I have owned Nokia Symbian smartphones since the 6682, and in the E-series, I have owned the E71 and E72. I loved both the E71 and E72 phones, and I had very high expectations for their successor. Many of my expectations were met, but the phone has several serious issues that prevented me from giving a higher rating.
Form Factor & Build 10/10
Nokia really did their homework when putting together this phone. Symbian Anna is a nice evolution for a hybrid hard key and touch interface. I was skeptical at first, but I'm now seamlessly using both.
The phone feels very solid, and it feels a little stronger in my hands than even the E71. It is certainly sturdier than the E72.
Battery Life 10/10
Battery life is fantastic. As with previous E-series phones, this phone was designed to go the distance.
The battery is proportionately large and makes up more than half the width of the phone. I think that it was a good move on Nokia's part to get the extra hours and is a definite advantage over most touch screen phones. As they were still able to keep the phone small, I would say it was worth putting in the larger battery.
Keyboard 6/10
The Good:
I am a hardware keyboard addict, and I loath the cell phone industry's move to all-touch phones.
In terms of feel, the E6 has another solid portrait layout keyboard from Nokia.
The Bad:
I can't believe they put the apostrophe as a function access on the `L.' I would much rather have a thinner spacebar if I could still have a functional apostrophe no question. Though not as important as the apostrophe, the double quote and parentheses were relegated to function accessed keys as well.
The `Ctrl' key now has its own, coveted bottom row position, but what's the point? The entire user guide only mentions it once, and it is supposed to help with copy and paste functionality. I didn't even remember that my E72 had this key (it was a secondary function to the `silent mode' shortcut something foolishly done away with in the E6).
The E6 has slightly raised keys, but Nokia got rid of the domed keys from the E72 which I preferred for typing speed.
The keyboard backlight has taken a step back from previous models. By default, the backlight won't turn on in seemingly random situations and never turns on when entering the lock code even in pitch black darkness. When I first drafted this review, I gave the keyboard a 3/10. After lots of digging and playing with settings, I found that the keyboard backlight is controlled by Menu>Settings>Phone>Display>Brightness. If you turn the brightness setting above 50%, the keyboard and screen backlights work 10x better, and the keyboard backlight is on when typing the lock code!
Screen 9/10
The screen is beautifully detailed, the color appears accurate, and the black levels are very good.
The touch interface is remarkably good. I have found it to be one of the more accurate touch screens I have used, and multitouch gestures work consistently.
I had to mark it down slightly because the default backlight setting is much too dim and gets even dimmer when the sensor deems it appropriate. The screen is beautiful when the backlight is well-illuminated, but it's hard to read when it's often too dim at the default setting.
I immediately deactivated the touchscreen vibrations as they felt cheap and were noisy.
Notifications 5/10
I really miss the `breathing light' from the previous two phones. This made the phone brilliantly easy to watch for the status of emails, sms, and calls even when the phone had to be completely silent during a meeting. There is a menu setting to enable the breathing light (off by default), but it seems to have respiratory problems as it is dim and hard to view off-axis.
I have not had any problems with the vibration as reported by other users. Symbian tailors vibrations to match audio tones even when the tones are turned off, and they might just need to make a tweak to get it working properly again.
The charging light is annoying, bright, and cannot be turned off in the settings menus. I have to cover my phone when I place it on my nightstand.
Email notifications are abysmal More on this later.
Sensors 8/10
GPS: Seems to work well as in previous models and is able to quickly lock on a signal.
Electronic Compass: This is a pretty slick new feature, but it seems to be a little off. I have retried the built-in calibration every way I can think, and it still seems to be about 10degrees off. It also doesn't notice if I turn the phone 180degrees.
Accelerometer: I haven't found many practical uses for this feature on the Symbian Anna phone, and I quickly disabled the feature to deny calls or turn off my alarm by `turning' the phone. This seems like a recipe for missing calls and oversleeping, and I'm surprised it is enabled by default without warning the user.
Camera 6/10
I would rather have fewer megapixels in exchange for better picture quality, and unfortunately Nokia decided to pack an unwieldy number of pixels (8MP) in the little E6. To be honest, a close inspection of the pictures makes them appear as if they have been upconverted, but this could simply be a result of trying to rescue an image from a sensor with such tiny pixels. The camera would be far better with half the megapixels, the E72's autofocus lens, and newer low-noise sensor technology rather than an 8MP pixel density on such a tiny chip.
