I used to have an 8250 until recently (it was love at first sight and I was a proud owner of the same though it did not accommodate many features). Recently, I lost my pal (and around 250 numbers stored in it... That is all the more painful). I tried to contact the guy who lifted it up but he simply wouldnt give in.
Anyway, I thougt Life has to move on and I’ve been thinking of an upgrade anyway. So, here I was, dropped in the middle of an ocean, with mobiles hitting me from all directions, some claiming charm, some claiming action and still others claiming value for money.
Then I chose this Nokia Priority showroom (opp. ICICI bank, Banjara Hills) and plunged in (nah, I was not giving in to any other brand, I’ve become like a loyalist to Nokia). He had a decent A3 size chart depicting all models and it was a quick comparision chart. Going through it,
I gave the chap my wish list...
Polyphonic Ring Tones
Color display
FM radio
Java-enabled (which inturn means GPRS and MMS are available) so that I can download new applications.
Some good/useful applications that come by default (like organizer etc).
Camera NOT necessary.
Hearing all these, he placed a 6610 before me. Now, this had been all the more tempting and I almost said ’’Pack it’’ when he said..... ’’Sir this will cost you Rs.8000 and an upgrade model to this will cost you Rs.8200’’ So, my expectations raised and I asked ’’What upgrades?’’ He said :
You get a still camera (with 3-mode pictures: Normal, Portrait and Night mode).
You get a better polyphonic ringtone player. (6610 can play only 4 different midi instruments, whereas this can play 16 simultaneous midi’s, meaning you get richer sound and better music).
and a few others...(Image editing etc).
I immediately asked him, ’’Why only 200 extra? Or, are you over-quoting for 6610?’’ He said that this is the method of Nokia to gradually discontinue older models. Since the difference is very minimal, MAX people will opt for the later model. Good trick.
Now, coming to the performance...... The power button was a bit hard to press (having been at the same level as the phone. But you slowly get used to it.
The sound clarity is VERY good and FM reception is Excellant.
The charger is a standard Nokia one (you can use the same one for 1100, 2100, 3200, 8250, 6610 and many more...).
The talk time is good (though not excellant).
The buttons are very stylish and easy to use. They are just a breeze for the already-nokia users (not joking, they are feather-touch keys). The volume keys are a little bit harder so that accidental touch by your fingers dont alter the volume (I faced this problem with my 8250).
It also has a built-in Loud Speaker and this is a great Idea (I saw it in a Sagem model that I once used).
Now comes the ’Upgrade’ part... the Camera..
The camera is a standard 352*288 pixel color, but not a great one. Especially the camera software needs a bad upgrade. Most recent cam softwares come with an anti-shake function that gives you decent pictures even if there is a minor vibration in your hand (it is software-compensated). But this feller doesnt come with such armour. If you shake your hand EVEN a LITTLE, you will get a shaken picture only. You need to hold it ROCK steady to get a good pic. I’ll Upload a few pics (good and bad ones) soon and let you know. The night mode is good and the photos are nice even when taken in VERYMUCH FADED LIGHT (not Absolute black out).
The PC Suite is also a bit disappointing because it is not too user friendly. What you hear (when you select Hear Preview as played in phone)is not what is produced inthe phone. Overalll, I think You can GO for this if you are looking at this price-segment phones.
I love this piece too dearly now and happily recomment it to new buyers.