The most excellent phone I owned - pity for the discolouring
Written: Dec 21 '07 (Updated May 15 '08)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Classy, sturdy, runs S60, plenty of software, wifi+voip
Cons: Battery life and some bug in os, discolouring on the moka model!
The Bottom Line: This is a excellent phone and PDA. I would'nt change it for anything on the marked at this time (December 2007)
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| eiapoce's Full Review: Nokia E65 Red Unlocked Gsm Phone |
I got this phone after a struggle to upgrade from my previous 6630 by nokia. I also owned a N73 in the process of finally stabilizing on the E65.
Box
In the Box: Phone - Battery - Headset (mono) - Charger (Wall) - USB Cable - CD
The box is neat as usual, the Cd is unuseful as usual. It comes with a bunch of programs from Nokia that when you install you already need to upgrade from the internet tot the most update version. So don't bother and go straight to http://www.nokia.com
Phone - Physical appearance
The phone is a breakthrough. I already experienced the slide mechanism from the lens cover of the N73 but I think this is the first time ever that Nokia gets the slide done nicely in a business phone. It looks like there is a spring somewhere. The sensation is that it is both solid and fluid. It is really classy. The weight is right on the spot. The size is small and comfortable.
This finally takes Nokia ahead of Motorola and LG on the slide market.
The keypad is not small and there is still functionality when the phone is on the closed position. (Active StandBy).
The slide mechanism is ACTIVE - Thus you can answer and close calls by opening/closing the phone. There is also a irritating message everytime you close asking you if you need to lock the keyboard.
The Lateral keys are the weak point of all the assembly. They don’t look as sturdy as the rest of the phone. Also the battery compartment can squeak under pressure. I fixed that with a piece of paper over the battery.
Sound Quality
Not bad for the size. The speaker is adequate for normal usage. There is also a loudspeaker that comes handy when using a satellite navigation program like TomTom or Route66 or even the free Nokia Maps.
The sound quality might deteriorate when connected through the Wi-Fi but I think this is more a problem of bandwidth rather than actual hardware.
Display Quality
I don’t see any flaws but I must admit that the screen of the N73 was simply better. This one carries the same resolution but is almost a half inch smaller so for older people the characters on the screen can be too small. Also the color gamut look smaller than the N73 display.
Battey Life
It seriously depends on the use you make of it. From a 2 days to 2 hours under severe usage. Communicating with the integrated VoIp does not stress much the phone. Using Fring instead and having a voice chat on wifi skype really brings down the battery in a matter of a hour or so. (Yes is a terribly nice thing to do!!! Use the mobile phone on skype at no charge :P)
Phone – Functionality
And here I start to wonder if there is enough time to talk about it.
I’d like to start from the quad band stuff. Basically this phone works as a triband GSM – UTMS unit with added wi-fi 802.11b/g networking. The fact is that you also have a VoIp Client embedded in the firmware. So by subscribing to a VoIp provider you can enjoy also VoIp calls on this headset. This basically means that you will be given a fixed line number and can decide whatever to route outgoing calls thought your phone provider or through the internet and your VoIp provider. Nokia was nice to me and added a 500 mins free worldwide calls and a 3months Italian number to this phone courtesy of Noverca http://www.noverca.com/
Then you have all the wonders of the S60 V3 (the operating system). Ok, It’s not like operating the iPhone but I gives way more in terms of openness and choices. You can use and install freely almost any application you might think of and you are not bundled to Apple. For instance you can upload your Mp3 and use them as ringtones without paying a additional tax.
The included programs range from the internet browser to a Wi-Fi scanner to a Compass (to use with a external GPS) to a Office suite (readers) Email client Mp3 Players and whatever. I mean really whatever you can think of probably it’s already there. That’s why the strange people in Finland are thinking of event stranger programs to put on your mobile phone and here you go: the nokia labs… http://www.nokia.com/betalabs/applications
I already tried many of them. I was particularly impressed by the sports tracker and the audiobook reader and the Webserver (yeah a apache webserver on the phone!). They all come FREE and I smile when I think that apple iPhone owners are charged 1$ for each ringtone they compose from music they have already purchased from iTunes :D
The menu system is aging. It is still agile and nice and easy, but I admit that the user interface can be bettered and probably this will be one of the last phones using this grid like display.
Mandatory programs to install
There are a few mandatory programs to install. This is a brief list:
* Nokia Sports Tracker - Because it is funny and because we can. This gem tracks your movements and can save them in Google earth format for you to see (needs a GPS Module) - Free
* Google Maps – Your position on a map with satellite view, even without GPS – Free
* Fring – Chat on MSN – SKYPE – Google Talk and others paying only for the traffic. You can also place VoIp calls if you know how to configure it - FREE
* Gmail – Access your gmail! Just like home.
* DivX Player (beta) – From the divx team a movie reader for the phone. Way better quality than the included crappy realplayer.
* Nokia AudioBooks – Free reader for audiobooks and a converter from the nokia beta labs.
* Tom Tom mobile – This is not free and you can substtute with the nokia maps. BUT the nokia maps are slower and if you want navigation they aren’t free as well.
* Nokia Mosh thingie – It looks like nokia is happy to host software on their servers. You can find almost anything there including MP3s…
Defects
A defect is the poor quality of the Moka cover. Unlike other colors this one seldom discolours after a few months. The smooth texture peels out leavong you wonder why nokia use such a low quality material on a high end phone.
Might be that my battery has a problem BUT when it does reach the lowest level it doesent warn me most of the times and the phone begins behaving in a odd manner and at the end it just shuts itself off. I would consider a backup battery.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
eiapoce
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Reviews written: 42
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