I actually was planning to get the N86, until the N900 rolled along. I wanted to upgrade to a phone with a really good camera and good video recording capabilities. And some of the other features in the N86, like the internet radio and video playback with t.v. out capabilities, appeal to me as extra little perks (although obviously the N900 also offers these).

I really don't need a mobile internet device, with 3G connectivity and all that (and although I'm willing to pay for the device, I'm not sure I want to pay $25 extra a month for a data plan). In fact, I probably spend way too much time online already. And I always have my laptop with me, because I need way more than 3.5 inches of screen real estate for my work.

But then the N900 showed up and as a Linux user it's kind of hard to resist. Debian used to be my main distribution, so I appreciate that Maemo is derived from it. And I prefer the Gnome desktop, so I also appreciate that Hildon is part of the Gnome project. The N900 also appeals to my open source sensibilities (in a way that I just don't accept Android really is). And in general I like that the N900 seems to offer something much more like a desktop experience, than phones like the iPhone, Android devices, Pre, etc. I'd also like to have a phone that would serve as a decent PDA and I've never found T9 a sufficiently convenient text input method to use the calendar much in S60 devices. I guess I also like that the N900 will not be the device that everyone has, like the iPhone, Android, etc. The N900 is definitely the first phone that has tempted me into the large touch screen form factor.

When I look at other similar platforms, I really don't like Apple products in general, so I don't see myself ever going for an iPhone and getting sucked into the Apple universe of software along with it. WinMo doesn't appeal to me. The Pre briefly captured my attention, but I'm over it. And although Android seems like the next best platform, after Meamo to me, I'm enough of a privacy conscious person that I just don't want to be locked into the Google Total Information Awareness program.

But I could still keep it modest and just go with the N86 (although I'm a little tired of S60, which I was never a big fan of to begin with).

So now I'm genuinely torn. I'm a little wary of the size and weight of the N900, especially it's thickness. Given the other things in my pocket, it's definitely going to be more bulky than I'd like. And as far as I can tell it will have a good camera and video capabilities, but not like the N86. I may well get the N86 and then just wait until the device has been out a while and pick it up when the price drops a lot.