also probably haven't been there since 2001 or so. Perhaps I shouldn't have gone through security when funneled to do so from my flight (seems like coming off another flight means you're already secure to me) but I did. They were more strict here than in the US, and I was forced to drink my little bottle of water from the previous flight on the spot, but it was just as well, it was time for me to take my doxycycline anyway.

Speaking of the flight, while I haven't flown across the Atlantic (or anywhere comparably far) since 2003, I believe, my memories of this sort of thing are not their sharpest, but I think this was the most comfortable such flight I've experienced. The plane was nice and new, the crew were nice (very polite -- but also harsh when people were being dumb, but not unreasonably so). Despite a warning to the contrary, I found the food pretty good. Perhaps the fact that I did not have to pay extra for it (ahem, US Airways) and especially that I did not have to pay the exorbitant cost of food in an airport contributed to my enjoyment of it. In any case, it was more than acceptable. There was also a bit of breakfast, which was nice.

My ticket to Entebbe does not mention a meal option (going to Heathrow I had a chance to request a vegetarian meal) which makes me suspect there is not equivalent service on it, although it's just as long a flight. Perhaps they don't serve food on flights to colonial destinations. It should at least be comfortable, and I wouldn't be surprised if it wasn't super full and there was a lot of room per person.

Now I just need to figure out what to do with myself for the next many hours. I don't think my flight's until 9 (about 12 hours away) and it's morning now, going into the city actually seems realistic, although I think the inconvenience of security here along with the enormous size of the airport and so forth make it a little too daunting. It would also cost money, though staying in the airport is also not an inexpensive proposition. I'm already getting hungry again, because of course breakfast on the plane couldn't be too close to landing. I've been distressed to see things priced in a way that would look steep if it were US dollars, but it's effectively almost twice that.

For a country that was as poor relative to the US as it was 50 years ago (and for a long time since), the cost of living sure looks very, very high. Of course, airport prices are always high, but I'm referring to the prices I've faced there in the past, as well. I suppose the tremendous strength and value of the pound is a big part of that, though.

Now, I've just got to find some internets to post this (and download iPhone OS 3.0!). I fear neither of those will happen until I get to Uganda, however. That aside, I do have some documents to read, but I'll have to find some electricities if I'm to do that for more than a couple of hours, too.

Speaking of that sort of thing, I briefly got my hands on a Nokia N97 in their store in the airport. It's quite a machine. Great keyboard (bigger than, e.g., a G1, but not quite as spacious as the N810 -- it's smaller relative to the N810 than I had imagined) and a very nice screen and everything. I like the customizable homescreen widgets. I didn't use it that much but the UI seemed quite snappy. I tend to expect any touchscreen phone not running what I think of as one of the main OS's (iPhone, Android, Windows Mobile -- to an extent, Palm OS) to be slow and difficult; take for example LG or Samsung's touchscreen pseudo-smart phones. Of course, Symbian is a legitimate smartphone OS, just one you see much in the US (regrettably). I think it's excellent on non-touchscreen phones (N95 and derivatives, E-series), and that some, like the E71, are a strong alternative to BlackBerry devices. I personally like the S60 interface much more than the BlackBerry OS. But a good button-interface UI does not always translate well to a touchscreen (cough, BlackBerry), and honestly I didn't have enough time with the N97 to say, nor have I tried an ExpressMusic (5800?) in the US, either, but I think enough's been written elsewhere about both.

All I constructively have to say about it is that one, the OS was responsive and looks good, and two, the hardware was excellent. It's a good size, feels durable (including the funny tilt slider), and looks sharp. Could it replace an iPhone? Absolutely, though it would take some getting used to. I suspect, though, much like with the Nokia internet tablets (albeit less so), certain (many?) tasks won't have quite the same level of quick ease they do with the iPhone, and will therefore be less useful.

A big part of what makes the iPhone so successful, I think, is how quickly you can do a lot of things. Some of this is fictional, like when apps load a picture of their UI before it's active to make it feel faster. But, whatever, it works, psychologically. Also, the lack of an informational home screen (sigh, I'd still like this -- no harm in putting it on the lock screen!) makes for the quickest access to a variety of tasks. This sort of thing means it only takes a click, slide, and a tap or two to load up NextBus for the stop you're near.

Now, this is arguably a double-edged sword, and one I've thought a certain amount about. It's so easy to things up that it's very easy to forget you don't need to. I, for one, am uncomfortable with too much reliance on it, and consciously resist that to an extent. Even so, the lack of phone and internet here in Heathrow bug me a bit, especially given how long I'll be here.

Anyway, the point I was making about the iPhone is that it's achieved an ease and convenience of use that have made it a huge fraction of mobile web traffic. And think about it: how many people do you know with BlackBerries (or whatever else with comparable data access) who regularly browse the web with them, versus those with iPhones? So the moral of this convoluted story I'm telling is that I'm not sure the N97 has that level of ease of use or UI speed, and may limit its appeal somewhat. At any rate, it's extremely high price tag will also have that effect (although without carrier subsidies, all of the fancy phones we're used to expecting to pay $200 or so would be just as bad).