The autofocus camera from previous models had far superior contrast and sharpness compared to this "endless depth of field" camera. This is important to me as I like to be able to use my cell as a document camera when traveling, something EDoF cameras are notoriously poor at. Some reviewers have reported better results with this camera when shooting portraits and landscapes, but I rarely take a photo of something further than an arm's length away.
Email 1/10 => Abysmal (I would give the E72's email an 8.5/10)
Though the interface is similar to previous models, the email on the E6 has taken a huge plunge. As a reference point, I have pushed the capabilities of Nokia email for several years using four or five different accounts of various types at any given time. Nokia sold their push email company due to financial problems, and they have already removed true push capabilities from the E6.
This causes a multitude of problems:
Emails take so long to arrive that carrying on an email conversation is impractical. I have conducted tests on Exchange, Gmail, and imap accounts, and the fastest arrival time was 4 minutes, the longest was 13 minutes, and the average was about 8 minutes. Compared to the E72's nearly instant email around the clock, this is a huge disappointment. It doesn't sound like long on paper, but it's a huge pain in actual use.
After buying a new phone or performing a hard reset, the phone will no longer download all settings from Nokia's secure servers. This made setting this phone up frustrating.
Unlike the quick configuration of the E72 and E71 email clients that utilized Nokia's push service, setting up all my accounts has been a nightmare on the E6. Though it quickly accepted the settings of one imap account, it still refuses to accept another. When I got into the settings, it had reset the incoming server to the smtp server (a result of sloppy coding), and it still won't work after reconfiguring all the settings. I had no trouble configuring this account on my E72.
As on previous models, only one Exchange account is allowed. This is quite frustrating for anyone who has more than one, and the workarounds (the aforementioned imap account) are ineffective and very limited.
SMS 9.5/10 (I would have ranked the system in the E71 or E72 a 3/10)
The sms interface is much improved over any Nokia device I have previously used.
The threading not only replaces free-isms which I had used previously but works even better with a cleaner interface.
I have to mark it down a half point as there are aspects of the interface that still need a little tweaking. While it has improved a great deal, the user experience design still has a little ways to go to streamline message replying, forwarding, and flow between senders, time, and the homescreen.
Browsing and Tethering 9/10 (8/10 for Browsing and 10/10 for Tethering
Symbian phones have never had great browsers, but I have always found them functional. Like previous models, the browser is a little outdated and weak, but it works for 95% of the internet. I admit that this is very frustrating in the 5% of time that demand more, but I haven't ever worried much about it as I always have a laptop to tether nearby.
The browser on the E6 is an improvement over previous models, and touch speeds up browsing.
I have to lower the rating because there are several features that are poorly designed Several features that wouldn't make any sense to a user who hadn't previously used the keyboard only version. For example, RSS feeds can only be removed using the D-pad and backspace key, something I found immensely frustrating using touch until I remembered the keyboard way to do it.
For the record, I don't use Opera because I don't like my data tunneling through 3rd party servers just a personal preference due to privacy management.
Tethering on this phone is top notch. Assuming you have a laptop nearby, it makes up for many of the browsing shortcomings.
Tethering speeds are much higher than speeds on the built in browser. I don't know why the built in browser is slow, but the tethering speeds are nice and fast!
A note on JoikuSpot Premium: I have been a paid user of JoikuSpot Premium for several years, and I was excited to see Nokia include this package in the default lineup. This application and off-the-grid tethering are one of the E6's greatest selling points. Nokia was very wise to put this on the E6, and secure WEP tethering is really slick on the E6.
Included Software 9/10
Disclaimer: I'm no app junky, and as a business user, I don't care about games.
Maps: A surprisingly robust, well written, functional application. This is definitely one of the selling points of Nokia Ovi phones that include unlimited, free navigation using Ovi Maps. It has timely information for route planning, it nicely integrates satellite and map views, and it has a great interface. With touch, I find this to be a 10/10 application. That being said, I still use Google maps for finding local businesses.
Adobe Reader & Quickoffice: Both solid programs that come in handy from time to time. 10/10
Social: This isn't a feature I have used or played with. I did try to open it briefly while writing this review, and it wouldn't die when I pressed exit. I had to turn the phone off and on to exit. meh/10
Ovi Store: The appstore is awful. If Nokia would just filter out the junk, it would be far better, but unfortunately most of the store is junk. I'm still offering a 9/10 for the software as I don't really need much more out of a cell phone than is included by default. I occasionally see something cool I wish I had (like the night sky augmented reality programs on iOS and Android), but I don't think about this often.
