This is not so true. I've traveled a lot, and my smartphone helped me enjoying the world around me. Of course, checking emails or facebook daily doesn't improve the trip at all. But when you are in a town, you see a place that would be nice to go in the evening, then just mark this place on your GPS and you won't lose 2 hours in the evening trying to find that back.
Sometimes, being able to reserve a bus/car/train/plane via wifi in the hotel can save the day.

These details happen not very often, but they do. And when you just need a little map, a translation, or your mail with the reservation number, it can really help you enjoy the trip.

I would say: any smartphone with offline map will do the job. Your N9 is a perfect candidate

Enjoy your trip !