Good cheap phone (Nokia 5300 XpressMusic)

Member Name: davomrmac

Product:	Nokia 5300 XpressMusic
Date:	02/10/08 (122 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Cheap, smallish, good camera

Disadvantages: Fiddly cramped buttons

I bought one of these so so long ago that I cannot accurately recall how much it cost. I think it was in the region of £69 from Littlewoods Extra online. It is still kicking around and comes out for occasional use, so I thought I would share my thoughts with you.

First off, the size of this phone makes it instantly pocketable. At 92.4 x 48.2 x 20.7mm it is quite thick, but small in the other dimensions. It weighs just over 100g, so not mega-light, more average. The screen is 2-inches diagonal, small by some mobile phone standards, but more than enough for making calls, taking photos and the music features of the phone.

It does have dedicated controls for the music and they work very well, but I never use it for that. It also has a 1.3 megapixel camera, which I use a fair bit and the photos are nice and clear and fine for posting online. I get roughly about a weeks standby from the battery and about 2-3 hours of calls before it needs charging. Again, this is more than acceptable. The buttons are a bit cramped though, so I don't get on too well texting with this.

What makes me like this phone is that if I am going to the sports centre, or perhaps out on the bike, I do not want to take my iPhone. I want a cheap handset that I can throw in a pocket or bag. This fits that requirement. Also, if you need a phone for a teenager, then this is still quite funky, I don't think they would sniff at it.

Summary: Easy for throwing in your pocket or bag without worrying about it

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