Neonode N2 Review

The Neonode N2 has definitely something unique in its look. It is the smallest phone that is controlled mainly by its touch-sensitive display and when put next to the Apple iPhone, HTC Touch, LG Viewty or even the Samsung Giorgio Armani, it makes them look huge.

Model	Dimension (Inches)	Dimension (mm)	Weight (oz)	Weight (Gramms)
Neonode N2	3.0" x 1.90" x 0.60"	77 x 47 x 14.7	2.50	70
Samsung Giorgio Armani	3.50" x 2.10" x 0.40"	88 x 54 x 9.9	3.6	102
HTC Touch	3.90" x 2.30" x 0.50"	99.9 x 58 x 13.9	4.0	112
LG Viewty	4.1.0" x 2.10" x 0.60"	103.5 x 54.4 x 14.8	4.0	112
Apple iPhone	4.50" x 2.40" x 0.50"	115 x 61 x 11.6	4.8	135

It’s so small that easily hides even in normal hand and being light-weight, can be lost even in a small pocket. It is lighter than any of the other four.



It doesn’t really look as a phone, but more as a small multimedia player targeted to the young customers that want to be unique. In the lower part there are two holes which help for even the more unique look, but don’t have any real purpose. We would have preferred to find a neck-strap in the box, but it is missing.
The design is good enough to turn it into a fashion accessory. The whole body is made of black mat plastic which in combination with the solid construction gives pleasant feeling when touched. The N2 was announced also in Pink variant, but this one seems to be dropped.

The only contrasting thing is the joystick which is in silver and is found in the middle of the bottom part. During the 3GSM Show in February, Neonode representatives claimed that the final units will have matching black one, but it seems that the manufacturer have decided to keep the contrast. This 4-way joystick is small which is logical considering the phone’s dimensions, but we couldn’t realize why it is so hard to manipulate with it. The movement in any direction is minor and it is hard to push it, especially in “Down” direction, because the protruding display will leave almost no space for your finger. We could hardly imagine worse navigation key but the good news here is that it only doubles actions that can be performed through the display.

The other two keys of the N2 are situated on its left side, creating a narrow but long black line. These are the (un)lock button (also used for power on/off) and the volume rocker.

Having in mind the Neonode almost lacks hardware keys, most people will expect to see large display of high quality, as on the competition. Here, it is physically impossible to have really large screen, and the 2-inch one is OK, but there is no excuse for its low quality. The 176x220 pixels resolution isn’t much and although it looks fine indoors it is hardly readable outdoors, so in bright environment you’ll have problems seeing it. Additionally, it has very small viewing angle which is an obstacle in any situation.

You may have probably noted that unlike any standard phone, the Neonode N2 doesn’t have clearly distinguishable grille for the speaker, above the display. That’s probably the strangest thing of the phone: due to lack of space, the speaker is on the back side and the microphone is situated in one of the design-holes on the lower part of the phone. This is rather inconvenient as you will use the display to dial a number or answer an incoming call and then will have to turn the whole phone round and stay for the duration of the call, with the display facing the outside People who look at you will be dumbfounded. Still, it helps for the even more unique of the N2.

On the back also is situated the camera, but is lens is very small and almost unnoticeable. In the middle is the large Neonode logo.
The only connector is located on the top. It is a proprietary for Neonode and to it are connected the charger, the USB cable and the adapter for the headphones. Next to it is the lock for the back side, which must be slid in order to open it (and respectively remove the battery which is attached to it). Under it are the SIM and miniSD card slots.