iPhone 4-Esque

On the surface, the iPhone 4S resembles its predecessor, the iPhone 4. It maintains the same 4.5 inch by 2.31 inch by 0.37 inch design, although it is nominally heavier at 4.9 ounces. It is available in black and white versions (and yes, the white version is actually available this time) for AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint. It also maintains the same dock connector, volume, and home buttons, in the same places, as well as the beautiful 3.5-inch 960 x 640 pixel retina display. It’s not AMOLED, but its 326 ppi pixel density and 800:1 contrast ratio are gorgeous and easily viewable both indoors and out.

Also like the iPhone 4, the 4S features WiFi 802.11b/g/n, but unlike the 4, the 4S has been upgraded to Bluetooth version 4.0, which enhances its battery life.

In addition to the 16 GB version for $199 and the 32 GB version for $299 (with contract), Apple has introduced a 64 GB model for $399, which is handy for those of us who crave extra storage space for apps, music, and video (the exact amount you can store depends on your choice of apps and encoding settings).

Faster! Faster! More Intense!

Under the hood, however, the iPhone 4S is a major upgrade. It features a dual-core A5 processor with 512 MB of RAM, rather than the single-core A4 found in the iPhone 4. So what does that mean exactly? This phone is FAST. Opening apps, multitasking, typing on the on-screen keyboard, and swiping through windows are all an instantaneous breeze. iOS devices have always felt snappy, but the 4S feels faster than ever.

Mobile Safari is equally impressive (although there’s still no Flash), zipping through web pages in a way that feels more like a desktop computer than a phone. On the Sunspider 0.9.1 Javascript rendering test, Safari on the 4S scores an amazing overall score of 2241.6 ms as opposed to 4015 for the iPhone 4 or 3353 for the Samsung Galaxy S II (lower numbers are better). Speed is one of the main selling points of the iPhone 4S, and it certainly does not disappoint in that respect. In Browsermark, the iPhone 4 scored an extremely impressive 88,416 vs. 35,901 for the iPhone 4 and 46,245 for the Droid Bionic (higher numbers are better).

iPhone 4S Video Review

Here’s our video review of the iPhone 4S (the AT&T version was used for this video). We’ll add a video review of the Verizon iPhone 4S in a few days.

iPhone 4S on AT&T vs. Verizon Wireless Comparison:

Calling and Data

Apple has addressed the sometimes-controversial antenna from the iPhone 4 by implementing a dual-antenna system in the 4S, in which the phone intelligently selects between the two antennas to find the stronger signal strength. Using the not-so-reliable “bar marks,” we got 3-4 bars of 3G coverage on the 4S in a moderate coverage area, versus 2-3 bars on earlier iPhone models.

On AT&T, Apple has also updated the 3G connection to 14.4 Mbps HSDPA (although 3G speeds are unchanged on Verizon and Sprint). Using Ookla’s SpeedTest app on AT&T, we averaged speeds of 289 ms ping / 3.75 Mbps download / 1.07 Mbps upload in the Portland Oregon area and 159 ms ping/4.9Mbps down/1.08Mbps up in the Dallas area.

These are respectable scores, and some marketing departments (hello AT&T and T-Mobile) might even like to call them “4G,” but the fact remains that for now, the iPhone is still a 3G phone. Now that true 4G LTE phones are becoming commonplace on Verizon and should arrive on AT&T in the next few months, this may be a sore spot among some potential buyers, but Apple does have its reasons for waiting on 4G; the availability of 4G is still somewhat limited, and 4G chips tend to wreak havoc on battery life and increase phone size. You may agree with Apple here, or you may not, but they made a conscious decision that 4G wasn’t ready for prime time – it’s not as if they simply “forgot” 4G or couldn’t figure it out.

Voice calls were crisp and clear, including on speakerphone. This is a marked improvement over the iPhone 4, whose call quality wasn’t very good. In fact, we absolutely love the iPhone 4S as a voice phone. Although dropped calls continue to plague some iPhone users on AT&T, in our tests, iPhone 4S didn’t drop more calls than other non-iPhone AT&T phones.

The iPhone 4S is a true world phone that has both CDMA and GSM radios built-in, regardless of which carrier sells it. That means Apple can make one piece of hardware that AT&T, Sprint, Verizon and overseas carriers can sell, with only software customizations. The phone uses the usual (for Apple) micro SIM for the GSM side of things, and it’s quad band GSM with 3G on the 850/900/1900/2100Mhz bands (T-Mobile’s 3G bands are missing). It has EV-DO Rev. A 3G for use on Verizon, Sprint and overseas roaming in CDMA countries like Korea. Should you travel overseas, you can either pay your carrier’s international roaming rates, or get the GSM side unlocked so you can use the SIM card of your choice (Verizon will provide an unlock code, but not AT&T). So far, Verizon is the only carrier stating that they’ll unlock the iPhone 4S for customers in good standing. That doesn’t mean you can pop in an AT&T SIM though; the Verizon iPhone’s firmware blocks using AT&T SIM cards.

It’s A Sony!

Another major upgrade to the iPhone 4S is its 8-megapixel Sony camera with redesigned optics, autofocus, geotagging, and an LED flash, plus onboard photo editing. It can shoot video with audio up to 1080p at 30 frames per second and also features image stabilization. (The phone also has a VGA FaceTime camera on the front.) The camera is also much faster than most cell phones, allowing you to fire it up and take a picture within about one second.

Photos taken with the 4S’ camera are impressive and colorful without being oversaturated. Likewise, videos are crisp and detailed. Whereas most cell phone cameras are the camera you use in a pinch since it is likely the only one available, the camera on the 4S is good enough that novice to mid-range photographers may actually want to make it their primary camera. Video quality is noticeably better than the iPhone 4, and low light photos are better thanks to the 4S’ fast F/2.4 lens and backside illuminated sensor. That’s a great compliment considering how good the iPhone 4′s 5 megapixel camera is. The iPhone 4S camera holds its own vs. better 8 megapixel camera phones on the market like the HTC Amaze 4G, and bests the Motorola Droid Bionic’s slow and less colorful 8 megapixel shooter.

Battery

The iPhone 4S’ non user-replaceable lithium-ion battery is rated for 8 hours talk time on 3G, 10 hours of video playback, 40 hours of audio playback, 6 hours of 3G data usage, 9 hour of WiFi data, or 300 hours of standby. In our tests, we found these estimates to be roughly on target. If you use your iPhone frequently throughout the day, you’ll probably make it to the evening, although especially heavy users may want to buy an external battery. People who don’t use their iPhones very often… don’t really exist.

