Nokia's previous colour-screen handsets--the 7650 and 9210--were commendable efforts, but they eventually proved to be a strain for tight pockets and small handbags. Now with the 7210, the market leader has come up with a cell phone that looks as good as it is compact.
The flashy 7210 demonstrates the best and the worst of Nokia design. Like the Nokia 8310, the 7210's adventurous looks will arouse strong but mixed reactions from customers. The sleek but slightly plasticky exterior is filled with a stylish pattern of angles and curves, while the keys on the top row are shaped like the silhouettes of futuristic spacecraft.
Out of the box, popular colours of the 7210 are a riotous orange and warm turquoise. Either way, the front side of the handset is framed in a white ellipse. Forming the lower half of this oval are eight buttons of the keypad.
Here lies our biggest complaint about the 7210. These eight keys, comprising the left and right columns of a normal phone keypad, are narrow and awkwardly arranged. Furthermore, to fit the oval trim, the horizontal spacing between the buttons varies from row to row. That is, the buttons "1", "2" and "3" are wide apart, while the numbers "7", "8", "9" are close together. This inconsistent and strange layout takes a lot of getting used to. Even after a week of testing, we found our fingers tripping all over the buttons as we tried to re-orientate ourselves.
That said, kudos are in order to Nokia and design honcho Frank Nuovo for daring to go beyond the tried and tested. Still, we believe the best designs are the ones that combine functionality with form. If the 7210's look and feel are not for you, there are other options.The 7210 supports Xpress-on covers, so it's possible to alter its appearance, although Nokia usually tries to retain the distinctiveness of each model.
The 7210 uses a 4,096-color passive matrix display that looks dull in comparison to the active TFT (thin film transistor) screen on the Samsung SGH-T100. The 7210's seven-line display looks good indoors but appears rather dark under the sun.
The menus come with lively graphics and customisable colour themes but it's essentially Nokia's trusty scroll-based interface at work, albeit injected with a dose of colour. This differs from Sony Ericsson's approach of switching to an icon-based menu with the T68.
The Nokia 7210 also comes with multimedia messaging service. However, it doesn't offer the WYSIWYG (what-you-see-is-what-you-get) editor found in the 7650. So when you compose multimedia messages, photographs are represented by icons that are only fully viewable when you enter the preview screen.
The phone also supports wireless Java and comes with a nifty unit converter and two puzzle games--Bounce and Triple Pop. The latter, a spin on Bust-a-Move, is outstanding not for the gameplay but for its detailed Help. Most Java games today come with dry text instructions on how to play the game but Triple Pop goes many steps further by interspersing explanations with actual animated demos.
We also took a listen to the built-in FM receiver. Using the new Pop-port interface, the handset delivered surprisingly good and clear stereo sound. Unfortunately, the connection between the handset and the headset-cum-handsfree kit got dislodged too easily for our liking.
The 7210's headset-cum-handsfree kit comes with a neck loop that you can slip over your head. So even when you're not listening to the radio, you can comfortably hang the wires around your neck in case someone calls you.
The 7210 is also one of Nokia's first handsets to come with triple band technology, so finally globetrotters have a Nokia to choose from. Its polyphonic capabilities can best be described as functional, though. The 21 preset melodies are loud and sometimes too shrill for the ear, but at least you won't miss a call in a crowd.
We found the reception of the 7210 average. Generally, we had no problems with signal strength. We also reported no voice quality issues with the phone's three speaking modes: Phone to ear; speakerphone; and handsfree kit.
The 7210's battery is rated for up to 5 hours of talktime and 360 hours on standby. In our daily tests, the phone battery life lasted a credible three days. However, if you intend to tap into the radio feature often, your phone will need more frequent recharging.
The 7210 is due out in Australia sometime in the beginning of November, so keep an eye out. The price has yet to be announced, but overseas experience indicates a mid-price range, somewhere in the high three figures. With its mean looks and strong feature set, there is much to like about the 7210.
Nokia 7210
Company: Nokia
Price: TBA, Expected mid-range
Distributor: Nokia
Phone: 1300 366 763
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