Planet Technology

It's been a while since mobile phones became an essential business tool and a huge number of devices are being specially designed for the purpose (not even mentioning the camera-free versions of some handsets). Nokia Eseries is almost a default name that comes to mind. Following a comprehensive review of Nokia E71, we are set to explore the other hot Eseries gadget. It's Nokia E66 with a priority appointment in our office. Refreshments served upon conclusion.

Nokia E66 official photos

Key features:

• Quad-band GSM support
• 3G with HSDPA 3.6Mbps
• 2.4" 16M-color display of QVGA resolution
• Shortcut keys mean business
• Symbian 9.2 OS, S60 UI with FP1 (topped with some FP2 goodies)
• Accelerometer sensor for screen auto-rotation
• 369 MHz ARM 11 CPU and 128 MB of SDRAM
• Wi-Fi
• Built-in GPS receiver, A-GPS
• 3 megapixel auto focus camera with LED flash
• 110 MB of internal memory, microSD expansion, ships with a 2GB card
• Comfortable keypad
• Compact body (62.6cc only)
• Stainless steel casing
• Standard 2.5mm audio jack
• Bluetooth v2.0 with A2DP
• microUSB v2.0
• FM radio
• Infrared port
• Great battery life
• Good retail package
• Nokia Maps comes with three months free turn-by-turn navigation license

Main disadvantages:

• Average camera performance
• Video recording maxes out at QVGA@15fps
• No camera geotagging
• Cheap-looking power key
• Office document editing not available
• No RDS in radio

We're obviously on a streak here, dealing with phones that are, above all, tools. All right, after a bit of blue collar comic relief with the Sonim XP1, we're back to the corporate floor with Eseries.

Nokia E66 lacks the full QWERTY keypad of its sibling- the E71 but still packs some serious business power. The great looks and the more than decent multimedia capabilities are also a welcome bonus. Those working in camera-restricted areas are probably the only ones to frown at the business slider but who knows - a camera-free version might be lurking out there.

Nokia E66 in our office

Screening the market for a worthy alternative of Nokia E66, we almost instantly stumble upon Samsung i550w. It has almost the same specs as the Nokia, comes with a larger screen and costs less. Now, all that doesn't make your choice any easier. Nokia E66 has much better build quality and looks so much hotter.

That said, Samsung seem to have a sub warming up to run against Nokia E66. The Symbian-based Samsung L870 is no lesser looker with that brushed steel hull, though quite trimmed down on specs.

The software goodies are also noteworthy: E66 has some extras that are normally only available to Feature pack 2 (and even some that are Eseries exclusive like the dual homescreen modes).

BlackBerry and their Pearl series are also trying to pressure Nokia E66 but at this stage they don't seem to have the ultimate challenger. It's either 3G or GPS, or some other important feature missing, to relegate RIM's devices to a lower league.

Finally, without the full QWERTY keypad of E71, Nokia E66 is exposed to quite some pressure within the Nokia's very own Nseries too. With the same OS and Feature Pack 2, the Nseries devices can cover almost all the business applications of E66 and be powerful business tools in their own right.

But let's not keep our Nokia E66 waiting. Next on our agenda is design and ergonomics.

Tags: Nokia