Design and Looks
Touchscreen phones are generically larger than normal which always compromises the ease of handling. With the Nokia 5530 XpressMusic however, easy one-handed operation is possible thanks to its light and compact form. The touchscreen display is noticeably smaller than those seen on other touchscreen phones but this does not translate into a lesser experience.
The touchscreen is slightly recessed into the front area where it sits. Even the call/menu keys that occupy the little space below the display are touch-sensitive. The back cover wobbles noticeably when using the phone. The front frame of the phone is made out of stainless steel. The phone sports a modest build at best. Just above the display is the touch-sensitive media key that perfectly complements the phone's media-playing image.
The touchscreen is a resistive one but finger-friendly nonetheless. The display is a bit of a downer coming from Nokia who make the best cell-phone displays in town; its small size coupled with poor legibility under direct sunlight is something Nokia should have taken care of. While in the menus, scrolling is made easier with kinetic scrolling that responds well to the touch. Texting and inputting is also provided with the virtual QWERTY pad that operates in both landscape and portrait forms.
Being a Nokia Music phone, it goes without saying that the music playing experience is excellent. Both the application and the sound quality are of the highest standards. The video player on the other hand plays only a limited number of formats. Fortunately there's an option in the Nokia PC Suite that lets you convert videos of almost any format into the resolution and video file type that your phone supports. The accelerometer lets you turn the screen around automatically- between portrait and landscape modes depending on the phone's spatial orientation.
The phone sports a 3.15 MP camera with autofocus and LED flash. The camera application sports extensive settings including ISO settings, automatic and manual white balance, exposure compensation, night mode and different colour effects. The camera is average when it comes to taking pictures but videos come out fine with the camera. Allowing for video recording with up to 30 frames per second, it outshines even certain mid-range camera phones. The LED flash can also e used as light for video in dark settings.
While many would crib about the lack of 3G connectivity, the phone is targeted at those markets where 3G is either too expensive or non-existent. In such a scenario, WiFi comes in handy, allowing users a rich browsing experience subject to the availability of wireless connectivity in the vicinity of the phone.
The browser deserves special attention, it packs in so much that it comes pretty close to the computer browsing experience yet it fails on many fronts. Some of the noteworthy features of the browser are: kinetic scrolling, five page-size options, username/password, web forms storing and auto-filling system, a built-in RSS reader, a download manager and a pop-up blocker, option to open multiple tabs and support for flash and flash video is also available for use. Where it fails dismally is in the navigation department- kinetic scrolling is not as smooth as you would expect and the tap feature is not concrete.
Finally, among missing applications is the Nokia Quickoffice and PDF viewer. This is however available for free download on Nokia Download Center. Then the few games aboard the phone are accelerometer based but can also be played using the touch feature. The 'odd' controls will require some getting used to though.
Barring the lack of GPS and 3G functionality, the phone delivers well on all promises it makes making it an excellent buy for its price.
Features
- 2.9” 16M colour TFT touchscreen
- Symbian Os over S60 5th edition UI
- ARM 11 434 MHz CPU, 128MB RAM memory
- 3.2 MP camera with LED flash and VGA video recording at 30fps
- Wi-Fi connectivity
- Standard 3.5mm audio jack
- Stereo speakers
- Accelerometer sensor for screen auto-rotate
- Virtual on-screen QWERTY keypad
- Superb audio quality
- Modestly priced
Accessories
- Nokia Stereo Headset WH-205 (available with phone)
- Nokia Stereo Headset WH-500
- Nokia Bluetooth Stereo Headset BH-504
- Nokia Bluetooth Stereo Headset BH-103
