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CNET editors' rating:
3.0 stars
Good
Detailed editors' rating - Average user rating: 3.5 stars out of 39 reviews
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Product summary
The good: Excellent battery life; supports instant messaging; solid personalization options; some world roaming.
The bad: Call quality could be better.
The bottom line: This lightweight mobile from Nokia has real teen appeal for an affordable price.
Specifications: Carrier: AT&T; Band / mode: GSM 850/1800/1900 (Tri-Band); Talk time: Up to 240 min; See full specs
CNET editors' review
- Reviewed on: 12/01/2003
The rubberized, backlit keypad buttons are small but manageable, and they're easy enough to view in darker environments. As for the 4,096-color display, it isn't exactly roomy, but it is vibrant. In standby mode, the four-way navigation button gives one-touch access to contacts, calendar, and text messaging. Nokia has included an icon-based menu system similar to those found on Siemens and Sony Ericsson phones.
On the downside, the navigation button also serves as the volume control, which means you have to take the phone away from your face to adjust the sound during a call. Another small gripe: We found that lifting the SIM card holder, which is located under the battery, can be tough if you don't have fairly long nails. The 3100 stores up to 300 contacts in shared (the SIM card and the phone's internal capacity) memory. You can add such details as e-mail, Web, and street addresses to your contact information. Since the phone is MMS ready, you can receive and attach images to contact names for picture caller ID as well as assign ring tones to different callers.
The phone also includes animated screensavers, 11 ring tones (plus vibrate), speed dial for up to nine contacts, conference calling for up to five participants, and a built-in speakerphone. Because Nokia is targeting younger users with this handset, it wisely included support for AIM and ICQ instant-messaging services in addition to the standard SMS text-messaging support. You also get three Java games--Beach Rally, Snake X2, and Bowling--and the ability to download more or to surf the wireless Web using AT&T's GPRS network.
Available accessories include an FM radio headset, which we tested with our handset. It didn't find many of the lower-strength stations in our area, and the audio quality of the stations it did receive was tinny and shrill. It flawlessly switched to phone mode during incoming calls, although callers had trouble hearing us through the microphone. We tested the triband GSM phone (850/1800/1900; note that this phone can also be used in some other countries) in the Chicago area. We experienced lots of background hiss during calls, and callers often had trouble hearing us, as well. This is unusual, considering we typically get stellar reception with AT&T Wireless handsets in our area. Additionally, the hands-free speakerphone is convenient, but the performance wasn't exactly awe-inspiring.
On the plus side, the phone's battery life is outstanding, as is often the case with Nokia mobiles. We reached nearly five hours of talk time; the company rates it between two and six hours, depending on network settings and the SIM card. We also reached 12 days of standby time, right in the middle of the 7-to-17-day rating.
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- Average user rating: 3.5 stars out of 39 reviews
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