Two’s Company, Five’s iCloud

The iPhone 4S comes preloaded with iOS 5, and while this is not a review of iOS 5, it’s worth noting that that gets you access to over-the-air updates, iCloud automatic syncing, revamped notifications, and a hardware shutter button (volume up) – nice! For iCloud syncing you can select from email, notes, contacts, calendar, bookmarks, photos and videos, backups over WiFi, and you can deselect any you don’t need. The version of Mobile Safari in iOS 5 has been shown to improve browsing speeds even on the humble iPhone 3GS.

Siri

But wait, there’s “one more thing” – by now, you’ve probably heard of the iPhone 4S’ new personal assistant, Siri.

Longtime Apple fans may find Siri eerily similar to the “Assist” button from back in the days of the Newton… you know, just press Assist, write, in your own words, something like, “Please schedule a meeting on Friday,” and it gives you a message back saying something like, “Confirmed, I have just sold your car.”

So if Apple wants to venture into “humanoid assistant” territory again, this time they’d better get it right. Thankfully, they did. Siri’s roots hail back to a DARPA project that was privatized after a decade, and Apple bought that company. With Siri, all you have to do is hold down the Home button and tap on the on-screen microphone, and you can give voice commands setting up appointments, adding reminders, checking weather, asking for information, or numerous other commands, all in natural English. In our tests, Siri worked amazingly well. We did have some issues with server lag or unresponsiveness, but accuracy was unbelievably good, both in terms of understanding the words we were saying and in terms of interpreting what we meant. Siri is also a source of entertainment, much like the world’s first computer shrink Eliza– try asking Siri “what’s the meaning of life” to see what I mean.

The 4S also has an option to let you dictate text into apps instead of using the on-screen keyboard.

To Siri, With Love

OK, it’s not the iPhone 5, but Apple managed key improvements that bring the iPhone up to date and keep it competitive with Android and even the still young but impressive Windows Phone 7 Mango. It’s no bull, the phone is twice as fast in terms of CPU performance and more than twice as fast for graphics. In fact, in our tests, it beats most Android phones on benchmarks. For GSM users (that means AT&T in the US), data speeds are also twice as fast as the iPhone 4 and iPhone 3GS. iOS 5 likewise adds competitive modern features like OTA updates, a cloud syncing service and much improved notifications. The iPhone 4S’ most significant innovation is Siri, the voice-activated personal assistant. It works remarkably well for so many tasks and it doesn’t require scripted commands. Siri may well be the future of computing.

Price: $199 for 16 gig, $299 for 32 gig and $399 for 64 gig with a 2 year contract on all US carriers. No contract pricing starts at $649 as does unlocked GSM version.

Source: MobileTechReview.com

The Droid Bionic looks much like the Droid X2, in fact it’s basically a souped-up LTE 4G version of the Droid X2. It has the same soft touch back with a tapered design that rises in the camera area, a large qHD 4.3″ touchscreen and an 8 megapixel rear camera. The Bionic has a gig of RAM vs. 512 megs in the X2 (it needs more RAM to power the Webtop OS used with dock accessories), a CPU brand change, more internal storage, a larger battery (LTE needs more power) and a front video chat camera.

Like the Motorola Atrix 4G, the Bionic works with dock accessories and the Webtop software that turns the smartphone into a laptop of sorts. In fact, Motorola has really gone to town with expansion options, and there are 5 docks available for the Bionic. The most flashy and interesting is the Lapdock that’s an 11.6″ laptop minus the brains. As with the Atrix, the Bionic is the brain literally behind the Lapdock, providing the CPU, graphics processing and storage for the setup. The Bionic sits in a small cradle at the back of the Lapdock, and automatically switches to Webtop, which has a file manager, desktop, email and the Firefox 4 web browser. It sells for $300, which is more reasonable than AT&T’s price for the Atrix Lapdock (no, they’re not interchangeable), and you can get it for $200 if you sign up for a contract with a $50 or higher data plan.

There are several more affordable dock solutions including a $99 HD Multimedia dock and a $30 Webtop adapter that connects to the phone’s micro USB and micro HDMI ports (as do all the docks) and turns Webtop on, for those who want to provide their own display and Bluetooth keyboard and mouse. When connected to one of these docks, the Droid Bionic indeed rules all machines, at least the phone variety that can’t morph into a computer-surrogate. Webtop isn’t a full-featured operating system in its own right, but it can run all your installed Android apps in a window to make up for the bare bones selection of Webtop apps.

Design and Display

The Droid Bionic feels weighty in a pleasing way, and it looks like a good quality piece of hardware. Its casing is primarily plastic, but the soft touch finish and smoked chrome surround impart a quality esthetic. The front is a huge slab of Gorilla Glass, and this is a large phone. Verizon’s LTE phones haven’t been petit, largely because they sport big displays and high end components inside.

The front capacitive buttons work well, but the side volume controls are small and a bit hard to operate. The 3.5mm stereo jack is sensibly located up top and the micro USB and micro HDMI ports are on the left side. The microSD card slot is under the back cover, stacked above the LTE SIM card slot. You don’t need to remove the battery to access the included 16 gig card, but you do have to pull the battery to remove the SIM card (not that there’s generally a reason to pull the LTE SIM card).

The Bionic has a 4.3″, 960 x 540 pixel capacitive multi-touch Gorilla Glass touch screen. That’s currently the highest resolution available on Android phones, and it’s a good match for the display size in terms of font sizes and image rendering. It’s a PenTile display, which I know a few of you dislike, but we find it plenty good enough. Like most recent high end Moto Android displays, it’s very bright, has very high contrast and a cool color bias (whites tend toward blue rather than yellow). The cool colors can make things look a little stark (human flesh lacks warmth), but it’s really a matter of personal preference. The display isn’t as super-saturated as Samsung’s Super AMOLED Plus used on the Droid Charge.

4G LTE and Calling

Motorola knows how to make phones, and we’ve come to expect very good voice quality as well as strong reception. The Droid Bionic delivers very good voice quality with good noise reduction, but reception on LTE is just average. Average isn’t a bad thing, but this isn’t one of those Moto phones that could get an LTE signal in a lead-lined box. 3G EV-DO Rev. A and 1x reception on the other hand are excellent.

Data speeds on Verizon Wireless’ 4GLTE network were as usual impressive. We averaged 18 megs down and 2.5 megs up according to Speedtest.net with a 3 out of 5 bar signal in the DFW metro region. Web pages obviously download quickly at those speeds; Adobe Flash content doesn’t pause frequently to buffer and Netflix plays well. The Bionic can act as a mobile hotspot that shares its 4G/3G connection over WiFi for an additional $20/month.

