Call quality in the Nokia 500 is very good, with loud voices in the earpiece without any notable distortion, while on the receiving end they said we sounded clear and with good volume. There is no dedicated microphone for noise-cancellation, so the surrounding noise could be heard as well while we were talking.
The manufacturer is advertising the comparatively wimpy 5 hours of talk time in 3G mode. The batteryis good for 5 hours and 15 minutes of video playback as well, as per manufacturer's specs.
Overall, the world’s largest phone maker by volume has trimmed specs from the right places to arrive to its new entry-level Symbian star, the Nokia 500. The lack of LED flash and the basic video capture capabilities of the 5MP camera module seem to be the main victims that fell in the quest for a low-end pricing. Others, like less RAM and smaller battery we can live with, as they don’t affect usability that much – besides, the update to Symbian Belle will speed the interface up significantly.
On the other hand, we have a well-built affordable handset with nice soft-touch plastic grip and comfortable to hold shape, whose 3.2” display sports a pretty high 229ppi pixel density, making text easier to read while surfing with the basic default browser.
When we add the hardwired DivX/Xvid codecs support in the video player, and, above all, the free offline voice-guided navigation in most countries worldwide, the Nokia 500 seems poised to succeed in the footsteps of the 5800 XpressMusic, which sold millions around the globe.
The Nokia 500 would reign superior over the entry-level bada handsets of Samsung, for example, and cheap Androids like the Samsung Galaxy Y can only threaten it with the quantity of apps in Android Market, which, however, is a pretty formidable advantage. There is not much else you can buy with similar capabilities to the Nokia 500 in the $200 ballpark without a contract.
Software version of the review unit: 010.029
Nokia 500 Video Review:
The manufacturer is advertising the comparatively wimpy 5 hours of talk time in 3G mode. The batteryis good for 5 hours and 15 minutes of video playback as well, as per manufacturer's specs.
Overall, the world’s largest phone maker by volume has trimmed specs from the right places to arrive to its new entry-level Symbian star, the Nokia 500. The lack of LED flash and the basic video capture capabilities of the 5MP camera module seem to be the main victims that fell in the quest for a low-end pricing. Others, like less RAM and smaller battery we can live with, as they don’t affect usability that much – besides, the update to Symbian Belle will speed the interface up significantly.
On the other hand, we have a well-built affordable handset with nice soft-touch plastic grip and comfortable to hold shape, whose 3.2” display sports a pretty high 229ppi pixel density, making text easier to read while surfing with the basic default browser.
When we add the hardwired DivX/Xvid codecs support in the video player, and, above all, the free offline voice-guided navigation in most countries worldwide, the Nokia 500 seems poised to succeed in the footsteps of the 5800 XpressMusic, which sold millions around the globe.
The Nokia 500 would reign superior over the entry-level bada handsets of Samsung, for example, and cheap Androids like the Samsung Galaxy Y can only threaten it with the quantity of apps in Android Market, which, however, is a pretty formidable advantage. There is not much else you can buy with similar capabilities to the Nokia 500 in the $200 ballpark without a contract.
Software version of the review unit: 010.029
Nokia 500 Video Review:
PROS
- Cheap but capable handset with pleasant design
- Above average pixel density makes text crisp and easier to read
- Hardwired DivX/Xvid video playback
CONS
- Video capture with 15fps only
- No camera flash
- Symbian Anna is sluggish compared to Belle
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