First impressions are favourable for the N900, with the claims of PC-like performance holding up under a brief hands-on. If you can put up with the bulk, we think the N900 might make for a very capable handheld device.

The Nokia N900 is different from anything else we have seen recently in the touch phone market. Better yet, it's different with a purpose. The Maemo platform is all about simplicity and multitasking - we guess that's music to the ears of power users. The Maemo will certainly seem unusual but - take our word - never unfriendly.he N900 has put Maemo on the mobile platform map and has finally given Nokia an edge in the catch-up game they've been playing with their controversy-ridden Symbian S60 5th so far.

The Nokia N900 is the next evolution of the company's Internet Table, and don't let its smaller size fool you. It delivers more power, adds phone capabilities, and has one of most robust mobile Web browsers on the market today. It also runs on the Linux-based Maemo platform, which offers great customization options and multitasking abilities but has yet to live up to its full possibilities.

Nokia N900 vs the Motorola Droid. I penned a run down of the strengths and weaknesses of each, with the N900 coming up trumps for, well, being better. More features, more storage, a better keyboard and Maemo 5 put the N900 on top.

Let's turn our attention back to the N900, since it's the only Maemo 5-powered device available today. As a daily workhorse smartphone for your average Jill or Joe, it's impossible to recommend the N900 at this point; it's just missing too much functionality that's waiting to be written by some enterprising CS grad students with spare time on their hands. As a second, dedicated browsing device or a geeky weekend hobby, the N900 is a very compelling device, as long as you remember one simple rule: it's a computer with a phone, not a phone that can compute.