Nokia E70 Review

Overall Rating

Excellent implementation of wi-fi.
High-definition screen.
Impressive build quality.
Good - and useful - range of supplied software.
Fold-out alphanumeric keyboard makes texting and email a whole lot easier.
Genuine multi-tasking with easy switching between applications by holding down the Menu key.

System memory is on the tight side, note that adding a big memory card makes no difference to this.
Supplying this or any smart phone with a measly 64MB memory card is penny-pinching dumbness.

I chose this phone primarily because I wanted wi-fi on my free upgrade, and my choice from Vodafone UK was between the E70 and the E61. At the time the choice was agonising, but after 4 weeks with the E70 I am certain I chose wisely, this phone suits me very well. The young and trendy can laugh at its chunky appearance, but if you want a serious smartphone that does almost everything and does not have the dimensions of a slice of toast then the E70 is it. When I say almost everything the exception I have in mind is GPS, but the purchase of a £25 (on ebay) bluetooth GPS module has given me that facility without having to burden the phone's battery with the additional drain of a GPS chipset.

The built-in Navigator application offers basic GPS support, giving position, compass heading, and trip functions. Nokia maps, an excellent free download from Nokia, gives full mapping functionality. Regional maps are also free from Nokia, they are loaded onto the phone via an application that needs to be installed on your PC. The only feature lacking in the free version of Nokia Maps is turn-by-turn voice directions, but that can be added on payment of a subscription. Rather cleverly, the activation key is supplied by means of a chargeable SMS, and thus appears on ones phone bill.

Processor choice in a smartphone has to be a compromise between speed and power consumption. In general I have found that compromise to be satisfactory. It does seem to take forever for the phone to power up, but in use it seems sprightly enough, and it will happily support a couple of bluetooth applications whilst browsing the web via wi-fi. The chosen web browser has been slated in some quarters, but I prefer it to Opera and it must be the case that web browsing on a small screen device is always going to be something of a chore.

Although the UK and European version of the E70 is equipped for 3G, there is only one camera, so video calling is not an option. However, that is probably no great loss because video calling is really a dead duck, killed off by rapacious charging regimes of the networks and the general reluctance of people in general to point cameras at themselves. The 2 megapixel camera fitted is said to be the same as that in the N70, and does not offer autofocus or optical zoom. That is not important to me, but other phone users may have different priorities.

Some reviewers have criticised the delay in screen switching between portrait and landscape modes when the keyboard is folded out. In fact, with the current software the switch is virtually instantaneous. There has also been criticism of the speech memo button on the side of the phone, with the suggestion being made that it is to easy to press by accident. Well, I have not pressed it accidentally, and have found it to be a useful feature. The same button, when held down, activates Nokia's brilliant voice dialing facility as also seen on the N70 etc.

To got through the E70's feature list point-by-point would be a very lengthy, time-consuming, and ultimately pointless exercise. I will close this review with my opinion that overall the E70 is a very competent and well-made package, and will not disappoint the serious smartphone user unless a sophisticated camera or touch screen is required.

pjh 17/04/07