If you buy the Bionic with a contract, Verizon will require that you add a data plan, and these range from $30/month for 2 gigs of data to 10 gigs for $80/month (mobile hotspot increases your data allowance by 2 gigs and costs an additional $20/month). Beware: LTE is like using WiFi, and it’s easy to consume lots of data. If you go to town streaming movies or consuming other high bandwidth content, you’ll easily go through 5 gigs in a month. So use WiFi when you can if you want to avoid higher data plan pricing tiers.

Horsepower and Performance

Dual core CPUs have been a challenge to combine with an LTE radio in smartphones. Perhaps that’s why Motorola switched from the Tegra 2 CPU to a TI OMAP dual core. We know Moto fell months behind getting the LTE radio upgrade ready for the Tegra 2 equipped Motorola Xoom, and we haven’t seen LTE phones with that CPU (the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 is the first tablet to successfully combine the Tegra 2 and LTE). Whatever the reason, we don’t mind the Texas Instruments CPU one bit; in fact it’s a very solid performer. The TI OMAP4430 1GHz dual core CPU performs as well as the Tegra 2, and the only drawback is you lose access to the handful of Tegra Zone 3D games for Android. The phone scored 2126 in the Quadrant benchmark, and 59 in the Linpack multi-thread test. Those are excellent numbers that put the Bionic among top scoring phones.

In terms of perceived performance, the Droid Bionic feels fast, and can handle Webtop handily when docked. Even with Motorola’s custom software running on top of Gingerbread, the phone doesn’t pause or lag with several apps running in the background. It handles Adobe Flash well and does well with 3D games. Among the handful of Verizon 4G LTE Android smartphones (HTC Thunderbolt, Droid Charge by Samsung and the LG Revolution), the Droid Bionic is the only dual core, and is the fastest.

Software

Motoblur hasn’t received a whole lotta love, and Motorola’s recent high end Android phones run toned down versions of Motoblur minus the name. The broad social network and email support with contacts integration is here, as are some of Motorola’s widgets. The widgets no longer hog the screen as they did on mid-tier Motoblur phones, and the UI customization is subtle: you get Motorola’s square app icons, a launcher strip on the home screen and a side-swipeable app palette. Motorola does a good job of integrating online services and social networking, but their UI doesn’t improve on the basic Android experience (nor does it detract).

Motorola includes both business and pleasure titles like Motoprint, Citrix, GoToMeeting, ZumoCast for file sharing with your desktop (Windows and Mac) and VideoSurf, which attempts to identify videos using the camera and then provide you with related videos and info.

Camera

Motorola’s cameras haven’t impressed us, but the Droid X2 and Droid Bionic’s cameras are sharp 8 megapixel shooters. Images have a high contrast, super-sharp look that’s a bit stark, but there’s plenty of detail and not too much artifacting. Moto seems to like cool colors, and like the display, the camera favors cool colors. That’s fine for landscapes with plenty of blues and greens, but humans look a little pallid. Still, it’s one of the better camera phones on the market, and it can shoot 1080p video in MP4 format that’s reasonably smooth with good detail and modest blockiness.

Battery Life

Battery life is never a cheery subject with LTE phones, but Motorola’s aggressive power management and the relatively large 1735 mAh Lithium Ion battery put up a good fight. While Verizon’s first LTE phone, the HTC Thunderbolt had trouble making it past mid-day, the Bionic can last until you get home from work. That’s assuming average use; if you spend your workday hiding in a corner cubicle and playing YouTube and Netflix for hours, don’t expect it to last until dinner. Standby times were very good in LTE coverage areas, and the phone should last a week in standby. Verizon claims up to 10.8 hours of talk time, which is somewhat optimistic. In our tests we managed just over 8 hours.

Motorola and Verizon offer a 2760 mAh extended battery that turns the trim Bionic into a thicker but not obese version of itself. The extended battery comes with a new back cover that accommodates the larger cell.

Conclusion

No doubt, the Droid Bionic by Motorola is Verizon’s fastest phone with its dual core processor and LTE 4G combo. Despite 9 months of marketing and excitement, it’s not a world-changing phone, but we put it at the top of Verizon’s lineup of Android smartphones. The Bionic is especially appealing to those who like to accessorize and find the idea of turning a 4.3″ phone into a laptop substitute using the $300 Lapdock exciting. We like the looks, solid build quality, sharp display and good battery life by LTE standards. We know that some of you will miss the Droid Charge’s supremely vivid Super AMOLED Plus display, but that’s the price you have to pay for a dual core CPU. The Droid Bionic by Motorola is definitely our top pick on Verizon Wireless as of this writing.

Price: $299 with a 2 year contract, $589 without contract

Source: MotorolaPhones.net

The LG Thrill runs Android OS 2.2 Froyo, and it’s upgradable to 2.3 Gingerbread, though we don’t have an upgrade timetable. In fact, we’re not quite sure when AT&T will release the somewhat delayed Thrill, but we’re assuming it will be available in early September. LG uses their standard Android UI overlay, and it makes for a mostly pleasing experience. The phone has 8 gigs of internal storage and it comes with an 8 gig microSD card installed in the slot under the back cover. It has 512 megs of RAM and a 1500 mAh battery.

Beyond its relatively high end specs, the phone’s claim to fame is its glass-less autostereoscopic 3D display and dual 5 megapixel rear cameras that can shoot 720p 3D video as well as 1080p 2D video, and it can shoot 3D and 2D photos. I haven’t been a fan of consumer 3D, be it in phones like the HTC EVO 3D, tablets like the LG G-Slate or 3D TVs. The LG Thrill bucks that trend, and our staff and I actually found 3D video and photos so enjoyable it made the 2D stuff seem boring. As with other glass-less 3D mobile displays, you have to find the sweet spot and get accustomed to the 3D experience, but once we did we didn’t feel queasy, dizzy or otherwise uncomfortable, despite on-screen warnings that precede 3D content that tell you to take breaks and not view 3D content for too long lest you feel uncomfy.

Design and Ergonomics

As you’d expect from a smartphone with a 4.3″ display, the Thrill is large and the viewing experience is excellent. This is a parallax barrier display, a 3D display technology, and it provides an average 2D viewing experience. It lacks the unreal colors of Samsung’s Super AMOLED displays and contrast is average. Outdoor visibility is passable, and viewing angles aren’t particularly good. The resolution is 800 x 480, a common resolution for mid to high end Android phones, and we wouldn’t mind the even higher qHD. But 3D requires plenty of graphics power and at $99 we won’t complain.

