Nokia E61i: Review

The Nokia E61i smartphone is for individuals who want a large screen and alphabetic keypad, but still want a phone, not a PDA or a Web Tablet device. With a two-megapixel camera and features geared for email access, the Nokia E61i is a useful phone for anyone who needs a mobile device for browsing the Internet and for viewing photos, videos, or TV. Although the device is wider than your average phone, it is slim so it can easily slip into a shirt pocket or into a purse.

Key features:

Full alphabetic (QWERTY) keypad. Character sets for different languages are available as well.
Large 2.8 inch color screen in 320x240 (QVGA) resolution.
Wi-Fi connectivity for 802.11b and 802.11g wireless networks. WPA and WPA2 security.
Quad-band GSM 850, 900, 1800, and 1900 MHz network coverage and WCDMA 2100 MHz band for 3G UMTS networks.
POP3 and IMAP4 Internet email. Compatible with Exchange, Blackberry, Visto, Good, and Intellisync email systems.
Quickoffice (for viewing Microsoft Office documents), ZIP Manager, and Adobe Acrobat file viewers.
MMS photo messaging and Instant Messaging.
Advanced web browser that can show nearly any type of Internet page.
2 megapixel camera with video recording capability.
Music player that can play MP3 and AAC digital music. RealPlayer software for watching videos and streaming TV in 3GPP and MPEG4 formats.
Bluetooth and infrared wireless connectivity for close-range communication with other devices and PCs.
USB data cable for syncing information with PC.
Micro SD memory card is located under the battery cover, but you don't have to remove the battery for accessing the card. 60 MB of internal memory for applications and media storage.
This handheld device is powered by the Symbian OS operating system along with the S60 platform 3rd Edition 9.1a software. Java MIDP 2.0 applications can be downloaded and run in the device as well.
4-5 hours talk time on GSM, 2-5 hours on WCDMA. Standby time 8-17 days. The use of Wi-Fi connectivity considerably shortens the battery life from these manufacturer-specified times.
Weight: 150 g. Dimensions: 117 x 70 x 13.9 (/11.5) mm.

Smartphone design that features qwerty keypad and wide color screen was originally made popular by Blackberry and Palm Treo devices. People who need to type and read messages or browse Internet pages quickly adopted the products. The Motorola Q, Samsung Blackjack and T-Mobile Dash (HTC S620) are examples of recent products targeted at this audience who need e-mail access everywhere they go.

Two earlier models from Nokia, the E61 and E62, are almost identical to the E61i. The E62 is targeted at the U.S. market and has less features than the E61. The major differences between the Nokia E61 and the Nokia E61i are:

The E61i comes with a 2 megapixel camera, while the E61 doesn't have a camera at all.
The keypads in these two devices have a totally different feel and some keys have found a new location in the E61i keypad. The keys have a very nice feel in the E61i. They are not as slippery as in the E61. Although the keys are very close to one another, it is easier to hit the right key on the E61i. There's a new dedicated key for Contacts and the Media key (which we like a lot) has been placed among the control keys as well.
The front panel in the E61i is silver and the back panel is matte black. The whole E61 unit is silver-colored.
The Mini SD memory card in the E61 has been changed to physically smaller Micro SD card in the E61i.

Reader rating:

Peter Jensen 26.06.2007 06:47

Did you know that the website http://www.cell-phone-tracker.com/ copies your articles onto their website to profit from Google? Are they giving you any commission for the money they make on your work???

Stanley Capriles 22.11.2007 10:31

Can you explain to me how to get you tube working on my NOKIA E61i, I've tried but no luck. Thanks

Ari 23.11.2007 00:16

Open the Web browser and go to: http://m.youtube.com More links to video and other sites that you can view on your phone here: http://www.avecmobile.com/links

Mraza 15.04.2009 07:36

the problem I have is that when I try to read a message with my E61i, it shows a "General: System Error" messages and reboots. With the E61 it simply freezes. I cannot read any message, either sent or received, in the phone or memory card. However, when I insert my Finnish SIM card, I have no problems at all. Any idea of what could be the problem?

pete 26.05.2009 23:28

Mraza, i would reflash the phone with the latest software...