I’ve been using a debranded Nokia N75 since I switched from T-Mobile to AT&T Wireless. On numerous occasions I want to hurl this device into the depths of Hell while I laugh fiendishly. Don’t get me wrong … Nokia knows how to make a great device like the N95 but they have some real stinkers like the N75.

My firmware version:

V 10.2.055
24-04-07
RM-128

The list of bugs I encounter on a regular basis:

• Bluetooth connection with headset overwhelmed by static: restart BT or reboot phone
• Image Gallery out of memory viewing an image: reboot phone
• Web browser out of memory: reboot phone
• On one phone call, accept another, drop second call, cannot return to first call: need to terminate the call and start over
• Email auto-check stops working: no idea
• Full bars, call drops: no idea
• Terminate one call and rapidly dial another: won’t make the call
• Searching for a contact: the first character takes an eternity to display on the screen and there is no buffering
• Predictive text has an incorrectly spelled word: no idea how to fix

Rebooting the N75 every few days (or every day) takes care of the memory bugs but the others remain. Many times I have considered getting an N95 but Nokia’s track record of software updates is abysmal. My unbranded E61 was testament to this and now my craptastic N75.

I suppose there’s a reason Apple has grabbed more than 25% of the mobile device market in less than a year.

My father was asking whether I’d be bothered with having to replace an iPhone’s internal battery after two years. According to Apple any li-on battery can be recharged “a large number of times” before the capacity is diminished to 80% of original.

This got me thinking… I have never replaced a mobile phone battery whether it was user serviceable or not. I just kept a charger nearby or, more truly, bought a new phone 2-3 years later.

IMO, most consumer electronics become obsolete (or become broken) in three years and mobile phones might last 12 months before they’re eclipsed by more attractive models. This doesn’t mean you need to buy a new phone every year but if you’re in the Nokia club you do, likewise, the iPhone users will too.

Should Apple have considered a user replaceable battery? Certainly, but in the interest of commerce or industrial design they didn’t.

I’ve been a T-Mobile customer for a long, long time when they first started to release great GSM handsets. If you know anything about T-Mobile, that plethora of handsets is long gone unless you love BlackBerry and Sidekick. The Dash is cute if you like Windows Mobile but that’s not me.

About every couple of months I call customer service asking about the release of Symbian handsets like the N95 or when they’ll deploy 3G. Answer? “No” and “don’t know.” Thankfully T-Mo released their Hot Spot@Home VoIP service if you don’t mind running it on a bare bones phone but the public comes to expect feature-rich phones that can play music, surf the web, maybe run Google Maps.

I ran out of patience with T-Mobile to do anything remotely interesting in the wireless market. Perhaps they are planning great things for the U.S. (iPhone wasn’t one of them) unless you live in Germany.

Here is what needs to change at T-Mobile:

• Tell the public what you’re up to: you’re not Apple so stop the secrecy already
• Deploy 3G before the end of the decade or simply give up
• Carry handsets that people care about; show some love with Nokia’s Nseries and other smartphone devices that aren’t BlackBerry

What kept me a customer:

• Excellent customer service
• The best prices for voice and data, bar none

So I signed up with AT&T and unboxed my shiny, new, Nokia N75. It’s not so much about 3G or the iPhone but that AT&T is doing something in the wireless market and not keeping silent about it. I’ll deal with the rest until my contract expires and we see where T-Mobile winds up.

The last post mentioned my impending purchase of an iPhone instead of the Nokia N95. I’ve got another post coming with very practical reasons why the N95 is ahead of its time in the U.S. market.

Until then I’ll share my single most important reason for going iPhone over N95: keyboard.

I bought my E61 to replace my BlackBerry 7100t because I couldn’t stand the SureType keyboard. SureType works great if you’re using common dictionary words but it was slowing me down for my needs. Since then my E61 Qwerty keyboard has racked up mileage for web surfing, email, and SMS.

All the killer features in the world don’t matter a bit of they don’t fulfill your needs. For me, a keyboard is a necessity above all else.

iPhone’s virtual keyboard is going to take some getting used to but at least it’s got one. The N95’s method of entry, predictive T9, is a real deal breaker. Lest we not forget, the idea here is convergence - not multiplicity.

This post is one of a series. Get up to speed:

• Part 1 - why switch?
• Part 2 - no soup for you!
• Part 3 - pricing standards? bah!
• Part 4 - fluid pricing

So it has begun: the swtich.

For reasons coming in a future post, I decided against the unlocked N95 from Mobile Planet. Instead I selected two devices: the Nokia N75 (with activation) and later, the Apple iPhone.

Cost of the N75? -$25 from Amazon. Yes, that’s negative $25…they’re paying me. Of course the iPhone is going to set me back a bit but that why I’ve been selling like a madman on eBay.