Interface 4/10
Home Screen: This is an unfortunate step back from previous models. To be honest, I preferred the E72 with a single homescreen to the 3 I have configured on the E6 due to the E72's responsiveness. The E6 homescreens take several seconds to update when I switch between them, and this makes flipping between them impractical. You can actually see the email application marking emails read before loading new emails as you wait to see if anything new has arrived. If you flip at a normal pace, you can flip past the screen before it has even loaded new emails.
Widgets: The E6 has added additional support for Widgets, but they aren't particularly effective. To test their functionality, I downloaded several from the Ovi store. The Accuweather takes 4 or 5 seconds to update once you flip to its homescreen (15 seconds after restarting the phone sometimes), and newsfeeds have to be manually updated. While this sounds trivial, this is something that could be easily done in the background. Complaining about 5 seconds sounds silly, but it's very frustrating to spend 15 seconds to check my three homescreens for email, the outside temperature, and my calendar.
Multimedia 10/10
Radio: I have never used the FM radio on any Symbian phone I have owned.
Music Player: A surprisingly good interface, and the 8GB of built-in storage + microSD allow for carrying a nice music collection. As an mp3 player, I'm surprisingly pleased and sound quality seems very good.
Video Player: I think video playback looks really good! The high resolution screen really shines with video playback, and I haven't noticed any playback hiccups. However, I should mention that I'm not one to watch anything longer than a few minutes on my phone.
Streaming Media Nada
The lack of steaming multimedia options isn't Nokia's fault entirely, but it's something worth considering when buying a new phone.
Streaming Netflix: This is becoming a pretty standard feature on other platforms, and it's noticeably absent when the Netflix app only allows you to modify your queue.
Streaming Music: Spotify is supposed to offer some support for Symbian (haven't tried it myself), but all of the other major players including Pandora do not.
Security 9/10
I'm pretty zealous about protecting my laptop and cell phone from data theft even though it's never been a problem for me. When I consider how much of my life and identity is accessible via my mobile devices and email, it makes this an important enterprise class feature.
The E6's support for encrypting the phone, built-in mass storage, and microSD memory is commendable and really stands out. It doesn't take long to activate, and I assume it's pretty effective.
I marked down my security rating because the lock out code is so darn hard to access in the dark with the default backlight setting (you can't see the keyboard at all). This is the third time I am marking off points because the default backlight setting is too dim to see the screen or keyboard backlight.
Bottom Line 6.97/10 => 3/5 (SEE END OF REVIEW FOR UPDATED 2/5)
I loved this phone when I first got it, but aspects have becoming disappointing with more use. In fact, I loved this phone so much in the first few days that I wanted to order another to replace my wife's E63! There were a few little things that were annoying at first, but I was sure they would work themselves out over time. Unfortunately, some of those irritations have become larger problems. The slow interface and asinine email service are by far the worst of any Nokia E-series device I have owned, and it's feeling like the E-series designers jumped ship with the Microsoft takeover looming.
I am giving a 3/5 star rating based on increasing the backlight setting a great deal, but I would have given a 2/5 had this option not been available considering this effects so many aspects of the interface and usability. Overall, my feelings on this phone fluctuate between 2 stars (don't recommend) and 4 stars (recommend with caution), an ambiguity I don't normally feel. On one hand I love the touch/hardware hybrid, new sms interface, security features, tethering, battery life, and media player. On the other hand, I hate the email client, homescreens, notifications, widgets, streaming media, and camera. Though I have stood by the Nokia Symbian platform for years and really wanted to love this phone, I have begun to reconsider my loyalties after owning the underwhelming E6.
UPDATES:
To address concerns of other reviewers concerning the vibrate mode, I put my phone in a custom 'vibrate only' profile. Though I agree that the vibrate is not particularly strong, I have found it to still be reliable. A weak vibrate has pros and cons it's quieter, but it's also easy to miss. Remember that sometimes Symbian requires you to keep an audio ring that's turned all the way down for vibrate to work properly.
I have to tone back my glowing review of the new SMS interface. For each contact, only the last 12 messages are stored in the conversation queue (which translates to only 6 messages each). When "Show Older Messages" is selected, the most recent messages disappear, and dumping messages from new to old occurs automatically even when you're trying to read them. I would expect much better functionality from a phone in this class. I also believe that the SMS interface requires too many presses to navigate from a user interface perspective.
I have noticed that the touch screen doesn't work on hot, humid days. I don't know how this compares to other phones, and I don't understand this defect very well. I have found this problem to be most apparent after removing the phone from my face on humid days outdoors. The touch screen is inaccessible until the phone has sat in air conditioning for a few minutes.
