The smartest dumb phone on the market
By The Prodigal Fool, published on 21 February 2007
Do you really need to use your phone to access the web, read email, manage your agenda, edit Office documents, consult satellite navigation, play games or any of the other things that smart phone users increasingly take for granted?
If your main use for a phone is simply to make and receive calls – and, if we’re honest, many of us fall into this category – then you’re in luck. You’re in luck because, when deciding on a phone, you can forget most of the considerations we discuss elsewhere on these pages. The form over function debate; the tug of war between competing technologies; the compromise between style and functionality: they all become moot. Your decision-making is far, far easier: you want it small, stylish and highest quality.
And if you’re in that lucky category, we don’t think you can buy a better ’phone than the Nokia 8800 Sirocco Edition.
Why? Simple: it looks, feels and sounds stunning; its user interface is simply a joy; it’s got the technology that matters; and its real-world performance is superb.
Stunning looks, feel, and sound
The 8800′s metal case and solid, mechanical construction make it feel more like a Dupont lighter than a humble phone. It’s rock solid and heavy in your hand. You’ll find yourself repeatedly flicking it open and shut just to feel the painstakingly weighted spring action of the slider (which, Nokia claims, uses technology borrowed from the luxury watch industry) and to hear the delicious, solid ‘click’ sound it makes. And this phone really is built to last. Its strong steel case and sapphire crystal-protected screen mean it will fight off scratches and dents even through the roughest of ill-treatment. The icing on the cake is that Nokia have thrown in some exclusive ringtones and alert sounds composed by Brian Eno; so this king amongst phones even sounds luxurious as well.
In short, every interaction you have with it reminds you that you’re using something special. It looks, feels and sounds stunning.
Joyfully simple user interface
Nokia knows a thing or two about creating easy to use, intuitive phones. They’ve been at it for years and it shows. True, things have become slightly more complex since the days of the late, great Nokia 8210 but we still challenge you to find a better thought out interface than Nokia’s current offering. Everything is where you’d expect it to be, every action has been considered and the soft buttons always seem to predict what you’d like to do next. The icons are clear, the menus are organised in logical fashion, and the configurable shortcuts provide a simple way to breech any gap between the default configuration and your particular habits as a user. It’s a joy to use.
The technology that matters
As it happens, the 8800 does give you an agenda, a to-do list, a note pad, a comprehensive contacts database, Internet access, an email client, downloadable add-on applications, games, a currency converter, a calculator, a camera, a video player, and an MP3 player. But in this context, we don’t think any of this technology matters much. If you’re really interested in using any of these applications on a regular basis, then you’ll also want a bigger screen, a more flexible text input method, and probably some expandable memory. In short, you’ll want a smart phone. So, we don’t judge the 8800 on the quality of these technologies. No, for simple ‘phone use, you don’t need any of those features. But the 8800 does have the technology that matters. It has Bluetooth, which means you can easily connect and synch to your PC and keep your agenda and contacts up-to-date from there. It also means that connecting to the stylish wireless headset (included) is a snip. It has a bright, good-looking screen with clear, back-lit keys and a simple GUI, which means using it is easy in any conditions. And it has GPRS which, while not on a par with 3G speeds, is certainly adequate for those rare occasions when you can’t wait to check your email or need to look something up on the Web while you’re out and about.
Superb real-world performance
The Guide is accustomed to using smart phones. From the Sony Ericsson P series, the Palm Treo, the HTC Pocket PCs, to the Nokia Communicator series, we’ve owned or tried all of them. They have many advantages and each has its particular stand-out strength but – tragically – they also fall short in some crucial performance areas that really matter in daily use. As ‘jacks of all trades’ they are large, heavy and less than stylish to look at; they tend to crash; they occasionally drop calls; they suffer poor call quality; and their battery life is limited. The 8800 doesn’t suffer any of these problems. It’s small and elegant, it never crashes, it never drops calls, the call quality is superb, and the battery will last you a couple of days of normal use without even coming close to needing a charge. In short, it excels in the areas that really matter. It has superb real-world performance.
Spending it
Just ask owners of previous generation Nokia 8xxx phones (the 8810, 8850, 8890, 8910, 8910i) most of whom still use and rave about their phones today: if you’re looking for a simple phone, with stunning looks, a great user experience and the technology & real-word performance that really matter, you can’t spend it better than on a Nokia 8800 Sirocco Edition. Oh, and did we mention how damn good this puppy looks!?
The smartest dumb phone on the market
Do you really need to use your phone to access the web, read email, manage your agenda, edit Office documents, consult satellite navigation, play games or any of the other things that smart phone users increasingly take for granted? If your main use for a phone is simply to make and receive calls – and, if we’re honest, many [...]
3 Responses to “The smartest dumb phone on the market”
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theprodigalguide.com – great domain name for blog like this)))
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[...] We absolutely loved our E90. When you released the E71, we hailed it as better than an iPhone. And our old 8800 Scirocco still gets palm time even now. More recently, the E75 and N97 mini have both impressed – albeit [...]
Embacyday
14 February 2009
theprodigalguide.com – cooooolest domain name)))
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my blog: http://hixoh.ru/