Nokia 6230i - better than the 6230? (Nokia 6230i)

Member Name: depurple2

Product:	Nokia 6230i
Date:	07/10/06 (811 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Better camera, more features, larger screen

Disadvantages: Slow operating system

I had a Nokia 6230 phone that I was very happy with, so when the time came to renew my contract and I was offered a free phone, I decided to get the newer 6230i as many of the features are the same.


About the phone
++++++++++++

The phone has the following features:

A 1.3 megapixel camera, which also shoots video clips
32 MB internal memory and you can add a memory card that holds up to 512 MB - it comes with a 32MB card
A funky TFT display with animated 3D menu graphics
Lots of ways to connect to your computer and other phones - Bluetooth technology, infrared, USB port, Pop-Port, and GPRS/EDGE
XHTML browsing and email over TCP/IP
AAC/MP3/M4A stereo music player and FM radio


I am one of those rare people who actually uses my phone mainly to make calls, and so the main benefits for me of this phone are:

The phone is small (10.3 x 4.4 x 2cm) so it fits easily into your pocket.
The battery life is good - up to 5 hours talk time or 300 hours standby, though in reality I have never got that much. You can buy spare batteries, but I have so far been unable to get the cover off the back of the phone since I put it on there, so I can't change the battery. This means that if I am away for only a couple of days I don't have to carry a charger round with me.
The phone is Tri-band, so it works in most countries.
The volume on the phone is good, but the sound can be a bit crackly at times.


Extras:

For those who want the added extras, the 6230i has a few of these too.
It has an FM radio and MP3 player. I have listened to radio briefly, and the sound is OK. It is easy to set up. I've not bothered putting any music on it because I would rather save my battery life for phone calls. You have to use the headphones supplied to listen to the radio as they have a strange connector.
The camera is pretty good in terms of picture quality, but it doesn't have a flash and the zoom isn't great so its use is a bit limited. The screen is also quite small for displaying photos. One disappointing thing is that although the phone can connect to a USB port, a cable is not supplied and a standard cable doesn't fit. I have used the infrared and bluetooth transfers and both of these work OK though.
It has the usual stopwatch, countdown timer and calculator, but it also has a world clock, a quantity converter (kg to lb, etc) and a translator which works in English, French, German, Italian and Spanish.
It has 3 games pre-loaded - Golf Tour, Street Race and Backgammon 2. I've not played any of these though.


Differences between the 6230i and the 6230 - is it worth upgrading?

The main differences in terms of hardware are an upgraded camera (1.3 megapixels instead of VGA) and a slightly larger screen with better resolution. The size of the phone, the battery and most of the keypad is the same. The only key that has changed is the navigation key, which has an extra "select" button built into the middle of it. I find this new button a bit more fiddley to use than the old one.

The software is a lot more colourful and animated. This has unfortunately had the effect of noticeably slowing the operating system down, which is frustrating. They have also changed the menu layout slightly, so where I was used to the key sequence I had to press to get to my SMS Inbox, for example, I now find I end up creating a multimedia message instead.


I would say that if you are offered a free upgrade it is worth it, particularly if you use the camera a lot. Otherwise I would stick with the 6230 as it does much the same job, and more quickly.

Summary: A good all round phone which fits easily in your pocket.

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