Unveiled at an event in Spain and extending Nokia's existing Nseries of smartphones (N95 and N96), the creatively named N97 is set to arrive as only the second touch-screen handset in the Finnish giant's product history – the previous phone being the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic, which was released in the autumn.

In terms of core consumer attraction, the sleek N97's mainstay features include its full slide-out QWERTY keyboard, which includes a handy tilt function for easier typing. The hidden keyboard of course adds a little bulk to the overall device (making it a tad chubbier that the iPhone), but it still boasts an impressive 3.5-inch touch-screen display (640x360), and a solid 5.0 mega pixel digital camera with improved flash and video recording capabilities.

Clearly engineered for heavyweight multimedia users and fans of Internet downloads, Nokia's latest Nseries entrant includes a massive 32GBs of built-in flash memory, which can be expanded by a further 16GBs thanks to the inclusion of an on-board memory card slot.

Network connectivity on the chrome-accented N97 is handled by high-speed 3G and Wi-Fi, while other points of functionality include a digital compass, GPS navigation, social networking-centric widgets, a full HTML Web browser complete with Adobe Flash, a removable and rechargeable battery.

With 3G, a digital compass, GPS, and Wi-Fi also coming along for the ride, the phone is being marketed first and foremost as a social networking device which is constantly aware of where it is and what's happening with its owner's friends. The home screen appropriately has a new interface with widgets that supply an at-a-glance view of contacts from Facebook and other services.

According to Apple fan site AppleInsider, Espoo-based Nokia is hoping its N97 will emerge as a genuine alternative to the iPhone, and will also help stem the 20 percent market share slide the company has suffered since Apple's second-generation 3G iPhone was launched in July of 2008.

Expected to hit (European) retail in the first half of 2009, an unlocked and unsubsidised unit of the Nokia N97 is likely to cost somewhere around €550 Euros, which is comparable to the iPhone in those regions where Apple's touchscreen smartphone is available without being tied to an exclusive service contract.