I've had my N95 for 3 months and I'm still impressed with it. I don't think a case is needed (never have used them really) but when you get yours, make sure the software is V.11 or above (check by entering *#0000#), if it's not you can use the Nokia software suite to update.
If you want to try the satnav, don't bother with the built-in software, use
www.nav4all.com instead.
And you need to have the phone open for the GPS to work.
One final thing - no market stall or shop on earth can unlock it -
only the networks can. If someone tells you otherwise, they're either lying or mistaken.