As with other autostereoscopic (the fancy word for 3D displays that don’t require glasses) 3D handsets on the market, there’s a limited sweet spot for viewing 3D content. Move the handset around and tilt it until you see a clear 3D effect, and all is good. The Thrill has an on-screen slider in all 3D apps that allows you to adjust the 3D effect level, and we liked it best at max, though your eyes may be different. We felt less eye fatigue with the LG Thrill than the HTC EVO 3D, but that said, I enjoyed it for up to 30 minutes at a time. Beyond that, and my eyes and brain did feel tired. That means feature length movies are best viewed with rest breaks, but watching that 5 minute 3D video you just shot with the camera isn’t a problem. Keep in mind that the phone’s UI and non-3D apps are presented in good old fashioned 2D, so your eyes won’t suffer, but you also won’t see that “wow” effect everywhere.

The phone looks like a larger version of the T-Mobile LG G2x, and that’s not a bad thing. The front is dominated by the glass display with brushed metal top and bottom bezels. The soft touch back finish feels great in the hand and it doesn’t attract as many fingerprints as glossy plastic backs. The 5.9 ounce phone feels solid and weighty, and the metal accent strip on the back gives it a more interesting and quality look. The strip also highlights the dual camera lenses that are set well apart (by phone standards) for better 3D capture.

The LG Thrill 4G has micro USB and micro HDMI ports under rubber covers, a 3.5mm stereo jack and a 3D hardware button on the side that launches the 3D app launcher and switches between 2D and 3D modes when using the camera. The small power button is up top, and the microSD card slot is under the back cover. There’s no need to remove the battery to access the card.

Performance and Horsepower

The phone runs on a 1GHz dual core OMAP processor, and it both feels fast and benchmarks well. It scored 2676 on the Quadrant benchmark, putting it among the fastest dual core Android phones. It scores an excellent 70 MFLOPS on the multi-thread test in Linpack. App launching, UI navigation and Adobe Flash 10.3 playback and 2D/3D gaming are all excellent. The phone performed well outputting HD video content via HDMI to our HD TV, and like many LG phones, it supports the DivX format in addition to MPEG4. Even if you’re not interested in 3D, the Thrill 4G is worth considering for its performance, large display and 4G data speeds. Despite the fast CPU, the phone managed good runtimes, and with average use we had no problem making it through the day and night on a charge. 3D drains the battery more quickly, especially 3D recording.

Calling and Data

LG phones don’t always have the best GSM reception, but the Thrill 4G bucked the trend with good 3G/4G HSPA+ on AT&T’s network in the Dallas area. AT&T’s HSPA+ network was slow in coming, but we’ve now got pervasive coverage in the metroplex, and saw speeds ranging from 3.6-5 megs down and 1 Mbps up according to Ookla’s Speedtest.net app. That’s not quite as fast as T-Mobile’s HSPA+ 4G network, but it’s significantly better than AT&T’s older 3G phones (especially upload speeds since those aren’t capped on the LG Thrill).

Call quality is good, with clear voice and reasonably full audio. Callers said we sounded very good, with little background noise and we heard no background white noise.

Camera

The LG Thrill 4G has a front facing 2D VGA camera for video chat, and a dual lens 5 megapixel rear main camera that can shoot in 2D and 3D. The camera uses both lenses when shooting in 3D, and they’re well spaced, for a deeper 3D effect. It can shoot up to 1080p video in 2D and 720p in 3D. Both photo and video quality are very good in 2D mode: we noted strong colors and sharp shots as long as we kept the phone still when shooting. The LED flash helps with subjects at close range, and didn’t white out foreground objects terribly.

3D image and video capture are quite convincing; photos look much more cool than their 2D counterparts, though they lack the sharpness of 2D images (a limitation of current technology). LG suggests that 3D is most effective with subjects within a 10 foot range, but we found long shots taken in malls and back yards to show a good bit of 3D depth. 3D images are saved in .JPS format: re-name them to .JPG and you’ll be able to view them in standard image editors, and you’ll see 2 frames side-by-side. 3D videos are saved in .MP4 format, and you’ll see two side-by-side video frames if you use a non-3D viewer.

Conclusion

We really like the LG Thrill 4G, especially at the surprisingly low $99 contract price. It’s a fast dual core Android phone, and though we’re a little disappointed that it runs Android OS 2.2 Froyo, AT&T says it will get the Gingerbread 2.3 upgrade. The Thrill has a large display and solid build, though the display doesn’t wow us in 2D mode. We’re not yet sold on 3D phones, but the LG Thrill is the first phone that makes us want one, and we’ll forgive its just OK 2D screen for the very good 3D quality. Call quality is solid, 4G speeds by AT&T HSPA+ standards are good and the smartphone is more than able to handle HD video playback over HDMI, Adobe Flash and everything else we threw at it.

Source: MobileTechReview.com

I will never compare Nokia E75 with Nokia E71. Despite the fact that both devices belong to the same series they are different with their design, keyboard (though both have a QWERTY-layout), and the display guidance.

The novelty has a quite acceptable size for this class of devices; the Nokia E75 fits excellently in the inner pocket of a light jacket and is not especially felt there, though it weighs 139 grams. The tube lies in the hand as expected, not jumping out from the palm of your hand at every opportunity.

The quality of the Nokia pleases, the details fit together perfectly, nothing creaking and annoying. The slider pleased me either – the closer strongly picks up the upper half, which opens with a loud click, in the middle way. Metal can be found on the reverse side of the slider at the ends around the display, and the lid covering the battery compartment is made of it as well. It is made of corrugated stainless steel, and looks good and solid.

At the ends are the volume keys, the camera button and voice dialing, the microUSB connector and memory card slot. The camera lens is located so that when recording the finger is not seen in the frame and does not interfere.

At the upper end there is a standard 3.5-mm jack for connecting headphones. This is good, because an adapter is not required.

Display and keyboard

The screen is quite standard for many Nokia devices, and if not a standard of quality, then certainly a very good option for this model. TFT-matrix decently «burns out» under the sun (the colors are indistinguishable), but the menu icons and text are well visible; it is possible to work under direct sunlight. Natural transmission of colors and decent viewing angles also refer to the advantages of Nokia E75. Of course, when disclosing the tube the picture overturns, however, it can be implemented by the sensor status as well. In general, the screen is suitable for any task, including GPS-navigation.