RETURNED:
Deciding whether to keep or return a cell phone is a very personal decision, and it's not one that I can make for anyone else. Based on my demands for an enterprise class phone, the Nokia E6 couldn't hold its own. The irritations became problems, and the problems became deal-breakers. I've ultimately decided that the means don't justify the ends. The E6 fell short of my expectations after owning previous Nokia enterprise phones, but I don't know that I would have been happier if I hadn't relied on the E71 and E72 for several years. To be honest, I think I would have liked the phone even less not knowing the legacy commands, menus, and settings. Last night I ordered a "like new," store returned E72 to replace my E6, and I'm looking forward to sliding it in my pocket.
UPDATED NOTE ON CALL QUALITY:
I have found the call quality of this phone to quickly deteriorate with use. After a month of use, calls are often either disconnected or the other caller could hear me while they sounded as if they were at the end of a long tunnel. Other phones using the same service had no trouble calling from the same location while I was losing calls or had hopeless call quality. The call quality was solid when I first wrote the above review, but use during the final two weeks of my return period showed rapid loss of signal quality.
DUE TO THIS SERIOUS ISSUE, I am lowering my rating of the phone to a 2/5.
I've been on the smartphone band wagon from the beginning. I have used devices from every platform, and I have a high bar for satisfaction. The Nokia E6 does not completely satisfy me, but it does what I need and does it well.
I really became tired of toys posing as phones. How many of you are sick of smart phones which fail the basic premise of being a phone? I know I am and that's what brought me back to Nokia. Simply put, Nokia makes the best phones.
There's a myriad of criticisms I could throw at Nokia, more specifically Symbian. But despite it's short comings, it still manages to offer a compelling device in the E6. Any criticisms you read about the E6's email handling are absolutely true. It's rubbish. However, I have found ProfiMail which brings the power of desktop email clients to the mobile platform better than anything else. Its UI is questionable, but it's an excellent email client. I've never seen a client that handles IMAP boxes this well with incredibly fast and accurate searching. So if you're considering the E6 just go ahead and factor in the $24.99 to include ProfiMail in the price.
Beyond that, all I have to say is VoIP. The E6 is a powerful SIP/VoIP device. This along with it's penta-band antennae/tuner make this an invaluable tool for the globe trotters out there. It's kinda painful to set up, but once you do you can have nearly free VoIP international calling in your hands.
The other "amazing" aspect of this device is the battery life. With moderate use I need to charge my phone once every 3 days. Now you can carelessly install/configure software to suck your battery dry, but if you're conservative with the configuration you can have quick access to data intense applications and "amazing" battery life. I say "amazing" because the current standard for smartphones these days seems to be around 12 hours of moderate usage.
Additionally, the bluetooth stack on this device is so much more advanced than anything out there. It's Bluetooth 3.0 and supports these profiles: A2DP, AVRCP, BIP, DUN, FTP, GAP, GAVDP, GOEP, HFP, HSP, OPP, PBAP, SAP, SDP, SPP. It's the only phone I've had that I could get to work with AcuraLink (Acura's in car messaging system). I know some others have mentioned issues with Bluetooth on this device, but my experience has been flawless.
I have had problems with the E6, but they are on par with problems I've had with every single smartphone I've ever used (more than 30 different devices). The software is not perfect. It will occasionally lock up. You will have to reboot the device when this happens. I recommend being judicious with 3rd party software as this seems to be the root of most of those type of woes.
Overall I'm considering purchasing a backup E6 to have when this device is lost/damaged/worn out. That's how much I'm appreciating this phone. I would also like to hedge my bets on Nokia's brain dead corporate direction in moving to the Windows mobile platform (Did the CEO even look at the amazing N9 before canning it?). If you keep your expectations reasonable and really want a smartphone that excels at being a phone, then you really can't go wrong with the E6.
Buy Nokia E6 Unlocked GSM Phone with Touchscreen, QWERTY Keyboard, Easy E-mail Setup, GPS Navigation, an Now
So I basically buy a phone a month. Androids, lg's, samsungs, every nokia (except the n8 and n9 no keyboards) and I keep praying that one will be the one. This e6 is it so far, even with the most serious Nokia problem ever.
why? because so many other things have been fixed but not all.
