My Nokia 6233 review

For those faithful to the brand of Nokia, the older models of 6230 and (subsequently) 6230i would perhaps ring in your memories as one of the best selling Nokias around at the time. When the 6230 was first released, many were awed by the sheer size and fully packed features it offered. It was the ultimate business phone. Until... that is, their owners spent more time with it. Issues with varying memory capacities, poor memory card support, mediocre camera quality and most of all, the nagging center Navi-pad became increasingly hard to ignore.

So what was Nokia’s solution? They upgraded and released a “newer” model, and plonked an “i” at the back. The 6230i was exactly what the 6230 should have been in the first place. It had a better screen resolution, a better camera (1.3 megapixels back then was revolutionary), better memory card support and best of all, the center Navi-pad which (then) featured a “mini-button” to satisfy even the biggest of thumbs! The 6230i sold like hotcakes needless to say, and quickly became a very familiar sight in Brunei. It was an all rounder. To this day, there are still owners of 6230i out there, unwilling to just let go.

Then, in 2Q of 2006, Nokia pulls another hat out of the bag, JUST when you thought they couldn’t possibly improve anymore on the 6230i (or JUST when you were starting to get bored, like me), the Nokia 6233 was launched! The best business phone around? A better improvement from 6230i? I certainly think so. Read on….

1. Physical Aspects / Build quality

• Available in either Black and Silver grey, the 6233 has a plastic body with a metallic shiny chrome frame and a matt surface finishing on the back. But holding it in my hands, it feels solid and classy. A nice touch by Nokia.
• The keypad layout is well designed and spaced out evenly, which is good news for those with big hands.
• The location of the camera sits towards the center at the back, with the camera button at the standard location (towards the center). One look at the 6233 and you would half expect it to be a camera. But then again, I suppose most phones these days now look like cameras anyway.
• The volume keys are on the top right hand side of the phone, which in my opinion, is ideal especially when you would like to increase / decrease the call volume during a call. Simple, just use your thumb!
• The memory card slot, located on the bottom left hand side of the phone seems almost invisible, being so small and camouflaged into the body. Here, you will need to use your fingernails to pry out the cover before being able to insert/eject the 64mb micro-SD that is included in the sales package. This could be a problem for some.
  

2. Display / User Interface

• Sporting a beautiful TFT display with QVGA (240x320 pixel) resolution, the 6233 looks absolutely gorgeous. Coupled with the last generation of Series 40 platform, I was impressed with the display. I couldn’t stop fiddling around with the menu due to this. You can also mess about with the usual customizable features like wallpapers and themes too, which I found myself doing quite regularly. Also, being a S40 platform, you can view your menu in either grid or list view, depending on your taste. Please note however, it’s exactly the same S40 platform you’d see in the Nokia 6280, 6270 and 6131. So if you're an owner of one of these models, forget about upgrading.
• The User Interface is typical Nokia. If you’re an existing or even a 1^st time Nokia user, you would not get confused with the interface at all. Nokia is arguably one of the best when it comes to user friendliness. You could pretty much start using the phone without reading the manuals at all. Of course, you could argue, at the same time, being so typical Nokia, it’s just plain boring. Overall though, no complaints here.
  

3. Calls / Messaging

In Brunei, these are perhaps the most used and most important factors in ANY mobile that people look for in this country. Particularly the messaging part. No one talks these days!

• The 6233 messaging features available are the standard SMS, MMS, email and Push to Talk. There are also features called Flash message (where are messages which simply show on the screen of the recipient, not appearing in the inbox at all) and Audio Message (self explanatory). As Push to Talk is not a service provided by Brunei at all, I will not bother expanding on this. SMS-ing, on the other hand, feels very comfortable with the 6233, with the feedback being just right and all buttons within reach for the average one-handed Bruneian sms fanatic. In a word, its EXCELLENT.
• Call quality on the 6233 is nothing short of expected. It’s a Nokia remember? Reception should not be a problem anywhere in Brunei. I had no problems with phonecalls either. Conversations between both parties was satisfactory (and loud!). Also, the (now) popular standard feature of loud speakers is by far, one of the best. People around me could hear my whole conversation when I switched on the loud speaker.
  

4. Multimedia / Camera performance and quality

• The Music Player on the 6233 does what its meant to do, play midis, mp3’s and wav files. The layout is simple and straightforward. The 6233 is one of the 1^st Nokia models sporting “stereo speakers”. Sound quality is definitely louder and clearer than any model before, or after, dare I say. You would not have a problem hearing your ringtones and calls coming in at all. Although. there were a few songs which I tried out, which did seem rather sharp to the ears though, but this could be the mp3 itself. But if you use the included earphones on the other hand, the quality is better, with possibilities to switch the equalizer modes according to your taste. Overall though, it is good enough. Plus, you can have all your songs saved in the micro-SD.
• Camera wise, photos taken (see provided shots; one taken in the daytime, and the other, at night in a bright room) are average. Capable of taking shots with a maximum resolution of 1600 x 1200 pixels, I would also not solely rely on the 6233 for my printed photos. Camera response is adequate, and you are able to use either the dedicated camera button on the side, or the 5 way navi-pad to snap away. But with the presence of auto-focus camera phone models like the older siblings, n73, n93 or n93i’s or Sony Ericsson’s Cybershot series phones, the 6233 simply fails in comparison. I mean, you can still take decent shots, but just for memory purposes I suppose. Otherwise, use a digital camera.

5. Other features - PIM-based features, Battery life, Connectivity

• Another current feature that is evident in all Nokias now too, is the Active Standby screen. As mentioned before, with the beautiful screen resolution, you will be able to select which applications you want to be displayed on your standby screen. This ties up with the Calendar feature very well. Being quite a busy person at times, I’ve often found that the Nokia PIM capabilities are amongst the most reliable compared to other brands. Simple and easy enough to set your meetings, calls, birthdays, memos and reminders, you will never miss another appointment. But as I said, Nokia excels in this feature. (Which is still lacking with Sony Ericsson, sadly)
• Battery life on the 6233 is good, but not great. Being a hardcore SMS user myself, and coupled with the occasional calls throughout the day, I find myself having to charge the 6233 at the end of the night, which shows that roughly 25% is left. This could be an issue.
• Connectivity wise, with Bluetooth, Infrared, Packet data, data transfer AND USB data cable capabilities available, you would be hard pressed to find any better phone out there to get yourself connected with! My testing with the Bluetooth feature was satisfactory, with transferring of mp3’s, wallpapers and photos going through quite easily. GPRS with the built in browser was also reasonably fast (better than the previous 6230i at least!) but then seriously, who uses these tiny mobile screens to surf anyway?

6. Problems / Issues

• Battery life is definitely an issue for me. It barely lasted 2 days with a heavy user like me.
• Being a 3G phone, where’s the front camera?
• The 2mega pixel camera could be better improved. No auto focus or flash? Disappointing.

7. d3xlabs recommendations

Having used the 6233 for a few days, I really grew to like the solid performer, despite the few nit-picking problems I had with it. But overall though, it is without a doubt, a much better model than the 6230 and 6230i before it. It exudes class, it feels solid and for its price (of roughly BND350-00), you would not be able to find another mobile this feature-packed with other similar priced sets. The Nokia 6233 is definitely ideal for those who want a phone that does a little bit of everything. It’s an all rounder in my books.

So would I recommend it? Yes.