A few megapixels for the camera, reasonable battery life and a comforting candybar design - that's your average Nokia phone.
However, ever since 2003, Nokia has been up to some innovative and wonderful geekery. I'm not talking about the typical watch phone kind of geekery (while Nokia never made a watch phone, the Nokia 850 is a pretty watch)
While you can dismiss the 8580 as a toilet seat replica (i did), there is some cool stuff that Nokia has been doing in phone design when they aren't cranking out their usual stuff.
Nokia 7600
Nokia had just entered 3G a dorky 6650 ago, and probably wanted something cooler than a small brick with an antennae to showcase it. Hence, their first teardrop shaped phone (female buyers bling) . 3G however was pretty pointless on the pretty 7600 - it was "notoriously awkward" to handle, and required two hands to use.
You had to learn to change your entire cellphone muscle memory - and then it was still as awkward, learning that 1-5 was on the left and 6-0 on the right side (meaning you dialed two handed).
A reasonable camera (for 2004) with many settings polyphonic ringtones. Like six inch heel, meant for the fashionable.
Nokia 7280
Or the lipstick phone. Or when Nokia got carried away with designing pretty things.
We're still in 2004, where tech suddenly got implants, but no balls.
The 7280 had no keypad, and while you can take calls on it, dialing a number requires playing with the jogwheel, iPod style.
From the outset the 7280’s design couldn’t be further looking from the phone that it is. Long, thin and straight, the phone offers a display, a jog wheel and a few buttons on its front and that’s it. Similar to the Haier P6 we reviewed last year, the phone expects you to use it on the side rather than upright, however unlike the Haier P6, this Nokia is a beauty to behold.
The The 65k LCD display was behind a mirrored screen which was actually mirror enough to check your lipstick. And just like lipstick, you had to pull out (or apart the phone) to get to the camera. But hey, there was radio and Blueooth.
Nokia's L'Amour Collection
Nokia's L'Amour collection,is, for me embodied in the Nokia 7370. Look at it; it's art for the sake of arty-art - the best and the worst kind. Uneven golden etching blended with silver flowers encased in a velvet pouch it the L'Amour is beautiful.
Thought the camera is located where your finger rests, the tiny on/off button is as annoying as the oldy camera and the missing MP3 player (no card slot, but there's radio instead). The 10 MB of memory (not expandable) is only meant for phone contacts.
A good gift for high maintenance women.
Nokia Surv1
Is there something NOT gay on this list, you must be wondering? I did too when I compiled it.
I'm sneaking in the SURV1 - it doesn't exist (not more than Amitabh Bachchan's acting skills),
It's a simple concept - a ruggedized, water and shock-proof scratch-proof touchscreen phone that clips onto your belt. There's the flashlight and a GPS to get you back to civilization.
Sadly, (dammit!), it's only a concept.
Nokia E70
Compact smartphone for email, texting (and obviously making calls) has a business-centric app suite.
A tough joystick mars the otherwise functional hardware interface. Issues with battery life and a sometimes sluggish browser.
Nokia Prism 7500
Weak battery life, hard navigation and uneven call quality. This kills my desire for a manly, stylish and functional phone that isn't unreasonably expensive.
Nokia N-Gage
I mean the first N-Gage (not the QD), the one that looks like a freakish footprint mated with a taco. Clunky in every sense, the gaming phone had to be taken apart to insert a gaming cartridge, needed you talk to the side of the phone (called "sidetalking"). For all these reasons, the Nokia took the N-Gage out of misery and production.
Nokia X5
Before I thought of the usual "cute", "pretty", I had a one second WTF moment. So should everyone when they see a fat square. In your pocket.
But once you get used to it, the X5 does what it's supposed to - be a social phone. You take pictures (5MP), and Facebook them.
That's the QWERTY. It get's cramped for a longer texting experience
There's some fun accelerometrics onboard. No video camera, however, means that I can spent a thousand rupees more and buy a better smartphone.
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