Nokia E71 Review

Nokia E71 Review

Over the past 2 years, The Cell Phone Junkie Podcast has covered the latest News, Devices, and Software in the cellular industry.  At the same time, I’ve reviewed many different phones that I purchased outright, and others that have been sent to me from the providers themselves.  Throughout this time, one OS has stood alone, never getting much coverage or testing for the podcast.  That OS is Symbian.  Now, Joey and I have certainly talked here and there about some of the new things that happen, but the listeners always tell us they want more.  My search for a device to try always led me to paths of non US 3G devices, or non-QWERTY styles, and I never really felt that there was a phone that fit what I was looking for.  All those concerns came to an end when I found the Nokia E71.

In the Box
·    Nokia E71 handset

·    1 Standard 1500 mAH Lithium Polymer Battery

·    Nokia proprietary AC charger

·    MicroUSB Data Cable

·    Nokia Headset HS-47

·    Carrying Pouch

·    Various guides and CDs

Specs
This phone is the next generation in the front facing Qwerty Eseries, replacing the E61i.  With quad band GSM/EDGE (800/900/1800/1900) and US 3G (800/1900), plus Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS and FM radio, the phone will keep you connected any way you desire. Also, the 3.2MP camera takes decent shots, but similar quality cameras on other devices will put this one to shame.  Don’t plan on leaving your digital camera at home if good resolution and color are priorities for you.  A microSD card slot accepts cards for additional expansion, and the QVGA display makes everything look great, whether it’s flipping through phones, tracking yourself on the GPS, or just reading emails.

Technology: GSM/HSDPA
Frequencies: 800/900/1800/1900
Weight: 4.44 oz
Dimensions: 4.49″ x 2.24″ x 0.39″

The battery in the E71 is the whopping 1500 mAH BP-4L Nokia Lithium Polymer.  The amazing thing about the battery is it’s size in relation to the total size of the phone.  When you have the battery out, the cavity inside the phone makes it seem there isn’t anything else left but a wafer-thin circuit board.  You wonder how it was possible for the phone to function with such a large percentage of its volume taken up by the battery.  I was never able to talk enough on it to find out if the 5 hours of talk time was accurate, but with a listed standby time of 20 days, you know the phone will last.  I found myself constantly connected to 3G, with occasional sessions on GPS, Wi-Fi, tons of email and web browsing.  Two to three days was the norm, something I haven’t seen since my Blackberry 8830.  If you’re looking to take a trip for multiple days without having to take your charger, the E71 is your candidate.

Phone
As a phone, the quality is fantastic.  Conversations were always clear, and the sidetone feature that Joey and I talk about on The Cell Phone Junkie allows the user to hear themselves is definitely nice.  On the receiving end, people said I sounded clear and crisp.  The front facing microphone (versus on the bottom of the phone like most smartphones) may have something to do with that.  I’m sure Nokia’s dominance on the GSM side helps to get the call quality right.

Data/Internet/Software
Having an exchange server, email integration is key for me.  I knew going in that I would need to download separate software, and the Mail for Exchange was easy to find and download from the Nokia site.  Once installed, the program worked like a charm.  Fast reliable email and updated contacts, calendar and tasks were at my disposal.  Similar to what I’ve found on Windows Mobile, yet somehow a bit better.  One thing I will say about the email application is that Symbian could take some cues from Windows or the iPhone when it comes to email.  The lack of features and functionality left me wanting more.  Especially when it came to something as simple as moving emails from the inbox to my project folders, the built in app couldn’t do it.  While I can hardly blame Nokia for this shortcoming, the Nokia Email Beta app they have created to overcome some of the weaknesses of the built in one isn’t much better.  Let me put it this way, when there isn’t a good tight integration with the operating system, users won’t use the app as a replacement.  This was my issue with Nokia Email Beta, it felt like I had to compromise if I wanted to use it.  I wound up just using the built in version as it tended to my basic email needs just fine.  However, I will give credit to the built in app for it’s ability to take advantage of IMAP IDLE with Gmail.  Messages came in to the phone in real time, something I missed from my prior use with the Blackberry.

A note to those that haven’t used a Symbian device before.  The interesting thing about the way S60 manages connections is how it asks you regularly what you’d like to connect to.  When I first started using the phone, I found this annoying and thought, “if I’m near wi-fi, just use the wi-fi”, as the iPhone and WinMo do.  After a few days, I found myself actually liking that it would ask what I wanted to do when connecting various apps, as I would decide based on where I was if it made sense for me to connect the Fring account to Wi-Fi, or if I knew I was leaving the office, I may as well just choose 3G.