I will try to list all issues with e6 especially as compared to older e72, e63, n97, n97mini, e7, astound (c7)
This e6 does have Anna from factory. Only 8gb of internal mem. SDhc slot. Ultra fast boot up, screen shows main screen in about 10 seconds, tho it does continue to load more in background such as bluetooth and wireless (wifi) connection. Very handy since you will experience random reboots (biggest problem ever! with any nokia!) Reboots happen most often when using the gps and phone is not mounted in a shockproof mount!
Dont mistake the shockproof mount as the quality of the phone is superb as usual for nokia. This phone is by far the most useful phone ever made; especially from nokia.
Main reasons this phone is the most useful:
Speed menus are almost instant!
Change screens -instant!
Email eyecandy is finally tolerable!
menu key is instant!
Stupid bug if you don't properly complete the factory setup questions, gives error everytime you start it complaining it cant find setup wizard which just dissappears quickly.
Best parts of this phone:
FAST
Not windows, not ios, not android!
Has almost all the google software as separate apps like maps and email!! Awesome.
independent browser! Works awesome! (minus the pinch to zoom, which I hate. The volume controls do not operate the zoom-lame.)
More space to hold phone at bottom beneath keyboard!
directional nav key!
No optical thumb dumb thingy as 'new' phones use so no headaches in useability!
Full capacitive touch screen which adds ultimate in efficient and speedy usability!
nearly all touch buttons are intelligently sized and positioned!
Full 3.5g speeds! (10mbs approx!)
Tmobile full support, with free internet programability! No high speed data 'tax' (ie blackberry plan etc)
Yes, I have it on my phoneweb plan for $10!
Awesome nokia browser
very very good email program including full mail for exchange imap support (but only one mail for exchange acct : with speed keys for navigation!
Intelligent contact manager AND calendar fast very efficient and most useful as compared to any 'new' smartphone!
Very intelligent navigation when done in one app such as looking at a calendar event by pressing calendar key inside of contacts, it will take you back to where you were in the contact! AWESOME
very bright dual leds for flash and flashlight.
Full keyboard, but space bar removes some needed keys as it is too wide! E72 keyboard was much better.
Main problems with this phone:
Random reboots when in motion outside of fixed location when driving, biking etc) mainly when using gps/music, but does happen with nothing other than mail for exchange / email on homescreens
CAMERA SUCKS for important pics! IT is fast, but there is NO Auto Focus! the N97 cameras kill this P.o.s.
tight camera lock slide, grinds plastic after several days of constant use.
phone auto locks after phone call is disconnected even if you are in the middle of typing a calendar event/contact etc (retarded)
Phone still beeps annoyingly when other end of call hangs up before you do, I have been told over and over again that this is because of tmobile, um but this is an unlocked phone right ? so where is the setting??? Nokia? Do you ever listen??? No. Cause you are so awesome with your $6 stock price right?
Go Stephan Elop! (nokia ceo)
Bottom line:
Best Business phone EVER. So incredibly sad that I have to plan on it rebooting while driving. Good thing it reboots in 10 seconds, almost fully in 15 seconds! (almost like they knew it has to reboot fast) haha
Read Best Reviews of Nokia E6 Unlocked GSM Phone with Touchscreen, QWERTY Keyboard, Easy E-mail Setup, GPS Navigation, an Here
I recently bought the NOKIA E6 and have to say that its all I wanted from a combination touchscreen and qwerty. The Symbian Anna OS is very responsive and precise, the browser is superb and easy to input URL address, save bookmarks and scroll between open pages. It supports one exchange account and multiple gmail and other services emails, push email is easily enabled in the settings for both exchange and gmail accounts. The keyboard is superb, better than E71, as the buttons are somewhat wider and tactile perception is superb. 8 MP camera pics are great and easy to share to with social networks and by email. Overall I am highly satisfied with this touchscreen qwerty combo in the E71 form.
Want Nokia E6 Unlocked GSM Phone with Touchscreen, QWERTY Keyboard, Easy E-mail Setup, GPS Navigation, an Discount?
After being a user of Nokia E71, E52 and E72, i was looking for a replacement of my Nokia E72.
This is a good option, since i tested a Motorola Milestone with Android to see if Milestone 2 could be a winner. And it didn't seduce me.
So, i bought this Nokia E6, installed the Lotus Traveler PushMail client, Nokia own client with HTML support, and went to the road. :)
Excellent battery life!
Excellent quality of audio over bluetooth (i have an A2DP car stereo).
Awesome screen quality. Resolution could be challenging at first, but it's great with very good legibility.
The same excellent quality of audio in phone calls, and great signal reception.
The only not so good point is the notification light... It's VERY weak... But, with Remind Me for Symbian i solved the problem.
Regards
Mac
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