- No third-party apps: Guess I won’t be running SSH on this baby.
- Non-removable battery: Yeah, because that worked so well with the iPod.
- Pure touch screen: Sorry, a touch-screen dial pad is bad enough. I touch screen keyboard should lead to some interesting emails.
- No 3G: HSPDA is the future of GSM data, and for $600 my phone better have it.
- 5-hour talk time: “Hi Mom, how are you. I just got my new iPh… <NO CARRIER>”.
- No over-the-air sync: No Blackberry connect, no Exchange ActiveSync, hell not even .Mac.
Basically, it’s like this. The iPhone is a consumer-oriented convergence device. It’s not designed for people who actually use their smart phone for productivity. It’s designed for the collage kids on HowardForums who think a 2-megapixel camera is a must have feature in a phone. I’ll stick with my Q, thanks.
My old Sony Ericson T616 phone was beginning to die over the last few weeks, so I replaced it with a Nokia 6230b from eBay. I’ve had the phone for about 5 days now, and I have to say it’s a very nice device. No doubt this phone is strictly business; most twenty-somethings would probably find this phone dull and boring. However, it meets the needs of a phone better than any other mobile I’ve owned. The call quality on this thing is amazing. The speaker is loud and clear, the mic is perfectly balanced, and it can produce clear calls on even one bar. Speaking of bars, this guy can hold onto a signal where no other phone seems able. Nokia phones are known for their incredible antennas, but I think this phone takes the cake.
The other thing this phone does well is Bluetooth. It picked up my Motorola headset with no troubles, and stays connected for as long as I want it. There is no static on the line when using the headset, unlike my T616, and voice-activated dialing works great. I was able to tether the device to both my Powerbook and Axim with no trouble, and was soon browsing the web via a fast EDGE connection. Very cool.
Other features such as the always wonderful Nokia interface and ease of use, a VGA camera, and EDGE data access round out the package very nicely.
I do have a few dislikes, mostly that the phone will not work with iSync on my Mac. It would seem that this feature is pretty much limited to Series 60 devices, and this is a Series 40. Very frustrating. The screen is quite small, but again the device is really intended to be used as a phone more than anything else.
If you need a good, basic phone with great reception and bluetooth, I can’t recommend this phone enough. That being said, I should note that I’ve already replaced it with an Audiovox SMT5600. I’ll post my reasons, and a quick review of the Audiovox, once I’ve had some time with it. For now, the 6230 will be going to the wife.