Decent size keys, including 4-position button-selector, are convenient; during one week of use there were only a few mistakes. The only «but», delete the characters, is not very convenient, because this function is assigned to the shared content key, which has a small area, and this causes discomfort. Numbers can literally be dialed on-the-run, as the finger always gets where necessary.

It is assumed that you need two hands when typing on the QWERTY-keyboard, otherwise it will not work. Keys are made of opaque plastic, are of sufficient size for quick (the adaptation takes two days) typing, fingers do not fly off, mistakes are rare. As far as to the use easiness, you again need to get used to the keyboard. As for me it was easier write an SMS on an «external» keyboard, and a long e-mail – on the «adult», but only after preliminary training.

Camera

The vast majority of users will of course shoot stuff with the camera. The particular model has nothing to boast about here, but this camera is what you expect to see in a phone for busy people – 3 IP, LED flash, mirror for self-portraits.

Seven scenes will be quite handy for creativity. There are several series of shooting modes, ranging from six shots «machine gun» to «capture every 30 minutes until the memory ends». Who may need such a function (I have in mind the latest), is not clear. It is also not pleasing that when the camera is turned on it always makes the «auto» flash mode, even if it was off before powering down. This is very uncomfortable. As the E75 has a GPS-receiver, the ability to put images on geo-markers is a self-evident joke. The autofocus properly fulfils its role, in most cases with the second attempt.

The output on the camera can be the following – it produces decent images under favorable light and with a strong desire (along with some skill). In early dusk the matrix begins to make «noise», and this must be taken into account. This is just in case.

Music

The music player interface is similar to previous Nokia devices, but has cosmetic refinement. As you can see the album covers are displayed without problems, info of the tag-files is often completely readable; rewind within a track is supported.

The sound can be changed through five preset EQs. However it is possible to decide oneself how music will sound by using eight lanes. There are the traditional modes of expanded and enhanced stereo bass.

The sound quality is decent, but with a noticeable «plastic» tint, in addition, the low volume should be noted because of which it is difficult to listen to music in the subway.

The radio is like a radio, nothing special. The quality of the reception is decent, at least in the city. A memory of 50 cells should be sufficient; RDS is supported, the sound can be put into an external speaker, recording the live-broadcasting is not possible.

Menu and Functions

There is no need to describe the mail client, because it takes long, and is not interesting for all (despite the mailing orientation of the model), it will take a lot of space, some people will even sleep (or simply close the page) while reading the text.

The menu is usual for new devices of the S60; you can see for yourself how it looks. Numerous tube settings are encapsulated in stylish icons or lists; all is sorted through, everything is logical and there is no need to refer to the instructions.

It has three themes of the main screen. One theme is standard; the other dubs the desktop icons, the third called «Active» – is the nicest. In addition, when it is activated, six icons for quick access to functions are displayed at the top of the screen, and at the bottom of the screen are thumbnails, which report events, such as missed calls or received SMS messages.

Office applications (the «Office» folder) are known from the early models, everything is familiar and everything works. For office workers, there is even the Intranet application. It will be used by some 10-15% of the owners of E75, but the function is not redundant.

The calendar is traced (executed) to a hundred points – informative, visual display of events, a simultaneous display of a whole month and the events on a particular day; convenient switching of the type of display of the created events. Everything is simple and convenient.

Outcome

If you work with e-mail by your phone every day, often go on business trips, your company pays for the mobile phone (GPRS-roaming is not cheap) and you are issued this model at the expense of the company, everything is wonderful. If not, then for all the benefits of the device, its price kills many people. In case the price is lowered, the E75 will become a justified purchase, but for me personally, I would have bought an HTC Touch Pro. Although this is a different class of device, but both have a full keyboard. In general, Nokia E75 is a good bargain if you just want to have such a phone in your pocket, and the price is irrelevant.

To call Sony Ericsson W995 beautiful is not an easy thing to do. Rather, it is nice, although a black «brick» could hardly seem nice. Then it can still be assumed that the novelty is executed in a strict style, with elements of light decor. The use of a silver color, with which all the keys and inserts on the lower and upper ends are painted, should be noted as well.

By the way, at the upper end, under the small nets (they quickly «fill» with dust), are the dynamics for the polyphony and in the middle – oh, miracle, a 3.5-mm jack for connecting headphones. In fact, this is the first device from Sony Ericsson (XPERIA is not in account, as HTC is produced), on which this connector is present.

At the back of the Sony Ericsson W995 is a metal rack for putting the phone on the table or any flat surface. Many people (especially on the eve of holidays), take it for a bottle «opener», and some – for a «holder» for the strap. They can be understood; the designers have outsmarted themselves.

At the right end the key of the player management is brought out and the volume regulation button and the camera. At the left end are the start button and the universal connector player. The back cover is made of metal, securely held by a special latch. The grey plastic on the back of the upper lid mat, decorated with circles, looks funny and dilutes the dominance of black.

As for the tactile convenience, there is a problem – the unit slips from the hands at every opportunity, as it is made of slippery (sorry for the tautology) materials.

Keyboard and display

As we see in the photo, Sony Ericsson W995 is simply packed with buttons, so there are already 8 contextual keys. I must say it does not lead to erroneous clicking, the distance between the keys allows to recommend the device, even to a big male.

But the keys of dial are not so comfortable. It is desirable to press them with a finger nail, because the finger pad covers two keys at once – this is one problem, the buttons are barely raised above the surface and the touch is not expressed – this the second one. Personally, I had errors occurring time to time during the typing. The white lighting is not bright, but smooth, and the symbols are clearly legible in the dark.

Also, the experience showed that to govern the speaker volume during a call is inconvenient – the key is not at hand, as well as its modest size … well, you understand.

The qualitative display is one of the chips of W995. Its physical size of 2.6 inches is ideal for such a multimedia phone. As shown, the screen is really good – high brightness with a margin, large viewing angles, juicy colors, coupled with accurate color, ultra-fine grain. Besides, the well-traced menu icons with a large font, that users with poor eyesight will appreciate, should be noted. On the sun the picture is well seen, you can even make images using the screen as a viewfinder, which will, by all means, be useful if there is a 8-MP camera on board.

The menu does not differ (at least I did not notice) from that of earlier models. It is simple, logical, not inhibitory, with the ability of display in one of the three types. Of course, you can choose one of the five themes that look quite stylish.

Camera

An 8-MP auto-focus camera is installed in the W995 with a LED flash as an assistant. After pressing the power key (in the camera mode, it is highlighted in white), three seconds pass, after which the image appears on the display, another two seconds are spent on taking the white balance. The menu of the photo supplement is the same as in previous models, such as the C905. The functions available to the user can be seen on the screenshots, it should only be added that the possibility of recognizing a person works once in awhile.

