Nokia N9 Initial Test

Posted on 29-06-2011 | By: david | 

Category : Nokia

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The Nokia N9 resembles some sort of alien communication device from a Sci-Fi movie! Definitely not one of those generic handsets which are hard to distinguish, its certainly unique with its slick, no buttons appearance and the innovative navigation by “swipey gestures”.This handset does actually have some buttons, on the side there are unlock, camera and volume buttons, but these are not immediately obvious and the lack of even a home button on the fascia of the phone is unusual to say the least. The curved 3.9 inch touch screen simply adds to the visual appeal. But is this “swipey gestures” any good?

Well, the method of navigation is not dissimilar to that employed by other devices such as the Palm Pre, BlackBerry PlayBook and HP TouchPad. On these devices the consensus is that, although it can take a bit of getting used to, once you get the hang of it, navigation becomes fast and intuitive. Of course some will baulk at having to learn to use these new features, but many will be smitten by this unusual method and will be happily “swiping in no time, perhaps in a few years buttons will be regarded as old fashioned and clumsy!

The “home” screen defaults to information on missed calls, text messages and social network activity (such as wall posts, tweets and notifications). One swipe brings you to a screen displaying all the icons for on board applications, yet another swipe brings you to the third screen displaying open applications allowing you to multi task and switch between the apps. In terms of hardware the Nokia N9 features a 8 megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss lens and HD video capabilities, social networking (Vimeo, Twitter, Skype, Facebook and more) and fast mobile browsing, Wi-Fi, maps with free navigation in 90 countries worldwide and Dolby Digital Plus for audio with personal surround sound. Plus of course a wide range of applications available via the Nokia OVI store.

The Nokia N9 deserves success just based on looks and novelty factors alone! However, scratch beneath the pleasing surface and you will find a feature laden smart phone to rival offerings from other manufacturers. On the down side, Nokia have strangely decided to use the already outdated MeeGo Operating System, which even Nokia appear to have lost interest in, this means updates and new applications are unlikely in the future. However this is offset by the fact that the N9 comes preloaded with many applications and games which will be more than enough for many users.

Full Review of Nokia 6303i Classic mobile Phone

Posted on 15-11-2010 | By: david | 

Category : Mobile Phones, Nokia

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large6303classicsilverAnother mobile from Nokia targeted towards entry level users, the Nokia 6303i Classic is a conventional “candy bar” shaped handset which provides a surprising range of features. The stainless steel bevelled casing looks and feels good, additionally it’s a simple handset to use with one hand. Standard features include a 3.1 megapixel camera, web browser, music player, video player and messaging services, essentially the 6303 offers all the features and services mobile phone users need. The Nokia 6303i is essentially an upgraded version of the Nokia 6300 with additional memory, features, and greater customisation using the range of new coloured casings.

The 2.2 inch display is a TFT type with 240 x 320 pixels resolution and supports up to 16 million colours. Even with full alphanumeric keypad below, the overall dimensions are still just 108.8mm x 46.2mm x 11.7 mm, with a weight of just 96 grams. Connectivity options are limited to the 2G network with GPRS and EDGE, no 3G or WLAN but thats only to be expected given the price range of this model. USB and Bluetooth are both supported however, so overall the the Nokia 6303i Classic scores well in connectivity stakes for this level of pricing.

The Nokia 6303i classic is a low end device that does not offer memory intensive gaming facilities so the on-board memory of 55 MB and external memory of 2Gb with microSD card included is quite sufficient (if necessary even this can be upgraded to 8Gb if required). The camera is decent with 3.2 megapixels, LED flash, video recording at 8 frames per second and auto focus. The music player on the Nokia 6303i classic offers a good music listening experience and supports all popular file types such as MP3, WAV, eAAC+, and WMA.

Advantages:Great quality stainless steel handset seems built to last and feels good to hold, easy to use and get familiar with main features, good battery life, decent camera for the price, lots of features for a budget mobile phone.

