Nokia's triband 7373 follows on from the very similar-looking 7370, which was part of the first wave of L'Amour fashion phones. These two phones have more in common than their looks -- a side-by-side inspection of the specs list reveals only a few changes have been made in the year since the 7370 appeared.
Design
When the original L'Amour collection was announced, Nokia issued a typically overwrought press release describing the product range as "a beautiful mix of contrasts - infusing cultural and ethnic influences with luxurious touches of the unexpected". This aesthetic, complete with "nature-inspired graphics" and velvet-lined carry pouches, continues with the 7373.
The 88 by 43 by 23mm swivel phone is available in black chrome, bronze black, and a striking powder pink. The floral accents of the 7370 have been ditched in favour of a tribal-style pattern incorporating concentric circles and dots. Perhaps this change was in response to the 7370 being branded a "granny phone" by a few unimpressed punters. Regardless, the tribal look makes the phone a more gender-neutral device than its predecessor.
Swivelling open the 7373 uncovers a flat keypad incorporating a jewelled selection key at the top (to see how springy and satisfying the swivel motion is, watch the video on the right). The Send and End keys are labelled with very stylised symbols indicating their function and lack the conventional red and green colouring, so it may take a few days to get the hang of using them.
The reverse side of the phone houses a 2-megapixel camera (upgraded from the 7370's 1.3-megapixel version) and features a leather-coated battery cover that makes good on Nokia's "mix of contrasts" pledge. A fabric tag common to all L'Amour phones completes the fashion look.
As you might expect from a sartorially slanted product, Nokia has bundled a few coordinated accessories into the 7373's box, including a silver handstrap with teeny NOKIA-stamped dog tag and a velvet-lined pouch -- a sort of sleeping bag for your phone.
Features
The 7373 has a pretty standard featureset for a mid-range triband phone. You've got your SMTP, POP3, IMAP and APOP e-mail support; a 2-megapixel camera with 8x zoom capable of capturing video; and a basic WAP browser for those willing to wait for their Web pages to display in a squished, distorted format.
An FM radio and music/video player allow you to get musical or watch amusing clips to stave off boredom. The visual radio feature is handy, providing the titles of songs as they play, along with the name of the artist.
There is also Push-To-Talk functionality. We're yet to encounter anyone with a PTT-enabled phone who uses the feature, but it's there just in case.
The 7373 has a teeny tiny 8MB of internal memory, but comes with a 128MB microSD card tucked among its innards. This can be swapped out for cards of up to 2GB capacity, giving you room to grow.
The base of the phone features the standard Nokia Pop-Port, used to connect to a USB port on your computer. Unfortunately there is no USB cable in the box, so you're looking at Bluetooth for data transfer unless you purchase one separately.
Performance
As with the 7370, we found the placement of the camera awkward -- the lens is tucked away on the side of the phone, which puts it on the bottom when you hold the phone horizontally. You'll need to make sure the fingers of your left hand don't creep across and cover the lens.
The swivel motion is just plain fun to use -- a sly flick of the thumb sends the top layer up with a satisfying click, and will make you feel a bit Quick Draw McGraw. Do watch out that you don't accidentally press any buttons though -- we unknowingly placed a call while revelling in how cool we looked post-swivel.
Our battery kicked on for four days between charges, which is longer than the 7370 lasted. We were also impressed by the 7373's ability to withstand being dropped and knocked about -- we don't make a habit of flinging phones around during testing, but the 7373 was somehow released onto the ground more than once and fared well thereafter.
The 7373 is one of those love-it-or-hate-it devices that tends to polarise potential buyers. While some will be turned off by its fussy aesthetics, others will fall for the strokable surfaces and satisfyingly solid swivel motion. All up, it's a phone for those who like to update their wardrobes -- and handsets -- every season, as the distinctive looks are likely to fall out of fashion before the phone breaks down.
