If you are a mobile phone enthusiast or a gadget critic, you are certainly familiar with the China based mobile phone manufacturer CECT (CEC Telecom Ltd) and how it has overrun the world with their mobile phone clones, spin-off phones from mainstream electronics and mobile phone industries like Nokia and Apple. The fact is, there is indeed a growing demand for their mobile phone clones than the demand for the original mobile phones, and this is because the company gives you a practical and a cheaper option for a mobile phone experience without compromising much of the quality and features of the mobile phone. Such is the case of CECT N97, the newest mobile phone by CECT so far, an affordable rip off from the Nokia N series – N97.

Nokia N97 was released in the US flagstore stores and all over the world last June 2009 but quite unexpectedly, CECT also managed to release their own version of smart clone for Nokia N97 the following months not long after. There has been a lot of rumors that CECT company has already released the CECT N97 smart clone before the worldwide release of its original, that of the Nokia N97. Whatever the truth may be in this issue, the fact remains that the company has proved yet again that they are notorious in the areas of cloning and making pirated versions out of the original and selling them in a fraction of the original price – much to the delight to the general public consumers who are on a tighter budget. Their cheaper version for the expensive Apple's iPhone – the CECT mini phone – is still fresh among many gadget reviewers and critics and it is true that they have reaped millions of cash for such market profit of this iClone alone.

CECT N97 on the other hand, being recently released, has also received mixed reactions and reactions from the public, much like its original contemporary did. Common criticisms for it remain to be that it is only "a fake resemblance of the original" and that they should not be accepted and used by mobile phone users. On the lighter note, some gadget critics and reviewers would say it is a product of smart cloning, and not at all a "bad clone" when compared to the original. Furthermore, they say that CECT N97 can supersede its original resemblance, the Nokia N97, in its powerful combination of cheap price and phone performance, in the long run.

If you are torn between choosing which one you would have for your own, then consider the following options: price, performance and accessibility to come up with a smart buy. If you can afford the original price and if you value utmost performance, then you'd better choose Nokia N97. However, if you are on a lean budget then it is practical to choose CECT N97 to save money.