The Nokia 5230 is Nokia’s attempt to enter the market segment created by the original Samsung Star, after Samsung(and LG, albeit lesser) managed to sell more than 10 million units of the Star in the first 6 months of its launch they flooded the market with variants of the Corby that catered to a wider audience. Even though Nokia doesn’t have the variety that Samsung can boast, its offerings are highly attractive and are sure to lure some of Samsung’s potential customers.
Technical Specifications – 3.2" touchscreen display, Symbian S60 5th edition, Quad-band GSM support, 3G, A-GPS, Ovi maps, 2 megapixel camera, FM radio, Bluetooth and much more.
Bundle and Cost: Calling the phone bundle minimal would be an understatement, just the charger and headphones! I didn’t need to put in a bulleted list! I guess I need to hold up my dealer because I am supposed to have a plectrum in the box, which is missing. That reminds me there is a stylus logged neatly in the back of the phone, something unnecessary according to me. The most shocking part is the exclusion of the data cable and the memory card, even the 5320 which costs a shade over 5k comes with a 1 GB memory card. After borrowing some more I purchased a data cable for Rs. 200 and a leather case (from the stalls at the railway station) for Rs. 150.
The phone came with a scratch guard, that in my opinion probably kept my finances afloat for this month. Total cost: Rs. 9200, Phone: Rs. 8500, Leather case: Rs. 150, Data Cable: Rs. 200, 2GB Kingston Memory Card: Rs. 350 Design: This is the only department in which Nokia fails compared to the sleek lines of the corby or the slimness of the Samsung Star. The phone is available in two colors - Black OR White and the back panel of the phone is replaceable.
Nokia has followed its traditional approach of being lazy when it comes to designing phones, they simply borrowed the body of the popular 5800, tweaked it to look dull (especially the black version) and Eureka! Behold the new creation. I have purchased the black version of the Nokia 5230 and found the the quality of plastic pretty good. At the top of the Nokia 5230 you will find the power key, the micro USB port, charger plug and 3.5 mm standard audio jack. There is a protective cover for the micro USB port to keep dust away. To the right are the screen lock and volume rocker button and camera button, to the left are the slots for the sim card and the micro SD card.
Caution: Be careful and double check before you insert the micro SD card, you might think you have figured it out but this thing will come to bite you, it wins the worse designed micro SD slot award by a mile. For removing the card you might need to call in your neighbors for a heave. Above the screen is the proximity sensor which turns off the screen when it detects that the phone is close to your ear and at the back is the standard 2 MP camera. Adjacent to the proximity sensor is a small arrow for the media bar. Under the display are the three keys, the Call-End-and menu buttons. While writing the review I got a call on my phone from a female friend, I got a new phone, guess which one, Samsung Corby that explains it all. Unless there is a female with techy inclinations, this phone will seldom find itself in those beautiful curvy hands. Messaging: Messaging on the phone is a joy, my super fast response times to sms just got an additional "super" tag attached to it (super super fast) thanks to the landscape full QWERTY keyboard. Camera: The Camera even though is a basic 2MP shooter does a good job in capturing still images and produces excellent video capture results, the quality of the images though suffer in low light areas due to the absence of flash. Music: The 5230’s trump card. The sound quality is very good and the phone is the perfect candidate t0 replace your mp3 player, the music player application is well designed.
Conclusion: No phone is perfect, HELL! No human is perfect but this phone stands out from every other phone in terms of the amount of value it brings to the table. This phone is not for your girlfriend or your sister or your mother or anybody else, this phone is for you! When I first saw the phone I hated the bulky design, but after using it for a couple of days I realized that probably this design was inspired from its potential users - males, who look neanderthal but have a charming beauty within ! It’s brimmed with technology and gadget wizard to keep you occupied and smiling every moment that you use it.