Do I detect a subtle improvement? (Nokia 3410)

Member Name: tomshanks

Product:	Nokia 3410
Date:	15/06/03 (389 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Much better than the 3310 and free on a contract, Relatively Lightweight and Simple, Changeable covers (thank goodness)

Disadvantages: Expensive sim-free and Pay As You Go, Relatively large and lacking in features, Some aspects of text messaging

Out of choice, I have never owned a Nokia mobile phone. I have bought them for friends, and used them as replacements when I have problems with my two main ones (currently a Trium Eclipse on Vodafone and a Siemens C45 on Orange), but I have never actually used one on a permanent basis. There are two main reasons for this.

The first is that they are ludicrously over-priced for what they are. In terms of build quality, they are similar to Siemens, whose phones are always a lot cheaper for the same feature-set. In terms of features, one can obtain a Trium 110 in Carphone Warehouse for £50, which lacks only the Java support and changeable covers of the 3410, and has polyphonic ringtones over the Nokia. The 110 is also smaller, has a standard cover which is much more to most people's liking, and lacks the external aerial of previous Trium models. The Mitsubishi menu system is now exceptionally similar to the new Nokia 7210, 6100 and 6610 models, so ease of use is not a problem, and at up to £40 cheaper than the Nokia, I know which I would choose. Given a choice in terms of phones which are free on contracts, which is a fairer comparison, I currently have a choice to make. Last year, it was between the Nokia 3330 and the Siemens C45, and the Siemens was smaller and had better battery life. This year, it is between the Motorola C350, the Sagem MYG-5/MYX-5 and the Nokia 3510i. I want a colour screen phone with polyphonic ringtones this time, so these are the choices which are free on an Orange contract for me. The Nokia has a size problem once again, I am afraid, despite ticking all the rest of my requirement boxes, and the non-removable Orange power button and sides are of questionable taste, much the same story as with the standard cover on the 3410. The Sagem has terrible availability problems, which is a shame as I really would like one, so it looks like the Motorola will be mine next month.

The second reason why I have not had a Nokia is the fa
ct that I believe in a spirit of competition. Lulling users into only being able to use their menu system, which has happened to a lot of my friends and family, who regard anything else as too confusing and 'wrong' means that brand loyalty is among the fiercest I have experienced. This is a problem for the other manufacturers, since around 50% of Nokia users would need bribing to change marque, and I wish to keep a more objective view about phones. Being able to use more than one make of phone means that I can try out other manufacturers without having to be weaned off a Nokia before I change. This is enough about generalities, let us look in more detail at the phone in question.

On first glance, it is possible feel rather underwhelmed. The 3410 is obviously built on the old 3310/3330 platform and matches its footprint exactly. The standard teal/light blue colour of the phone is also rather too feminine for my tastes, so the first step for a lot of my male friends who have is to buy a replacement cover, in order to distance themselves from the 'fashion over function' crowd. However, I also have a lot of female friends who have seen no reason to change it, which would seem to suggest that Nokia have aimed this phone squarely at the young female crowd. Although the 3310/3330 was always more of a young person's phone, and there is the 3510 which looks a lot more masculine, I cannot help thinking that a more conservative standard cover on a phone which combined both the 3410 and 3510 would have been a better idea, particularly as there is now also the 3510i. However, there is better news once the phone has been turned on.

The first thing that the average user, who is used to things such as 3310s and Siemens C45s, will notice is that the screen resolution is amazingly high. Although it is disappointing that the screen is both monochrome and has a very dull green backlight, it is obvious that the clarity is a step ahead from any other
green monochrome screen I have ever used. The white backlight from the 8310 or the blue backlight from the 6510 would have been a good touch, but the average 3410 owner is not likely to get too worried about this, since if he or she could have obtained a 3510i if the colour screen was an issue, or an 8310 if the white backlight appealed to them. Playing Snake II, writing text messages and picking screensavers is a noticeably more pleasant experience.

Another more advanced feature is the screensavers themselves. My favourite has to be the large digital clock which replaces the normal standby screen and is superb when cooking, sitting down or mounted to a car dashboard. The improvement I may make to this, simply because my Siemens C45 has it, would be to show whether or not the phone has network coverage even on the standby screen, which can be useful on a train journey or when one is expecting to receive a call in a remote area. There are many others, some of which 3310 users will recognise, and some which are completely new, and would not disgrace a laptop if they were in colour. The games seem far clearer than in other Nokia models I have used as well, although without the colour screen, they lack a certain dimension of reality. One very surprising feature of the 3410, which none expected on its release, is its support for Java applications and games. I have not had a chance to try this out, but I cannot help thinking that the 3510, with Cart Racing and polyphonic ringtones, would have been a better choice for this functionality.

The ringtones remain very familiar: although a little clearer than the 3310, they are still not polyphonic. This is yet another reason why Nokia should have combined the two newer models into one! Text messaging remains exactly the same as for the 3310: infuriating. Although the 3410 is the fastest machine I have ever texted on, which would mean the processor is well-developed, the fact that every time one composes a me
ssage one has to delete the previous message, even if it has not been saved, is unnecessary, and no other manufacturer does it. Also, the haphazard way in which messages are deposited in the inbox, which is in any order where space can be found as opposed to the more logical method of anyone else, which is chronogical order. If I had one of these phones on a permanent basis as opposed to now, where it is as a spare whilst my Siemens is being fixed, this would drive me mad. In addition to this, no text messages can be stored on the phone, which in our generation of text-addicts, is a major oversight, made even stranger by the fact that both the 8310 and 6210 had text message storage on the phone.

The menu system, with the six-button navigation, is a major step-up from the old four-button system. It makes me wonder why the four-button system was allowed to exist at all, given that Nokia has used this setup for years on their business range. The weight of the phone is also very good, and the construction feels fine, as one would expect from Nokia. Many of the areas in which the 3310 was lacking have been addressed in the 3410, but there is still room for improvement.

The 3410 is the right phone at the wrong time. If this phone had been released at about the same time as the 3330 was, it would have been the perfect update of that particular model. That would have therefore meant that the 3510 and 3510i pair, released last year, would have complemented each other well. However, it was released at the same time as the 3510, and thus things such as the size of the phone, the green backlight and the lack of GPRS to be taken into account. For £50, which is what I paid for my particular model on the Internet, the 3410 is a good buy, and has good call-quality, true ease of use, perfectly acceptable reception and decent battery life. However, for £80-90, this is simply too expensive, and I cannot award this phone more than three stars for that reason. At the
end of 2001, I would have given this phone four-stars, it really is that good.

Summary: