Design
The physical aspect of the 3600 is probably its most appealing feature. Constructed from a mix of soft-touch rubber, glossy plastic and stainless steel trimmings, the 3600 feels nice to hold and has a pleasing heft that belies its cute, toy-phone-like appearance. The 3600 comes in two colour schemes, a black and a magenta, both with subtle two-tone gradient faceplates.
The handset features a 2-inch colour display that is sharp and clear, though not especially bright and is difficult to see under sunlight. The screen is QVGA (240 x 320 pixels) resolution — good quality for a low-end phone.
The shape and size of the navigation keys is excellent; each key is large and easy to find without looking. The same can't be said for the numeric keypad, however. The keypad is entirely flat, similar to the 6220 Classic, with little to define each key from the key beside it. Using the keypad is easy enough with concentration, but we'd love to see raised keys on future models.
Features
While it may look like a phone in a higher price range, the spec sheet for the 3600 Slide reads as we'd expect it to. No Wi-Fi and only quad-band GSM network support — no 3G data services. Interestingly, though the 3600 doesn't feature a built-in GPS chipset the phone does come with Nokia Maps pre-installed. Unlike Wi-Fi and 3G connectivity, people looking to use GPS services after buying a 3600 can purchase a Bluetooth GPS receiver and pair it with this phone.
Music lovers will find Nokia's regular bland-but-capable music player useful, and its compatibility with MP3, WMA and AAC music files is sufficient for most basic music libraries. The 3600 doesn't feature much in the way of internal storage for your tracks, but Nokia has generously bundled a 512MB microSD memory card with the phone. Also in the box is a pair of Nokia headphones with a microphone attachment for hands-free calling.
If you don't have enough music to fill the memory card you might be inclined to take to the streets with the 3600's 3.2-megapixel camera. Located on the underside of the handset, the camera features auto-focus and dual LED photolights.
Performance
Most importantly the 3600 Slide makes a great phone — if only an average music player and camera. Call quality during our tests has been excellent and messaging, even with the poorly designed keypad, is superb. After reviewing phones from other brands it's a pleasure to come back to Nokia's refined T9 predictive text which is still the best and most accurate available.
But as mentioned above, the extra features are not reasons to buy this phone. While the music player is adequate, if uninspiring, the camera is a dud. We tested the 3.2-megapixel shooter under optimal camera phone conditions first, and while the colours were decent, the auto-focus verges on being broken. If we took ten photos we'd expect eight to be out of focus. The LED flash is the camera's best component and is capable of lighting a dim room.
Nokia rate the battery life for the 3600 at 5.5 hours talk-time and 280 hours standby. During our testing we recharged the battery on the third day of each battery cycle.
Overall
The 3600 Slide is an attractive and well performing mobile phone, which is lucky because its other main selling point, the 3.2-megapixel camera, is not worth considering. The AU$249 price tag is reasonable for this phone as it appears on paper, but is a bit hefty for how the phone performs beyond its basic functionality. If you find this phone at a bargain price — for around AU$150 — it'd be worth checking out.
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