In my early days of gadget addiction I was quite a fan of Nokia.
I still have a 3210 and a 6150 kicking around somewhere at home. However, a
few years back, my head started to get turned by Sony
Ericsson. It has only been recently that Nokias have started to catch my
attention again, particularly with the likes of the feature-packed N73 and
N95 handsets.
Another very nice phone is the new 6110 Navigator. Older readers may remember
there used to be a Nokia 6110 but this handset is unrelated.
The Navigator suffix is a hint of the phone’s most powerful feature – on-board
GPS. The phone comes with built-in Navteq Route 66 software, which has a
very swish 3D interface and can be used either in the car (although the
screen is really just a tad too pokey to use effectively in this way) or on
foot. Given the small size of this phone, the GPS functionality is pretty
smart, especially as the phone still manages to squeeze 3G under the bonnet
(including support for HSDPA) too.
The 3D maps are clear despite the small screen and even include details of
plenty of points of interest. You can download speed cameras free of charge.
The 6110 feels very nice in your hand, thanks to its lovely rounded design.
It’s a slider phone and the mechanism is very smooth, revealing a good sized
numeric keypad. When closed, the device presents function keys to access
both the phone and GPS functions as well as menu access through a simple
four-way clicker. It’s a lokoer too. It has a shiny black (or iPod white)
carapace with brushed metal detail. The reverse of the phone looks as though
it came out of the Star Trek prop design department.
As for business functions, the phone also supports simple email messaging if
you have a POP3 or IMAP4 service. It can handle attachments through supplied
QuickOffice software that lets you look at World, Excel and PowerPoint
documents with a reasonable level of functionality.
The spec
Dimensions 101x49x20mm. Weight 125g including battery. Two cameras (2.0
megapixel plus front video camera). 2.2 inch TFT screen. Battery life
2.5-3.5 hours talk time and maximum 11 days on standby. 40MB internal memory
plus microSD expansion slot.
The hype
They say: Navigate your mobile lifestyle.
The reality
We say: The satnav is pretty cool for such a small device although it won’t
really replace a bigger-screened dedicated satnav if you’re a regular driver.
The bottom line
£69.99 on a 12-month £35 contract from mobiles.co.uk
or £345 SIM-free from Amazon
The verdict
A return to form for Nokia as it crams in plenty of juicy features into this
lovely handset.
The roadwarrior rating
8 out of 10