Speaking of 3G, the E71 3G was solid.  I mean, Treo 750 solid.  Never a problem with a dropped call, never a hand off issue, just solid.  There have been some reports that the signal strength of the phone may be hampered by the full metal construction of the device, but I found it to be very adequate.  The “bars” that are shown on the phone however seem to have some sort of calibration or measuring issue, as I found myself constantly reported to have full service.  Then, if service got weak like in an underground garage, the phone didn’t gradually drop bars, it would simply go from full to nothing.  If I happened to switch over to EDGE say in a rural area with no 3G, the meter seemed much better, with the “bars” reading up and down as they should.  I guess it’s hard to complain about this too much though, the phones speeds are really impressive.

The web browser on the phone really caught my attention.  When I first connected to the Internet, i was shocked by the speed.  It seemed that pages loaded effortlessly and quickly.  Unlike Internet Explorer, the phone never bogs down with Internet pages that require lots of loading, or timed out.  It reminded me of browsing on a desktop, something only the iPhone had done.

GPS works very well on the phone.  The standard Nokia Maps application is great for finding your way, and the tools that come with the phone are fun to use for reading your coordinates, altitude, and speed.  It also comes with the ability to use the GPS as an odometer, tracking and timing your trips using the connection, very unique.

Here are some shots of the screen:

Other applications I installed included:

Conversation – Creating threaded SMS chats

JoikuSpot – This software turns an S60 3rd Edition phone into a WiFi hotspot, allowing anyone within range using a laptop (or other WiFi-enabled phone) to share your 3G connection. There’s a free version of the software that limits you to just HTTP and HTTPS protocols, but the full version supports all protocols.

Nokia Internet Radio -  An excellent Shoutcast client that can be used to “tune into” any Shoutcast radio broadcast on the Internet.  I found that using this program with my Shure headphones plugged in through a 2.5mm to 3.5mm adapter sounded like CD quality MP3′s.  Very impressive and useful.

Mobitubia -  Simple and effective YouTube client.

Fring – Brings together various VoIP and IM services including Skype, MSN and Googletalk.  Also allows for you to add Twitter to the list of services which is nice, as you then get real time updates to your friends’ tweets.

Google Maps – The version designed for the Symbian OS is pretty much identical to the version on the iPhone, but with less eye candy. This version supports the built-in GPS on S60 phones that have it.

Hardware
Starting on the front, the E71 has a great functioning qwerty keyboard.  The keys are responsive to type on, and the speed was on par with the Blackberry devices I’ve used in the past few years.  The only thing that took me a while to get used to was the left indent of all the rows.  This means the “Z” key is under the “A” key on the keyboard.  If you look at other smartphones on the market, you typically find that the “Z” key is under the “S” key.  Not a big deal, but I mention it as it caught me by surprise and took a little while to learn that layout.  Above the letter keys are the Send, End, Home, Calendar, Contacts, Mail and 2 soft keys.  In the middle is the 5 way keypad that was very nice to use for scrolling and clicking around the screen.  Above the QVGA display is the speaker, light sensor and front camera for those markets that have the ability to make video calls.  I tried to do one, but it immediately tells you the service isn’t available.

On the left side are the ports for the MicroSD card slot, and MicroUSB data connection port.  I found it strange that they haven’t transitioned over to MicroUSB for charging, a beneficial feature that could be added to future models.

On the right side are the 2.5mm headset jack, volume rockers and select button.  I found this middle button to be the least used on the entire phone.

On the top is the speaker grille and red power button.

On the bottom is simply the power jack.

On the back are the 3.2MP camera, flash and self portrait mirror.  Also, the back battery cover has a very unique texture to it.  I have found that it really creates a good grip feel when holding it.  So many devices that are out now feel slippery and difficult to hold, the E71 has overcome this issue with the texture metal, making the build quality of the phone feel even that much better.

When compared to other smartphones, the E71 is sized nicely.  In between the iPhone and the Diamond, it’s small and thin enough to feel like a cutting edge device, yet large enough to be comfortable to operate.

Overall
Whether you are looking for a phone to replace your aging qwerty smartphone, or to get into something with more features, the Nokia E71 is really a solid option for almost everyone.  There isn’t much bad to say about a device from a company that manfactures over 40% of the phones used in the world.  Especially when they have created a design that turns heads, with a feature set that is sure to impress even the biggest Cell Phone Junkies.

**Disclosure – This Nokia E71 was purchased by the author, Mickey Papillon, not provided by any corporation or service provider for review purposes.

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