We’re reminded about the saying ‘don’t judge a book by its cover’, as we pull out the Nokia E52 for a review. Yet books with the most attractive covers seem irresistible. Most often than not, first impressions last till the end and that’s the notion we got of the Nokia E52. As we pulled it out of its all blue packaging, the first thing that caught our eye was a clutter-free and spaced out look. QWERTY devices are the flavor of the year, however here we have a device that flaunts a debonair alpha-numeric keypad. With a metallic body and a plastic back flap, the Nokia E52 phone has a sleek and unpretentious appearance. The back flap was textured with minute engravings enhancing the handset’s grip. Its slim chassis allows you to simply slip it into a pocket or a slender purse.
The screen is large measuring up to a decent 2.4”, and covers around half of the phone’s front. Below the display is the keypad featuring two soft keys for the menu and contacts with a four way navigation pad placed in the center. Subsequently there are two keys featuring shortcuts for home, calendar, messaging and the backspace key followed by two more for receiving or rejecting calls. All four soft keys and the navigation pad have a different texture making them easier to grasp. The right panel is fitted with metallic buttons to increase or decrease the volume or to use the voice activate function. These three are clubbed together while the camera shortcut key is placed a little lower. The top edge of the phone is embedded with a metallic power key and a 3.5mm jack. The USB port is housed on the left side, whereas the bottom edge is left untouched.
Simplicity is what many professionals look forward to as it helps them organize their time and lives better. As we switched on the phone, customizable settings popped up prompting us to set them according to our needs. The phone operates on Nokia’s S60 3rd Edition platform, which has been tweaked a bit to suit this phone. On using this device we realized that a slight nudge on the left section of the D-pad opened up a shortcut option for important functions. While scanning through Contacts, tasks such as send message, voice call, and send audio msg were also displayed. The same nudge on the D-pad when using Gmail opened up functions like Forward, Reply, Delete and more. This renders easy access to frequently used functions, thus saving up on time.
Subsequently, we used the Nokia E52 handset to chat and noticed the IM client did not waste any time to download, install and run. Enlisting Messenger, Ovi, Yahoo messenger and Google Talk in the client, we decided to use Google Talk due to its ability to change status and access other functions. Users who depend on their handsets to access internet should be quite satisfied with the browsing experience this device proffers. Keypad shortcuts ensure quick access to several functions useful for browsing. Each number has been assigned a special task like opening up a new web page, sifting through bookmarks, changing settings, and zooming in or shifting to a full screen mode for better view.
The device manages to load pages faster utilizing a 600MHz processor. Wi-Fi connectivity and browser support seemed pretty good with just one flaw; the screen bizarrely blinked a few times while moving from one webpage to another. The browsing experience was further enhanced with the crisp clarity and brightness emitting from the screen. The QVGA display offers a high resolution of 320 x 240p, while the homescreen’s active display can be personalized with often used functions. On top of the screen were six personalized shortcuts in a strip which could also be customized according to our requirements. Additionally, it features the switch mode which is found in several Nokia business phones and helps users shift from their business homescreen to their personal ones.
Professionals who’ve always looked for a device which could manage and alert them when they received mails needn’t search any further as the E52 does just that. When we accessed our Gmail account, sending and composing messages was simple and quick. Moreover, we could continue doing other things as the messages were lined up to be deployed. The phone added a respectable calendar and messaging support, while calendar and contacts could be synced with the email. For those who are comfortable with an alpha numeric keypad, entering web addresses should be easy.
The Nokia E52 offers an ideal blend of professional and personal features proffering excellent entertainment and media traits. It sports a fixed-focus 3.2MP camera equipped with some of the usual features. One thing that got us peturbed was the disability to use the central key to capture images and use of the dedicated camera knob instead to snap images to achieve the same. Coupled with the regular scene modes are a panorama mode, a flash mode, a self-timer and a sequence mode. It offers direct access to the photo gallery from the camera interface, which saves time. The video light could be switched on or off during recording while the videos could even be played in the in-built Real Player. Those who enjoy tweaking videos can alter the white balance or the color tone to get better quality.
We then moved onto the music player which was excellent in terms of audio quality and sorting files. On plugging headphones or a stereo Bluetooth headset using Bluetooth A2DP, music resounded with good and clear acoustics. Music files could also be located with voice commands. The Ovi Store is loaded with tracks which could help increase your playlist. Playing songs directly from the Store could prove to be a little erratic, so downloading them onto the handset would be quicker. For business purposes, this device could be quite useful as the Office feature in the main menu was quite efficient. It is easier to create workbooks, documents, or presentations with this handset as it offers a myriad of customization options. The phone features 60MB of onboard memory and comes with a 2GB card.
The phone settings of the handset have been replaced by the Control Panel, proffering a desktop-like feel. It features applications like Voice Function, Ovi Files, GPS, Traveler, PTT, Messenger and Home Media for simple synchronization between the home PC or the server. The Applications section houses games like Solitaire and Block Cascade. Travel buffs might find the World Traveler app useful as it is loaded with Weather, Currencies, Flight services, a world clock, Maps, a globe indicating various locations and travel plan which is coming soon. GPS functions well and is simple to operate with landmarks, maps and roads.
On moderate usage, the battery lasted for a good three days, while Nokia claims of 8 hours talktime. The blue box encased a 3.5mm headphone, a charger, a microUSB cable, a warranty card, a microUSB charger and user guide. Additionally, it carried a charging adapter that was compatible with both small and large pin chargers. The Ovi manual directs you through the Store and brings along a 25 free songs Ovi Music Voucher. Furthermore, Nokia’s Holder Easy Mount HH-20 and CR-114/115 was also present in the coffer.
Pros:
The charging adapter with varying pins was quite useful.
The keypad is fairly spaced out which makes it easier and faster to text.
The web navigation is very efficient and quick to use.
Cons:
By default, the photographs open in landscape mode which needs to be rotated into portrait.
Nokia could have used a better camera since even the video quality was not so good. Moreover, the device took quite some time transiting from camera to the homescreen.
The E52 might be dressed up as a mediocre candybar device but it completely stuns you with what it has to offer. It does bear some resemblance to the E55, but the keypads set them apart. As a business phone this device is well furnished with advanced office support, email capabilities and an efficient browser. Well, our initial notion of this phone stuck with us till the end. The de-cluttered facet of each key function only re-emphasized what its first look proffered. Thus, we rate it a good 8 out of 10.
Retailing at Rs 13,809 with taxes, the Nokia E52 seemed to be a little overpriced.