Review Nokia 5500 cell phone
Review Nokia 5500 cell phone
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Introduction :
The basics first though: the Nokia 5500 is a tri-band GSM Symbian S60 3rd Edition smartphone with EDGE, Bluetooth, infrared, pop-port, 8 megabytes of internal memory, a microSD memory card slot (which officially can take up to 1 gigabyte cards, but I've had reports of people using 2 gigabyte cards as well) and a 64 megabyte microSD card containing extra applications and licensed music tracks. The phone includes a 2 megapixel camera, an FM radio, a pedometer (step counter) and an LED torch. For those who want a more detailed point-by-point technical rundown on the Nokia 5500, you can find it on official Nokia's 5500 page.
The most interesting new feature of Nokia 5500 would be the inclusion of a 3D motion sensor, which lets you track your jogging and also allows you to control music and play games by tapping the handset itself.
Design and Feel :
Nokia 5500’s design resembles the design of Nokia 3220. The phone has a resistant body covered with rubber elements (in the style of Nokia 5140i), an operational system of a modern smartphone, a number of unique functions, and a bit of sport spirit – all this wrapped up in a single handset – Nokia 5500 Sport.
Nokia 5500 has been trimmed down to a compact 107 by 45 by 18mm. Its light weight (103 grams) combined with the smooth rubberised grip make the Nokia 5500 Sport feel both comfortable and secure in your palm. The square screen, although relatively small for a smartphone, is sharp and vibrant with support for 262K colors. Beneath it are two user-definable shortcut keys and a four-way scroll key. It took us a while to find the Call and End keys--unlike most mobile phones that display these prominently as big red and green buttons, on the Nokia 5500 they are 5mm slivers pointing diagonally inwards from the edge.
Keypad , Display and User interface :
Due to the strong construction and the empowered resistance, work with the keypad is not the most pleasant thing in this phone. Keys located in the margins are pretty difficult to use, even more difficult than the numeric keys in the center of the rubber surface of the phone. The functional part of the keypad is managed through the use of the four-way key and the side uplifted areas.
The Nokia 5500 Sport hardware has been designed to be impact, water and dust resistant and the casing is a mix of metal edging and rubber with no holes into which dust or water could get.
Screen
The phone has a TFT type screen which displays 262k colours & has a 208 x 208 pixel screen resolutio. If you want to see for yourself the exact size of Nokia 5500’s display and visual elements in reality, have a look at phone photos or simply modify the size of the display screenshots so that they fit into a square of 31 x 31 mm in your preferred resolution (for example on a printed list of paper).
User Interface
The Nokia 5500 uses the S60 user interface on top of Symbian OS v9.1, and it is the first such device to run on a 208x208 pixel resolution screen.
First off, having a lower screen resolution means that the fonts don't look as nice as devices with a higher resolution. Secondly, having a lower resolution screen means that the interface is more packed in. The top row that displays the status and time now takes more than a quarter of the screen, and users have less "effective" screen space to work on. Disappointingly, the icons on the 5500 do not animate at all.
Overall, the interface on the Nokia 5500 is quite easy to use. I cannot say much about the menu organization, as there are simply too many separate functions. You will definitely need time to learn where everything is.
Features :
Fitness features such as a pedometer and a calorie counter for preset activities such as walking, cycling, running, rowing and stair-stepping might attract wannabe athletes.
Although the Nokia 5500's 2-megapixel camera has no flash of its own, there is a bright torch at the top of the handset which is invaluable when you're trying to find your keys at night, and is easily switched on by holding down the star key. Videos can be recorded at resolutions up to 176x144 pixels.
The Nokia 5500's 10MB of internal memory seems stodgy, but microSD cards up to 1GB can be added. There is an RSS reader and xHTML browser with Nokia Minimap technology, but the 30mm square screen is far from ideal for Web browsing.
Performance And Battery Life :
Nokia claims up to ten days' standby time and four hours' talk time. With light use of the 5500 Sport purely as a phone, we managed to get about four days between charges. Expect less when frequently using the 5500's extra features, such as games, music or Bluetooth.
Conclusion:
So, should you get a 5500? It depends on what you want. For some people it will be absolutely perfect, while for others the features won't match their needs.
If you primarily need an exercise tool or a durable companion on the road, this is the bee's knees. It's clearly been designed to be a jogger's friend, it has a music player and radio to keep you company, it's the most well-protected and durable smartphone on the market, and it's also (as far as I know) the only phone with a pedometer in it. You don't even need to look at it to change tracks, alter stations, take calls or hear texts, so it's good for keeping in your pocket or clipping to your clothes while you concentrate on collecting kilometres.
If you primarily need a pure smartphone, with mainly visual or high bandwidth uses, and want to browse lots of web sites, watch lots of videos or run lots of third party S60 apps, this probably isn't the phone for you as the screen is physically so small and there's no Wi-Fi or 3G compatibility.
In short, the Nokia 5500 is the first truly durable and portable smartphone, but that durability inevitably brings certain restrictions with it.
Pros & Cons :
+ Outstanding construction for improved resistance.
+ Symbian OS
+ Special functions for sportsmen
+ Automatic reading of incoming messages
+ Built-in radio
+ Touchpad control of music and sport applications, and messages
+ Application for work with Bluetooth GPS Module
- Stiff keys
- Connector cap is loose
- Battery cover is difficult to remove
- Voice record duration limited to one minute
- Basic alarm clock