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Chey'
23/09/2008, 12:54 PM
rating
8/10
I've had this phone for roughly 2 years, which is the longest time I've had a phone! It is an excellent phone, obviously at first glance, it looks incredible! And the functions are all fabulous. Just some things that have happened to my phone are, sometimes the signal dissappears and I have to turn the phone off and then back on to get signal and randomly, the swivel animation will turn itself on without consent. But these are all glitches and you cannot expect a perfect phone. Nothing is perfect and the Nokia 7373 is one of the closest you can get to perfection!!
Pros: Design, swivel, mostly everything!
Cons: Looks plastic and kind of cheap
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xxlovesarahxx
06/08/2008, 11:57 AM
rating
1/10
This phone is **** i had it for six months and the buttons arent working anymore and it keeps flippinng the pictures and messages and stuff when your trying to do something its gay. its not worth the money
Pros: Its pink and swivels
Cons: Its **** quality and it breaks easy
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Amelia
08/07/2008, 08:05 PM
rating
1/10
I had one, but it was such a dreadful experience. The first one was a brick - it didn't work - then I got a replacement and the swivel head came apart in a couple of days. They offered to replace it, but they were all out, so I was told that I would have to wait a month for the next delivery of the phones. I just asked for a refund. For me, it was cursed. I now have a Hiptop Slide - now that is a brilliant phone.
Pros: >None
Cons: >Questionable quality
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CassieBabes
15/06/2008, 11:19 AM
rating
10/10
I got this phone last week and it is so gawjuz all my friends are green with envy its sexy with its pink design lots of memory its loud my battery last for aaaages almost 4 days its an eye catching phone no regrets at all!
Pros: pink , stylish , memory , sounds
Cons: NONE its a perfect phone!
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carwit
05/06/2008, 01:51 AM
rating
10/10
omg i had this phone for christmas and it was the best phone i think ill ever have...that was untill i spilt drink all over it and now doesn't work
Pros: its pink
swivel design
good camera
Cons: none
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Jas
24/03/2008, 02:33 PM
rating
10/10
They dont sell them anymore
I asked a nokia shop and they said they are really old and that it wasnt a good seller so they stopped selling them.
My friend has one and i think its like the perfect phone, plays good music and has a good camera. Thats all i want.
So does anyone know where you can buy this phone in australia??
besides like ebay and all that, like a shop? in QLD/gold coast???? plzzz
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erin hamilton
21/03/2008, 12:42 PM
rating
9/10
ive had this phone for around 2 weeks. its a sweet phone, no faulty crap that goes on. music can be heard clearly, the screen is really sharp and looks like high quality, camera is also really nice, when in good light (no flash) only thing is the battery is a little short, maybe its cuz i got it from asia.. it only lasts 2 days. but im use to it now lol and the plastic cover where the little tag is is a little warped so doesnt click in to position. ill try get it fixed.. if anyone knows where i can get it fixed that wud be good.. :) good luck with ppl who want the phone, i recommend it! no regrets!
Pros: everything about it except...
Cons: battery lasts 2 days.. maybe its a fake nokia battery :S oh well!
and warped pastic - i can try getting it fixed
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Jessica
09/03/2008, 12:15 PM
rating
9/10
I have to say, I got this phone last year for my birthday and was an outstanding device! Sheik, classy and all around useful. It was my perfect phone... Until I stepped on it last week. It did me the job, so I highly recommend it!
Pros: +Classy, feminine and picturesque design
+Large Memory Card included
+Excellent Audio
+Decent Camera
+Easy Navigation
+Gentle keypad
Cons: -Swivel Design can cause problems (Especially with a Crystal Casing)
-Side buttons too small/easily pressed
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dat_nigguh_jhay
04/03/2008, 02:39 PM
rating
10/10
OMG..i love this fone..n ima guy..so ima get dat bronze wun..oohh..i hav a gold wun frst day it came out..alil' 2 gurly fo meh..lol..needa upgrade/get it az prt of my collection =]
Pros: beautiful designs
eye-catching for sum guys, like myself
ugh..i want it soo baddd =D
Cons: no usb cable.but watever..get wun later
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jj
23/02/2008, 12:03 PM
rating
10/10
i love this i wanna get it 4 m bday
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