In the fully automatic mode, the camera stubbornly did not want to switch to the «macro», only after a manual switching it was possible to obtain sharp images, made at close range.

In the W995, like in many cell phones with GPS,you can put geo-markers on images to see afterwards the place of shooting through the Google-maps.

The player and radio

The quality of reproduction is good, but it could be better. The volume was decent, and the possibility of moving small overhead headphones was pleasing. But it was not so with the flat sound, no matter how you turn the EQs or change the settings. I compared the new one with the Nokia N96, and the Finnish child provides more natural (not to mention the volume), live sound that was clear from the first chords.

Of course, a breakdown of the music content is supported, including “by years” or by the tempo of playback – the SenseMe feature.

It should be noted that the “fade in and fade out” works pleasantly, the rewind within a track is performed smartly. The side buttons are comfortable after a slight adjustment; they can be used with your eyes closed.

For music fans it should be noted that you can connect two pairs of headphones – via a standard connector, and through the Sony-Ericson one on the left end. It is a trifle, but a pleasant one.

By the way I turned out to have a compact MS410 «column» for «Sony-Ericsons». It connects to the phone via the company’s plug FastPort at the end, the accessory is installed on the table and … the song flows. It seems that some fans of listening to music in public places will appreciate this device because the speaker gives a decent volume. How much does it cost? It is promised to be announced in summer, if oil prices do not fall together with the «wood».

The radio has no problems with reception, certainly not in the city; outside the city problems like noise and interference are possible. RDS is working correctly, the memory for radio points is little – only 20 cells. According to the tradition, not departing from the cashier, you can find out the name of the composition in air – TackId function at your service.

Other functions

Enough toys- seven pieces, some of them engage a position sensor, such as bowling, Diamond Islands or Nitro Street Racing. By the way, in W995 only full versions of games are presented, not demos, as in some tubes of Samsung.

There is also a WiFi, the sensitivity is average, near the access points it operates normally. The navigation is represented by well-known applications, Google Maps or Wayfinder, nothing new there.

Also there are convenient file manager, and five independent alarms with the possibility of fine tuning.

Someone will like the Music Quiz supplement, something like «guess the melody» game, in which you guess an excerpt from the song sounding from the tube library.

Someone will consider funny VoiceFX, – a funny program to change the voices, sounds, etc.

The fact that a standard audio point is installed in the Sony Ericsson W995 is a great job. After all, how much time it took for this simple operation …

The device will definitely be a success! Good sound, an 8-MP camera, a beautiful display, and a lot of other goods are there on board of the W995. The set will be supplied with an 8 GB memory card, which is pleasant and necessary for a musical model.

Sony Ericsson C905 is one of the most striking novelties in the world of camera-phones. C905 is the latest acquisition in the phone line Cyber-shot. This model is designed especially for photography lovers: the 8 megapixel camera makes great pictures, and combined xenon and LED flash of Sony Ericsson C905 ensures clear images even in low light conditions. Big and colorful display is capable of displaying 256 thousand colors and is considered one of the best on the market.

It is pleasant to note that the C905 is a full-fledged representative of the 3G generation: the phone supports GPRS, EDGE, HSDPA, Wi-Fi. For those who love to travel there is a GPS-receiver with a support for A-GPS technology. The program for Sony Ericsson C905 is also at altitude – there is a lot of software for working with digital photography. C905 is camera-phone for the connoisseurs of quality and convenience. Sony Ericsson C905 is produced in three body colors, which is executed in a stylish slider form factor. You can choose a black Sony Ericsson C905 Night Black, Silver Sony Ericsson C905 Ice Silver or Gold Sony Ericsson C905 Copper Gold. The phone Sony Ericsson C905 is made of opaque plastic; an interesting detail – mineral glass protecting the screen of Sony Ericsson C905.

General characteristics of Sony Ericsson C905

Standard connection: GSM 850/900/1800/1900 MHz
Weight: 136 g
Dimensions: 104x49x20 mm
Talk time: Up to 9 hours
Standby time: Up to 380 hours
Antenna: Integrated
Battery: Li-Po 930 mAh

Display
Display Type: TFT, 262144 colors, 240×320, 2.4 “
Lights: +

Sound
Polyphony: +
Vibrocall: +
Loudspeaker: +
Coding of Speech: +

Call Management
Call Hold: +
Automatic redial: +
Call Forwarding: +
Identification numbers: +

Keyboard
Joystick: +
Lights: +
Blocking: +
Sound indication: +
T9: +
Russian letters Input: +

User interface
Adjustable profiles: +
Volume: +

Organizer
Hours: +
Alarm clock: +
Calculator: +
Stopwatch: +
Timer: +
Calendar: +
Notebook: +
Currency converter: +
Recorder: +
Synchronization with PC: +

Security

Time control conversation: +
Barring a challenge: +

Data
SMS: +
EMS: +
MMS: +
GPRS: Class 10 (4 +1 / 3 +2 slots), 32 – 48 kbit / s
WAP: 2.0/HTML (NetFront), RSS reader
Bluetooth: 2.0 (A2DP)
Built in modem: +
HSCSD: +
Communication with PC: +
Bluetooth: +
MiniUSB: +
E-Mail: POP3/IMAP4/SMTP
Extras: Wi-Fi 802.11 b / g; HSDPA; GPS

Memory
Memory: 160 MB

Additional features
Games: +
Java applications: MIDP 2.0
FM-receiver: RDS
MP3 player: MP3/AAC/MPEG4
Flash memory: Memory Stick Micro (M2)
Digital Camera: 8 MP, 3264×2448, Autofocus, image stabilizer, ext. VGA-camera for videophone
Video: QVGA 30 frame / sec
Extras: Music recognition – TrackID; TV out

Appearance

From a distance Samsung S5600 do not the impression that it does after a careful look at this fine piece of round plastic disparate. Judge for yourself: the dimensions of the device are 102,3 x 54,8 x 13,3 mm which lets it excellent to held in hand.
On the back the palm meets the dense rough gray plastic, which plays in the sun with blotches of the surface. Meanwhile, rounded forms were not resistant to the same analogy with the iPhone 3G, because the Samsung S5600 is much lighter and weights only 97 grams, and the lid has a small backlash.
At the front of capacitive sensor glass is separated from the edges by thin ledges. At the top near the ledges there is a decorative grille of conversational speaker, while QVGA-eye camera for video is on the right .
Below a 2.8-inch QVGA-screen is located, performed on the TFT-technology and able to display a palette of 260 thousand colors. Good picture quality slightly spoils a small resolution, but the rest is all graded as high as five points. Under the bright sun picture significantly fade, losing a bit of sharpness and therefore convenience of viewing of images is less than the normal reading of contrasting text.
Under the screen there are only three buttons, but they are big and comfortable to use with a clear pressing and a loud click deaf. The central return button is not only large but also glossy. In addition it has silver borders. It is a pity that the keys are not equipped with lights, and you have to evaluate their dimensions in the dark just by touching.

