Nokia 6210 Navigator

GPS handsets are catching the fancy of consumers due to convenience they offer when you get lost in middle of nowhere. Nokia has stepped up to the task and brought out a series of cellphones under the “Navigator” brand name. Nokia 6210 Navigator is the latest cell phone to join the bandwagon. Apart from GPA, Nokia 6210 has good specifications as mentioned below.

Nokia 6210 Navigator specifications :

• Dimensions : 103 x 49 x 14.9 mm
• Weight : 117 g
• Display : 2.4″ TFT display with 240 x 320 resolution
• Camera : 3.2 megapixel with autofocus
• GPS : Built-in GPS receiver
• Radio : Stereo FM Radio with RDS
• Card slot : MicroSD
• Connectivity : GPRS, HSCSD, 3G.
• Bluetooth : v2.0 with A2DP
• USB : v2.0 miniUSB
• OS : Symbian OS 9.3, Series 60 UI
• Approx. price : $400

Nokia 6210 Navigator is an upgrade to the Nokia 6110 Navigator which was released last year. Nokia 6110 Navigator is still quite popular among the people and it has a decent specifications and a great GPS navigation solution. Nokia 6210 Navigator has upgrades ranging from accelerometer to latest symbian OS.

The box contents do not lend any surprises with the standard accessories lined up inside the box. USB cable, DC charger, wired handsfree, manual, CD and a 1GB microSD card. An in-car charger should have been there in the box considering the nature of the device.

The design of the phone is much similar to its predecessor but it slimmer. The keys have also got a rejig but apart from that there is not much noticeable difference, although I preferred the overall looks of the Nokia 6110 navigator more. The phone is light weight and the sliding mechanism is sturdy and smooth.

You can find the video call camera at the top right used for making video calls over 3G networks. Just adjacent to it is the ambient light sensor. The D-pad is quite big and is flanked by soft keys on either side. You also get a dedicated key for launching the GPS navigation software which is in the form of a star.

The keypad has aptly sized keys which offer tactile feedback and a boon for SMS junkies. The phone has a 2.5 mm jack instead of a 3.5 mm one, leaving you to the mercy of the adapter. Right side has the volume rocker and the dedicated camera key. Left side which is usually bare has the mircoUSB and the card slot.

The display is a 2.4″ TFT with QVGA resolution. The display clarity is great and so is the visibility under sunlight. The auto-rotate sensor turns the screen to landscape mode automatically. The call quality of Nokia 6210 is crystal clear and no disturbance at all. The speakerphone is quite loud and you would not face any problem hearing the ringtone even in noisy environments.

The music player has become a standard on almost all Nokia Symbian 60 devices. It supports a wide variety of formats such as WMA, MP3, AAC, eAAC+ and also M3U playlists. Songs can be added directly via USB or using Nokia PC Suite and they reflect when you refresh the music library. You can sort songs by albums, artists, genre, composer, podcasts and playlists. With the A2DP profile, you can play songs wirelessly over a stereo bluetooth headset. The audio quality is good and comparable to what is offered in Nokia N series.

Real player is the default video player and works in both portrait and landscape mode. You are better off with installing a third party video player which supports more formats and offers better functionality. FM radio is also available in the form of Visual Radio. It also has RDS support and can automatically scan for channels. The interface is simple, clean and functional.

Nokia 6210 comes equipped with a 3.2 megapixel camera with autofocus. and LED flash. No lens protection leads to fingerprint smudges all over the lens. The image quality of the camera is great and comparable to Nokia N73. The images produced are well saturated, have low noise and good amount of detail. Geo-tagigng surprisingly isn’t available putting the inbuilt GPS functionality to shame. Video recording is possible at VGA resolution but the frame rate is limited to 15fps.

Web browsing on the Nokia 6210 is a pleasure due to the great inbuilt browser. Nokia browser has almost all the features that you desire and auto-rotation of the screen is the cherry on the cake. The web page fits perfectly both in portrait and landscape modes. A mini map of the web page is also generated which leads to quicker navigation around web pages. Search function also comes in-built into the browser allowing you to search for text, phone numbers, email addresses and VoIP address. Page zoom levels can also be adjusted but sadly the browser does not support full screen view mode.

Coming to the main features of this cell phone : GPS! The software included by Nokia to control the GPS is Nokia Maps 2.0 which is a surprise as the Route 66 application that came bundled with Nokia 6110 Navigator was brilliant. There is also an inbuilt compass which does come in handy sometimes. The dedicated GPS key illuminates as soon as you get a satellite lock. You have the option of loading maps on the go like Google Maps or download the whole map on your PC and then transfer it on to the mobile saving you the GPRS charges. Sadly auto rotation does not work in Nokia Maps 2.0 as there is no landscape mode to view the maps. The GPS receiver is sensitive and gets satellite lock even among tall buildings. In-car navigation provides turn-by-turn directions and visual guidance. There are four different modes to view the map : Hybrid, Satellite, Map, Map 3D. Points of interest are also mentioned on the maps, a great asset and are divided into categories neatly. Overall the GPS experience was great and it lived up to the expectation.

Pros :

• Good keypad
• Great display
• Loudspeaker volume high
• Music quality good
• Great camera
• Excellent GPS
• Amazing web browser

Cons :

• Small display
• No Wi-Fi connectivity
• No lens cover
• No geotagging
• VGA recording at 15fps

Final Thoughts

The Nokia 6210 Navigator is a good handset to invest in to put it straight. It has a great camera, good music quality, excellent GPS functionality and amazing web browser which will please a lot of people. Small display and no Wi-FI connectivity are its two major shortcomings. Overall if you are want great GPS functionality then this cell phone is a great investment.

My Rating: 3.75/5