Disadvantages: Some users feel the loudspeaker could use a bit more volume, no 3G , no touch screen display, some users felt keyboard was slightly too small while others had no problems – perhaps not the best handset for those with podgy fingers!

In the main, Nokia has got another winner on it’s hands in their budget mobile phone range. This handset, although targeted at the entry level users, has many of the features associated with much higher end products so will surprise and delight many budget conscious phone users! Currently the best offers on the Nokia 6303i Classic are to be found with o2 and Vodafone.

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Nokia 2330 Classic – reviews and ratings

Posted on 14-11-2010 | By: david | 

Category : Mobile Phones, Nokia

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large2330classicThe Nokia 2330 Classic is an elegant looking handset which will satisfy thos emobile phone customers looking for all the main features without being blinded by science! It’s a great phone, suitable for all age groups, that comes with all the main applications and features required. Calling, texting, playing games (comes preloaded with Galaxy Ball and a Snake II) , browsing the internet (with EDGE technology for high speed data transfer), taking photographs, recording videos and even listening to music, all this from a budget handset with a bargain basement price – what more could you possibly want?

Weighing in at just 90 grams and measuring just 13.8mm x 46mm x 107mm, with its basic 1.8” TFT display above standard alphanumeric keypad, this handset is neat enough to fit into any pocket. The integrated digital camera can be used for both photographs and videos (picture quality is more than adequate for most). Images, videos, contacts and ringtones can be stored using the 32 Mb of on-board memory (although you cannot extend this storage). A good quality FM radio with dedicated key is also included (supported via an internal antenna and with a really handy radio recording feature ). The design and looks of the Nokia 2330 are hardly exciting, but the phone feels durable and well made with no nasty suprises in store.

We tend not to expect much from a budget phone, so the inclusion of SMS and MMS, Bluetooth, conference calling, hands free, and a full web browser are unexpected, but welcome additions.

Advantages: Good battery life (4.8 hours talk time and standby time of up to 540 hours ), extremely affordable on both contract (T-mobile and o2) and pay-as-you-go, good music player, and very easy to use

Disadvantages: No microSD card slot to increase memory storage, fitted with a 2.5mm headphone jack which means sourcing after-market headphones is difficult and you could be stuck with the poor standard headphones supplied by Nokia, slightly cramped keyboard wont suit those of us with large hands/fingers.

Considering this is a budget mobile with a bargain-basement price, it’s hard to find much to complain about with the Nokia 2330 Classic. Its has good battery life, it’s really easy to use and does have some decent additional features. It’s only real problems are the slightly cramped keypad and no microSD slot to expand memory. If you are looking for a mobile phone that does all the basics well, is cheap, and is simple to get to grips with, the Nokia 2330 Classic should be on your shopping list!

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Nokia E5 Mobile Phone Review

Posted on 13-11-2010 | By: david | 

Category : Mobile Phones, Nokia

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largenokiae5blackThe Nokia E5 is a feature packed smart phone loaded with 3G and WiFi technologies. A direct competitor to Blackberry products such as the BlackBerry Curve , this 3G Smart-phone however persists in using the outdated Symbian operating system (despite the long running industry rumours of Nokia switching to the superior Android operating system). . The saving grace of the E5 is the inclusion of a full QWERTY keyboard and the user friendly navigation controls which has become something of a Nokia trademark.

In terms of features, this mobile phone has everything you could possibly need. Built in music player, video recording and playback, five megapixel digital camera, fully functioning Web browser, Multimedia Messaging, Bluetooth and WiFi, Vlingo speech-to-text , pre-installed applications for social networking via Facebook and similar, Ovi Maps with free turn-by-turn navigation, Quad Band reception and much more!