Other elements are located on the ends of the shell: the microphone hole at the bottom, microUSB-socket plug is at the upper end, volume control button at the left end and there are also two buttons on the right. Toward the top of the right end is the key lock, while a couple inches away from the bottom is the shutter button of the camera.
Under the rear lid «live» is the battery whose capacity is indicated on the back of the battery and is 960 mAh. In practice, it is 2.5 days of work including 20-30 minutes of talking, listening to music for an hour and 20 minutes of viewing news in World Wide Web via EDGE-connection. Result is not bad, but a saturated mode of operation the unit may request to be charged on the morning of the second day.
Under the battery everything is still convenient and accurate. Although it should be noted that the location of memory card slot microSDHC is somewhat unusual, but this is partially offset by a good write speed of information through the connection to the PC via cable.

Delicious interface

Seems like the announcement of S8300 UltraTouch was not a long time ago, but Samsung S5600 already uses another interface. Of course, no revolutionary changes took place, but the phone comes with the latest implementation of the TouchWiz user interface. Now there are even more widgets on the phone, which means fans of rapid transition to Page Picasa and Flikr will be satisfied not less than the ones willing to put up the counter of days lived without a cigarette.

The menu did not undergo any changes, although the active region has been compressed up to a quarter. All animated departures and scrolling through lists look even smarter than other phones due to Touch Wiz, but if you prefer, you can adjust the appearance of the menu with your own preferences. There are three themes, fonts, uppercase, you can even download and install any image as the main background of menu.
By the way, there are well implemented profiles in the phone, which can be changed by the widget on the screen. But we are interested in another, namely the peaceful work of the phone without a SIM-card. This will be very convenient for buying.

Communications

Phone is different from the younger model S5230 not only by the support of 3G networks, but also the realization of a connection to a PC via microUSB-cable, which allows the user to record information on the card at speeds of around 1.5 Mbps.
The phone is also equipped with Bluetooth 2.0 – connectivity module to support EDR and A2DP, also coterminous to many other profiles. S5600 works with headsets and wireless headsets no worse and no better than other phones from Samsung. The rate of data admission / transfer to another device is about 130 Kb/sec. The user can find a compatible device using the convenient search tool that, which evidently displays this process on the display.

Programs and games

Describing the standard filler of Samsung phones, you can not help but talk about multiple applications and demos of games, which after a short gameplay gives an opportunity to either send an SMS to buy the game or restart the game. By the way, it should be mentioned that on the restart you can use multiple applications, more specifically maximum of three.
The section of the applications contains a number of different utilities, whether Google cards, a collection of links to social services, as well as a standard set of organizer. In addition to the applications there is a good file manager, music recognition service, and browser images.
Photos Manager helps not only just scrolling through the implementation of frenzied images of tilting the device, but also has the availability of simple slideshows.

Music

Music player pleases the eye with easy and convenient separation of all the songs on various criteria, the most interesting among them is the option to view album covers. After the selection of interesting songs, we have a window playing with a big friendly buttons on the screen and the active progress bar.
Fans of all sorts of settings and customizations will appreciate the opportunity to set the rate, replacing the repeat modes and random play, and at the same time adjusting the equalizer. Alas, but this is not 7600 BeatDJ. Without any settings S5600 has good quality sound which you can use even in noisy subways. Of course, the quality is significantly worse than that of any player, but it might be quite a good tool for the most unassuming audience.

If you are bored of music, listen to music with FM-receiver with a good quality signal reception in a range from 87.5 to 108 MHz.

Camera
Camera S5600 plays rather an utilitarian role. It has 3.2-MP resolution and flash, but is not equipped with autofocus camera. At least the interface did not undergo simplification.

Outcome

Compact and attractive Samsung S5600 seems quite fit and prepared for the midrange touch screen race.

Its dimensions are 111h51, 7h15, 5 mm, and weight – 109 g. Nokia 5800 XpressMusic applies sound card, and, by the unanimous opinion of specialists, the sound quality of the device is very high, especially through good headphones. Nokia 5800 XpressMusic supports almost all existing formats of sound recording, has 6 custom EQs. The player is equipped with random play features, creates play lists, repeats, changes the list of playable files, etc.

Through Podcasting application, you can download podcasts, and buy new ones, using the Nokia Music Store. FM-radio provides high quality reception and supports RDS. Nokia 5800 XpressMusic has 3.2-megapixel camera and  is equipped with dual LED flash and autofocus. Maximum video resolution is 640×480 (30 frames per second). Built-in Real Player plays all common formats. While testing with headphones Nokia 5800 XpressMusic can play MPEG-4 format movies during 4.5 hours.

Videos and photos are stored in the memory device or microSD card of up to 16 Gb. The Nokia 5800 XpressMusic screen blocks when, during a call, the user helds the device to his ear. All settings, including keyboard, are on the screen. A special function unit is a handwriting recognition feature. Smartphone Nokia 5800 XpressMusic is equipped with all the communication functions for working in GSM and UMTS / HSDPA networks. This model’s success is not surprising. Considering the ratio of features and price, it is one of the best models on the market.

General characteristics of Nokia 5800 XpressMusic

Standard connection: 850/900/1800/1900 GSM / EDGE, UMTS / HSDPA

Weight: 109 g

Dimensions: 111 x 52 x 15.5 mm

Antenna: Built

Battery: Li-Ion 1320 mAh

Year: 2008

Display

Display Type: 3.2 “touch, 640 x 360 pixels. 16 million colors

Lights: +

Sound

Polyphony: +

Vibrocall: +

Silent call: +

Download ringtones: +

Loudspeaker: +

Call Management

Voice dialing: +

Call Hold: +

Automatic redial: +

Conference Call: +

Call Forwarding: +

Identification numbers: +

Keyboard

Lights: +

Blocking:+

Sound indication: +

T9: +

Russian letters Input: +

User Interface

Voice management: +

Adjustable profiles: +

Fast dialing: +

Volume: +

Organizer

Hours: +

Alarm clock: +

Calculator: +

Calendar: +

Notebook: +

Synchronization with PC:+

Transferring data

SMS:+

EMS: +

MMS:+

GPRS: +

WAP: +

Bluetooth: 2.0

Built in modem: +

Communication with PC:+

Optional: connector 3.5 mm headphone port, TV-Out, Wi-Fi, USB 2.0, GPS-module

Memory

Memory: 150 MB

Optional: Support for memory cards microSD (TransFlash) up to 16 GB

Additional features

Games: +

Java applications: +

FM-receiver: +

MP3 player: +

Digital Camera: 3.2 Mpiks., LED flash

Video: Video recording (up to 30 frames per second)

But do not take a cot from Sony Ericsson as a strong and gloomy one – all just the opposite. New product is available in bright colors: blue, pink, green and bronze.

