Part of Nokia's Eseries business smartphone line-up (which also includes the similarly spec'd but differently shaped E61 and E70), the E60's square, simple look belies a wealth of features designed to make it easier to do business, wherever you are.
Design
The E60 is, to put it bluntly, a bit of a brick. Nokia calls it a "monoblock", and at 115mm by 49mm by 16.9mm and 117g, that it is. Given the Finnish company's recent experimentation with unusual phone form factors (such as the keyless 7380 and the swivel-happy 3250), it's a contrast to see a regression to the basic rectangular shape of days gone by. With its silver accents and simple silhouette, the E60 is not unattractive, but it does reflect the strictly business nature of the phone's features.
For a large phone, some of the buttons are curiously tiny. The power key on the top right is small and stealthy, and Nokia's decision to refer to the five-way directional key as a "joystick" was somewhat optimistic. Scrolling through Web pages for more than a few minutes will bring you not joy, but a sore thumb, due to the small, recessed nature of this square button.
One thing that did make us very happy was the brilliant display. The 16 million-colour screen is simply gorgeous, and makes reading Web pages and e-mail attachments very easy on the eyes.
Features
Many of the features across the Eseries have been designed to fit in easily with an existing enterprise environment, removing the hassle of setting up protocols, proxies and passwords. Particularly useful features of the E60 include the ability to connect to your company's IP-PBX system so that calls to your desk phone are automatically diverted to your mobile. This also means that you can use the E60 to perform workplace telephone functions like call transfer and voicemail forwarding.
For mobile mail, you can go the IMAP/POP3 standard route, or take the plunge into push e-mail. The Eseries phones support third party push applications including BlackBerry Connect, meaning the E60 can swiftly slot into an existing BlackBerry enterprise set-up.
Calls can be made over GSM and 3G networks, or you can take advantage of the E60's Wi-Fi and use VoIP. Push-To-Talk, speakerphone, conference call compatibility and a dedicated key allowing immediate voice recording round out the voice features.
As expected for a business-focused model, "fun" 3G phone features such as a camera for video calls are not included, nor is an FM radio, but there is a multimedia player.
There is 64MB of internal memory, with an RS-MMC slot allowing expansion of up to 2GB.
Performance
We had no problems with connectivity -- Bluetooth devices paired instantly with the E60, and file transfer was quick and easy. E-mail transmission and attachment handling (PDF, Word and Excel documents) was also problem-free, with those wonderful wizards guiding the set-up process. We appreciated the ability to edit received documents rather than just view them.
Despite our grumblings about navigating with the joystick, we liked the way Web browsing was handled. The relatively new S60 Web browser, which is based on the same components as Apple's Safari application, allows big, complex Web pages to be displayed on small screens with few changes to design and functionality. It's a brilliant browser -- we especially liked the Page Overview function, which displays a mini screenshot of the entire page so you know which direction to move your pointer in. The phone's display rotate feature also allows you to browse in landscape mode.
Voice features all performed well; the speakerphone was nice and clear, although playback volume without headphones was a little soft. You also need to stay within a metre or two of the microphone when recording.
Battery life was very good, with the phone lasting almost a week on mid-level voice and text use. Extended internet use did bring battery life down significantly, but no more than you'd expect for a 3G smartphone.
Generally, the E60 was a pleasure to use. It may not suit heavy mobile Web users given the screen size and small joystick, but push e-mail devotees who don't want a device of PDA proportions will be happy with this model. It's not a phone that you'd slip into your board shorts when the weekend rolls around, but the focus on workday functions and corporate integration means it does everything you'd want a business phone to do.
Those who want the same features but are stuck on the BlackBerry's QWERTY keyboard should take a look at Nokia's E61.
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nokia 2610
13/05/2008, 11:44 PM
rating
8/10
This mobile phone is best for businessmen. Gives high internet speed. Camera result is best. For entertainment this hand set have many flash games.
Pros: Camera is good.
Large LCD.
Cons: Nothing.
