Archive for March, 2010

I got my hands on a brand new Nokia X6 phone that has the “Comes with Music” feature, and boy was it so much fun to try that out for the very first time. The new Nokia X6 should be in the Saudi market within a week or so, with an MSRP of SR 2250 (estimated price).

Unpacking:

Inside the box you will find the X6, a charger, battery, in-ear white headphones with controls, a USB cable, Software CD, manuals, and the PIN code to activate your Ovi music store account to get as much free music as you want for a full year.

Hardware:

The Nokia X6 features a much welcomed 3.2 inches TFT capacitive touchscreen over the older resistive touchscreens, so this is clearly a move in the right direction. The unit also sports a proximity sensor, that will turn the screen off when it comes closer to the users face. A cool feature is the high-quality scratch-resistant glass surface.

As far as aesthetics, the devices feels solid while being held in hand, reminds me of the standard candy bar phones, over all it feels great to hold, yet I have noticed that the only minor drawback is the side lock-screen sliders, that feels a bit clunky. Otherwise it feels natural in the users hand.

The front of the X6 features a frontal camera for video calls, the back features a 5 MP, 2592 X 1944 pixels, Carl Zeiss optics, autofocus, Dual LED flash, video light. The camera also Geo-tags your images if you wish so.

On the sides you will find stereo speakers, along with the SIM card slot. While on the other side you get the volume controls, camera button, and the screen lock slider.

On the top of the device you will find the USB port, a standard 3.5mm audio jack, the charging port, and the on/off button. On the bottom you will find a place to hang a strap or a charm-attachment . The Nokia X6 comes in many colors like Blue on White, Red on Black, and Black on Black.

User Interface and Software:

Nokia X6 runs Symbian OS v9.4, Series 60 rel. 5 on its ARM 11 434MHz processor, you can touch almost any part of the screen to get to functions with a haptics tactile feedback to let you know you clicked on something. Navigating through the menus is quite simple, if you’re used to Nokia S60 devices you will find yourself right at home with the X6.

The device features the usual suspects like; Stereo FM radio, A-GPS support (with the free Ovi Maps 3.0), media player, Organizer, Photo editor, TV-out, Flash Lite 3.0, T9 support, A2DP Bluetooth support, among many other.

The Nokia X6 comes with a large 32 GB storage, 128 MB RAM, yet it doesn’t offer a way to expand your storage with a memory card.

The Experience:

Once I got the Nokia X6 out of the box, I got hold of the instruction card that shows you how to get free music, and application on it, you simply connect to the internet via 3.5G or WiFi which was easy to setup, after that you log into the Ovi store and enter the provided PIN, sit back and enjoy over 4 million Arabic and International tracks and albums that are available through Ovi music store. You can also install the Ovi application on your Windows PC and use the account to sync your music with your brand new device.

Nokia has worked hard on connectivity, where I learned by attending their private media roundtable meeting that they are pushing new solutions for Nokia messaging services that is suitable for both corporations and home-users, the new services provides push notifications and emails directly to your device, anywhere at any time. And with a foot-print as large as Nokia’s you can see the future of socializing with everyone around you. Setting up a new Nokia device is as easy as 3 simple steps, after that you get all your emails, IM massages, and social networks like Twitter and FaceBook running on the fly.

Conclusion:

I find myself compelled to use such a device, Nokia came a long way to reach this level, where now you can get free music, tons of applications, while staying truly connected to work and play with simple to use devices that many people have been loving and knowing for years.

What I liked about the X6:

- The improved capacitive touchscreen

- The standard 3.5mm headphone jack

- The ability to use it as an every day phone that can hold all your music.

- Easy connectivity to emails, messaging, and social sites.

- A great device for music lovers.

What I didn’t like about the X6:

- User Interface is a bit sluggish and slow at times.

- Ovi store needs more improvements.

- The way the interface occasionally requires a double tap can also be annoying.

- Slow at times while browsing the web.

So let’s rate the Nokia X6 shall we:

Hardware 4.5 out of 5.  

UI & Software 3 out of 5.

Experience 4.5 out of 5.

Overall 4 out of 5.

Copyright 2010 © Mazen Al-Angary, All Rights Reserved.