In addition, the painting of the front panel is not solid but gradient, and is also supplemented with the original circle. All this makes the phone bright, and nice ladies will probably like it. The obvious deficiency of the phone is a poor quality of plastic front panel – on the fifth day of testing it quite quickly began striping near the eye of the camera.

The main chip of this new model is its light design, which is thought very thoroughly in this case and makes a novelty even more unusual. First, in the center of the bright cut-off circle is a small display that shows you the current time, battery and other standard things. The display is not located symmetrically, as in most other cots, but also horizontally in relation to the body. This prevents the phone from being classical. Circular edging of the display begins to glow in case there is an incoming call.

Light pattern of incoming calls can be configured for each entry from your address book individually or jointly for a group, although the schemes themselves are not too many – only five, so we can hardly speaking of full recognition of the caller on the light pattern. Even on the old Motorola E398, that glorified itself by powerful stereo speakers and unique light effects, has more such schemes.

Controls and Interfaces

The mechanism of the phone disclosure is tough and very clear. It is felt that the novelty is not for one year service. The main screen is somewhat less than you expect to see in the device, but the keyboard with the original round button allows you to dial a number or text, not straining eyes. Their tactile impact is wonderful. The only straining parts are the two contextual buttons located at the top, made in a form of a narrow rectangle – at the expense of a small area you have to make some effort to press them.

Traditionally for Sony Ericsson devices connector for headphones is combined with the interface connector for connecting a computer. So the headphones with 3.5 mm plug to T707 are connected solely through the company’s adapter.

A jack for installing a flash card Memory Stick Micro (M2) is located near the connector for the SIM-card, the plastic lid of battery compartment.

You should not contract the lid from the shell to remove it. This method of fixation did not add durability to this plastic.

Display

The main LCD display is 2.2-inch diagonal and the standard for most modern phones the 240 x 320 pixels resolution. With this resolution and the ability to display 262 thousand colors and you can see pictures and also videos. At maximum brightness, contrast, sharpness and angles of the review screen this novelty is one of the best.

Camera

The Sony Ericsson T707 camera is unusual. It is maximally moved to the upper bound of the front panel, therefore, in the opened state of the tube chamber is easy to close with a finger. CMOS-matrix has a size of 3.2 lm, there is no built-in flash, and no autofocus. In fact, this is a simple camera, with which most modern mobile phones are equipped.

Settings manager interface is standard. The user can change the resolution from images, white balance, exposure, and install one of the digital effects, like sepia or black and white shooting.

The quality of shooting for a simple camera is surprisingly high. Small details are lost due to the lack of autofocus, but not completely. Amount of noise is acceptable, with no color distortion. Nevertheless, the characteristics of the camera imposes significant restrictions on the filming, so more or less high-quality photo is available with only good lighting.

Communications and autonomy

The new model from Sony Ericsson is working in two modes: GSM (850/900/1800/1900 MHz) and WCDMA. Cameras for the videophone are not provided. But there is data transmission module using a wireless Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR, which is tested when you connect and exchange data with a Pocket PC HP iPAQ 4700. The speed of copying files, alas, is low. On average it was 0.05 MB / s, which is very, very few. But no problems had been observed with the work in the GSM-network. The device holds the network good, but the sound of transfering voices are clean and without any wheeze.

The device is equipped with a Li-Ion Battery 950 mA ∙ h. This capacity is sufficient to charge the new model once in four days with 20 minutes of talking, watching online news, working with the address book and a couple of hours of listening to music on the way to work and back. This is a very high rate.

Multimedia capabilities

Multimedia features meet all the standards of Sony Ericsson devices, that include video, audio player, photo viewer and games manager.

In addition, the T707 users can enjoy listening to FM-radio with RDS- text view opportunity. But you can record less than 20 radio stations here.

Of course, the most interesting thing in this new model is its audio item, because the majority listens to the music while walking. It has a quite clean and smooth sound, a clear elaboration of medium frequency, good for low and weak for high. All this is true when you connect quality headphones to the phone. In general, the T707 sounds happy, no doubt.

But times move on, new handsets are released, and inevitably – eventually – a new champion comes along. That new champion, it would seem, is Nokia’s E71 – the long-awaited successor to the E61. Why? First, this is a simply gorgeous phone. With a solid metal rear, chrome-trimmed front and flat, almost mirror-finish screen, it’s one beautiful piece of design.

And, not only does it look fantastic, but it’s also very slim and pocketable. Unlike its E61 predecessor, which was about as broad-shouldered as a phone could get, the E71 is as slim-waisted as an iPhone and 2.3mm thinner, too, at a mere 10mm. It may boast a full QWERTY keyboard, but you can slide it into a pocket and barely notice it. Even the slip case it comes with doesn’t add to the bulk too much.

It’s a remarkable piece of engineering ergonomically, as well. Cramming a full keyboard into a chassis this narrow is easily enough done, but making it usable is much more of a challenge. Nokia has achieved that and more with the E71: the keys, like the E61 before it, are slightly rubbery so your fingers don’t slip off them when you’re trying to type; they’re slightly domed, so you can press one easily without hitting a neighbouring letter by accident; and the keyboard is blessed with a sensible layout too – important symbols such as the full stop, comma and @ characters are all accessible instantly, without the need to press shift – an ailment all too many other phone keypads are afflicted by.

The keyboard, then, is easily a match for the 8820′s excellent offering, but how about the rest of the device? Well, there’s no scrolling trackball, but the directional pad above the keyboard is easy to use and works well. If anything, the buttons for picking up and hanging up calls next to the pad are a little on the small side but they’re easy to get used to. Combine those with the four well-sized shortcut keys and the pair of soft keys and overall you’ve got a very comprehensive control cluster.