The handset features a 2.4 inch TFT screen (up to 256,000 colours and resolution of 320 pixels x 240 pixels) above a full qwerty keyboard and classic Nokia 5 way navigation key. Available in 5 different casing colours ( white, carbon black, silver grey, copper and sky blue) which nicely highlight the chrome effect accents. Measuring 11.5cm x 5.89cm x 1.28cm, the E5 is reasonably compact, though certainly not the smallest phone on the market. It does however feel substantial to hold with a reassuring solid feel.

Lack of touchscreen means users require keyboard for functions such as zoom and navigation, making transitions slower and clunkier than Android powered mobile phones such as the HTC Desire or Motorola Milestone. However the customisation features available on the home screens means the E5 beats the iPhone set up by some margin!

Advantages: Fantastic Qwerty keyboard enables fast typing for texting/emails etc, sturdy design, excellent battery life, huge choice of connectivity options. 3.5mm audio jack allows easy upgrading of standard headphones, powerful speaker with good clarity

Disadvantages: Screen not brilliant – difficult to read in direct sunlight and 320 pixels x 240 pixels is simply not enough nowadays, ancient Symbian operating system is feeling a bit outdated, Camera is just adequate – should really be better in this class. Headphones included in retail pack are poor.

The Nokia E5 is another handset from Nokia targeting Blackberry (much like the C3), apart from the rather low tech screen, it does a good job and the superb qwerty keyboard alone will certainly win a few customers from the more expensive Blackberry Curve and similar products. Available on T-mobile, o2, Orange and Vodafone

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Nokia 5230 XpressMusic Smartphone Full Review

Posted on 12-11-2010 | By: david | 

Category : Mobile Phones, Nokia

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large5230Another fashionable touch screen handset from Nokia, the 5230 XpressMusic comes in black or white with interchangeable battery covers (red, silver, pink, yellow or blue) for further customisation potential.

The 5230 uses the Symbian 60 operating system software powering all the features and the 3.2 inch high resolution touch screen. In terms of overall size the Nokia 5230 XpressMusic measures 11.1cm x 5.17cm x 1.55cm and weighs in at 115 grams (this weight includes stylus which annoyingly is not included in some retail packs).

As expected from a smart phone, the Nokia 5230 XpressMusic comes with internet browser with RSS feed display, full email capabilities, SMS and MMS (multimedia picture messaging service), alarm clock, phone-book, music player with FM radio, camera and much, much more.

From the model name (XpressMusic) you can expect this mobile phone to focus heavily on music capabilities. Nokia has long been a leader in providing music players masquerading as mobile phones! Ever since the launch of the 5800 XpressMusic back in 2008, Nokia has been delighting music lovers with their handsets. The 5230 XpressMusic does not disappoint in this regard, with integrated FM radio, music player (supporting MP3, MP4, AAC, eAAC+ and WMA music formats) with 33 hours of playback time from a single battery charge, dedicated volume control key and speaker for listening to radio/music tracks without headphones. The 5230 has 70MB of internal memory but this can easily be expanded to 16GB using microSD card. If your music collection doesn’t stretch to 16Gb songs are also available for download from the Nokia Music Store.

In addition to the music capabilities, the Nokia 5230 has a fairly basic two mega-pixel camera with a digital zoom, integrated flash and dedicated capture key which makes it easy to take photographs. The camera also supports video recording and video recordings can be played back on the high colour touch screen display.

High speed data access is provided courtesy of the 3G HSDPA technology. The 5230 also comes with GPS navigation and Nokia Maps 2.0. Connectivity is good with EDGE technology and useful Bluetooth connection or USB connection.

Advantages: Fast and responsive touch-screen display, great music player

Disadvantages: No Wi-Fi, less than exciting looks, fiddly sim-card removal process

A good all-rounder with particularly good music features and excellent sound quality. The only place the Nokia 5230 XpressMusic falls down is no Wi-Fi capability. That aside, this is an excellent mobile phone with an attractive retail price and great offers available on contracts from T-mobile, Vodafone and Orange.

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