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bzn
27/03/2008, 05:26 PM
rating
9/10
Combine UTMS with smooth VoIP integration and dirt cheap 3G Broadband plans now available, and you get a dream phone heavily underrated by (eBay) market prices.
Pros: - VoIP, Gmail, Google Maps, Fring, browsing and Mobile as modem via Bluetooth on the go, for (including all discounts) about $16 AUD a month for 2GB.
Cons: Not HSDPA, and battery life (understandably given my heavy data usage) needs to be used carefully.
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AbCdEfG
28/05/2007, 03:10 PM
rating
2/10
Owned the phone for 6 months and visited the nokia service centre (Singapore, wheellock) 5 times........same problem, unable to send and receive sms, solution provided by nokia? same, upgrade software even when version is the same.
Only solution.....change phone....switch brand!
Pros: none since the phone is unreliable and nokia service is as good as what others says.....extremely bad. Even numerous emails and calls does not wakt them up!
Cons: Bad service from nokia, unreliable phone.....
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Tonia Baker
30/04/2007, 09:57 AM
rating
8/10
Accessibility & Functionality
I've had talking software on my computer for some years now.? However, I'm very new to the world of mobile phones and have had my E60 since February this year - my first ever mobile phone! ?
For blind users, it is one of the few phones available on the market that is compatible with Talks & Zooms accessibility software, one of the other phones being the Nokia N70.? I couldn't really see much point in having a camera as I can't read the display and rely totallly on Talks software to guide me through all the various options and read messages etc.? However, it would have been nice to have an AM/FM radio.? I'm still learning about the MP3 player and some other functions, but extensively use the Contacts, Calendar and Calculator.
Joystick and Size of Phone
Of course, I hadn't realised the joystick was smaller than normal.? I use my index finger and have had no difficulty at all.
The "brick-like, square design" is much easier to use for people with disabilities.? Personally, I have to orientate myself from the tactile raised section on the '5' key and count in each direction, according to which function I'm using.? Therefore the square design with larger keys in uniform rows makes this task a lot easier.? Some phones are really tiny, while others have keys that seem to curve around, and this makes operation very difficult for some of us.
Battery Life
I've also been quite impressed in this regard.? Talking software chews up a lot of battery power, but I usually recharge the phone about every 3-5 days depending on usage.
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E60lover
30/04/2007, 04:51 AM
rating
10/10
Have the phone for 6 months now, and am still in love with it!!! XXXX What can I say, it is what I have been looking for in a phone, no gimmicks, just a solid performing business phone that looks good as well. (I don't know what other people mean by saying the E60 lacks in the looks department, to me it is the BEST LOOKING phone in the market, it is a minimalist dream comes true.
Pros: Fantastic display.
Great looking phone. You will love the durable look.
Solid performing with all the frills but no gimmicks.
Cons: Mmm... sometimes you do regret that it does not have a 6 mega pixels camera with Carl Zeiss Lens to make it the perfect dream phone....
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SHAMEER786
23/03/2007, 11:51 PM
rating
9/10
Smart phone
Pros: excellent display,large connectivity
Cons: NO need of acamera on a business phone
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sieben
22/01/2007, 02:55 AM
rating
10/10
Excellent Phone. Period.
Pros: Wifi
Bluetooth
IrDa
3G
No-Camera - for security restricted areas
Cons: None - No childish gimmicks.
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Jeff
16/12/2006, 06:24 PM
rating
10/10
What a fantastic business telephone. I have been after a gimic free business phone for a long time and the phone salesmen always wanted to show me how good the phone-camera was or how you could listen to FM radio. But along came the Nokia E60, which leaves all the gimics for the teenagers and lets those that need a phone for business to be finally catered for.
Nokia, why did it take so long to come up with a truly business phone without childish/useless gimics?
Jeff
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26/08/2006, 09:44 PM
rating
4/10
no camera.too simple.should added.
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14/08/2006, 06:04 AM
rating
9/10
aaaaaaa
Pros: display,connectivity,built,classic formfactor
Cons: camera(hardly can sell after)
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