Review: Neonode N2 mobile phone

A touchscreen multimedia mobile that targets Apple’s iPhone

The Neonode N2 arrives rather tentatively clutching at the coat-tails of the Apple iPhone, with touchscreen operation and a similar combination of features.

It’s far smaller, though, weighing just 60g, and inevitably forgoes any kind of keypad with just a power and volume switch on the side.

You control operation by using a series of swiping motions at various positions on the screen to open menus, select files and manage incoming calls and text messages.

The onscreen keypad uses a subtle vibrate function to let you know you’ve pressed a key, but if you’re expecting to be able to text or dial numbers as fast as you can with a traditional phone, you’ll be let down.

Navigation using these swiping motions is quite effective. You’ll find a range of features in keeping with most modern mobiles, including a 2-megapixel fixed-focus digital camera, media player and removable 1GB mini-SD card.

You don’t get a lot else with the basic package, so the success of the Neonode N2 will depend on the availability of third-party applications that take advantage of the touchscreen navigation. An application called Streaming Media Recorder is included, which streams and saves audio from internet radio stations and online music services.

Although the touchscreen operation is fairly helpful, most users will have problems making phone calls or typing text messages without making mistakes. Wireless support isn’t great ­ you get Bluetooth and there’s no Edge or 3G connectivity, leaving the slower GPRS as your only option.

Media playback is solid enough, though, so we can see it being used as an extravagant secondary mobile, perhaps with a pay-as-you-go Sim card for emergencies.