Motorola redefined "flip phone" with the now ubiquitous RAZR, but Nokia has elevated this genre to a new level the N76.

The N76 is impressive from both aesthetic and technical standpoint. It is a dual-display handset with an outer OLED display hidden behind a reflective surface. When not illuminated, the top panel looks like a mirror. The N76 opens with a satisfying click. Next, look down at the tempered glass and mirrored steel in your hand to see a flat metallic keypad crowned by a intense 2.4" QVGA display. The N76 has a deeply satisfying "tightness", even by Nokia standards.

Technically, this handset is impressive because it is built as a portable multimedia device rather than simply a phone. While the clamshell remains closed, you can launch the 2-megapixel camera at the touch of a button and quickly capture an image.

Moreover, without opening the phone, you launch and control the music player. (Whenever you're using the N76 while it is closed, the outer OLED display is used.) There is also an integrated FM radio. And there is plenty of room for storage with 26 MB integrated memory and up to 2 GB additional memory via the MicroSD slot (2GB MicroSD cards cost about $60).

As with Nokia's other premium N-series phone (the Nokia N95), the N76 allows you to plug in standard headphones directly into the device, and also to connect it directly to your PC via mini-USB/USB cable for easy data transfer (captured photos to your PC, and your favorite music to the phone). We suppose this may seem like a minor point, but to a global traveler, when it comes to dongles and special cables, less is more.

A glance at the basics: the N76 is quad-band GSM+UMTS, and it runs Nokia’s Symbian OS which includes a portrait/landscape-optional web browser that is widely considered to be the best on the phone. There is also support for direct upload to Flickr.

As with all Dynamism products, our Nokia N76 includes unlimited toll-free support and Dynamism Rescue Warranty. Available in Ruby Red or Black.