Hi,
This is my second review.. & yet again.. it?s a mobile phone that I chose to review.
Two good sites to know more about this phone:
https://nokia.co.uk/nokia/0, 8764, 20099, 00.html
https://mobile-review.com/review/nokia-3300-en.shtml
Well, I love the MP3 and FM radio features of this phone.. but other than that.. this ain?t a match for my favorite Motorola C350. (Ok.. no more mention of my fav fone. J)
Design:
Looks are pretty good.. but takes time for one to getting used to treating it as a phone. ?I wouldn?t take it even if I got it for free? ? my comment when my friend got his 3300 about 2-3 months ago. When I couldn?t find any other phone that offered the same functionality (at that price).. I too decided to go for it.
Even though it looks more like a video game console, it is pretty comfortable to grip. Unfortunately, single-hand use is just too inconvenient even for those with long fingers.
Screen:
4096 colours. Somehow, looks better than C350 and T68i. However, there are no multiple size fonts as in Nokia 6610. (There?s a normal font & a large font. That?s it K ).
Digit/Key-Entry:
I guess Human Technology had gone for a walk when they were designing this phone. Its a Left hander?s nightmare with the keypad being usable only by the right hand. (I?m right-handed, otherwise I wouldn?t have bought this u c J)
Audio Quality:
Sound reception is wonderful. The best ever I?ve seen (heard J) so far. This is only when using the earphone (headset). When using as a normal phone or as a speaker phone, there?s not much of a difference compared to other good phones.
Ringtones:
Any audio that is on the phone memory or the MMC card can be used as ringtone. !!wow!!. MP3, AAC, MIDI, WAV .. is that enough options? Moreover, you won?t need to pay for any ringtone. All websites have a mp3 (or other format) audio sample of the ringtones they have to offer. Just listen to it & copy the file from your browser?s cache folder. Kewl.. ain?t it. J
MP3
Transfer mp3 files from PC using the supplied USB cable. Windows explorer is more convenient than the supplied Nokia Audio Manager software.
MP3 files have some specifications like bitrate, stereo/mono, etc. I have a good collection of full length songs in small mp3 files (low bitrate files.. each of ?em being around 400-600 KB created using StreamBox Ripper) The supplied 64MB MMC card can hold over 100 such songs. I was pleasantly surprised that 3300 was able to play those songs as my Kenwood mp3 player had failed me (because it recognized only songs with bitrate higher than 100 kbps).
The round navigation button allows pause/play, forward/rewind, jump to next/previous track options. However, these don?t work when keypad is locked. It?s a good thing that the keypad doesn?t automatically lock when in Music screen.
Moreover, you can continue using the phone for non-voice usage while you?re listening to music. If you get/make a call while listening to music, the playback will automatically pause for the duration of the call (i.e., automatically resume after the call has ended.)
Radio:
Very good clarity (actually, this depends on the radio station?s capabilities :-p). Option to save 20 frequencies. The round navigation bar retains similar functions as in mp3 playback. The button on the headset advances the station.
I feel mere swapping between two recent stations would?ve been more helpful
Recording:
With one button exclusively for record option, it is convenient to record instantly from the radio. The recordings are stored in AAC format (takes very little space). There is an extra cable supplied to record from other devices. If you have a great song on tape & can?t seem to find an mp3 version.. just connect the phone to your audio player?s Headphone socket & start recording.. KEWL!!!!
I just can?t understand why they?ve disallowed recording a telephone conversation!! It would?ve been sooooo very helpful for forgetful people like me.
Internet:
Supports both WAP & GPRS. I?m not aware of much technicalities in this field. Also, I don?t use these features.. b?cos of my Service provider?s charges. Hence, I got nothing much to say here. K
Additional features:
? Supports java applications. i.e., they can be downloaded & used. Ex. Java games.
? Alarm clock
? Calendar & To do list.
? On the Calendar you can store Day notes or reminders (for as many different days as you want). There are 5 different types of notes (Meeting/Birthday/Call someone/Memo/reminder). This is very very very convenient to use as an organizer.
? Speaker Phone. It?s the same loud speaker that is used by your ringtone. Very helpful to listen to music when you?re not alone. Also helpful when more than one person is on one end of a telephone conversation.
Well.. I guess that?s all I have to say. Definitely a nice gift to young folks.
Ciao,
-S