Nokia 6230

Details:

Just when other brands have finally started making themselves visible in the mainstream GSM mobile phone market, Nokia has come out with a phone that may not only turn out to be the most successful phone this year, but also the most complete phone they have come to offer yet. Without further delay, I'll delve straight to the part of the review that matters...

Looks that Kill
The Nokia 6230 astounds you from the moment you open the box and gaze at its well chiseled looks. It comes with a battery charger, a stereo headset, CD containing the necessary software and the user manual.

I have to admit that the 6230 sports the best design in terms of looks and usability that I have seen from Nokia. Usually they either go overboard with the design factor making the phone practically unusable, or they just play it safe with a very user-friendly but uninteresting design. Here, fortunately they've attained a perfect balance.

Measuring 103 x 44 x 20 mm, it's the perfect size for a phone, but its 97 g weight may not make it the best option to carry around in your front shirt pocket. The overall build quality feels sturdy yet comfortable.

The 65,000-color TFT display is slightly bigger in dimension than say 6610, but it still supports resolutions up to 128 x 128 pixels. The screen clarity is excellent with a good amount of brightness and clarity to the level that matters. Some users may, however, have a problem with the screen size as they may consider it a bit too small for viewing video clips or pictures, but once you actually use it and see the clarity it stores even at that resolution, I doubt there'll be much left to complain about. All in all, the screen seems fit for all phone functions. A bigger screen would result in an unnecessarily bigger phone without too much of a performance difference.


Nokia has opted to go for a rubber feel keypad with this one, which is another good design decision. The keys don't only feel better, but they also provide the right level of friction during usage, which prevents your finger from slipping off them. The numeric keys are decently sized, and I didn't once face a problem of pressing two buttons at once or a slowdown in my typing speed. The directional pad is comfortable to use, which is a good thing, as Nokia has shifted all the primary functions onto it, making it also the most used button.

The camera is sized and placed just like the one present in the Nokia 7250. The IR is stylishly placed on the right side of the phone (when facing you) and the volume control is located on the left.