TeddyK
on
You wouldn’t necessarily know this right off the bat when you hold the phone for the first time. It’s actually tastefully designed, thanks to a rubberized back, chrome trim and bright screen. This is a well-built phone, no question, but as the old cliché goes, never judge a book by its cover.
The specs tell the story of a budget phone that offers some useful features. The processor sputters along at 800MHz. There’s 256MB of RAM, 8GB of internal storage, a 3.7-inch (800 x 480) display, 5-megapixel camera and 3G data (limited to just 7.2Mbps download speeds). At first glance, this gives you the impression that you’re using a phone with specs from four or five years ago, but that’s not really the point, it seems. This isn’t a device aimed at consumers with deeper pockets, and certainly not the tech-savvy variety, either.
It’s important to articulate that before going into detail because it may help you measure your expectations. The 8GB of internal storage is all you’ll get here, so if you’re thinking of expanding that via a microSD card slot, think again. Keep in mind that 8GB is what’s on paper, since all the pre-loaded apps on the device take up almost 2GB themselves. So, you would only get about 6.2GB of storage to work with. Definitely not a lot for the media-hungry user, but could be fine for someone who just wants a decent phone for music, and apps to play around with.
Except when a phone comes this cheap, there are trade-offs to consider, even with existing features. The LCD screen is nice, but is clearly backlit, which kills the black levels all around. The glass in front doesn’t help, either, because reflections bounce off it easily. These two factors make it problematic to view the screen in brighter settings, regardless of whether you’re indoors or outside. The viewing angle is also not great, but that’s not a big issue, since you’d be mostly looking at the screen dead-on anyway.
The real issues that could frustrate you, however, are based on performance. This is why I mentioned measured expectations before. With just 6.2GB of free space, 256MB of RAM and an 800MHz processor, not all apps from the Windows Marketplace will work on this phone. Some might be too big, others too slow. At least you’re told in advance that an app might be too big for the phone, so you save yourself the disappointment and frustration of seeing an app crash and burn.
Browsing with the Internet presents hurdles that are at the mercy of both the data connection and the phone’s limited power. Sites will take time to load and render, and navigating through pinching and zooming sometimes also happens with a slight hiccup. Mobile sites, on the other hand, were far smoother, so if you could have the browser focus on accessing those when available, it would help speed things up a bit.
Then you have the camera, which you can bring up by holding down the dedicated shutter button at the bottom right. It takes a few seconds for it to finally light up so you can snap a photo, and once you do, you will notice that isn’t quite the same camera as other Lumia models.
Unless you’re outside, expect noisy images. The camera has a tough time focusing on a subject, and there’s no exposure control to at least help make for a better shot. Another letdown is that video recording is in VGA, a bummer since the 710 offers 720p recording.
Two standouts that I liked were the battery life and GPS. You could easily squeeze nine hours of talk time and days of standby with this battery, given how the processor doesn’t tax it as much. GPS works nicely with Nokia Drive, the nifty turn-by-turn navigation app that speaks out directions to you. I used it with the embedded Assisted-GPS chip inside and had no problem. This is because the maps of Canada and the U.S. are already on the phone, so no data is being used there.
Overall, the 610 handles Windows Phone well, but the one thing that stands out here is that the Lumia 710 is a step up from the 610, and is pretty affordable, too. Future Shop carries the phone, but it appears to only be available to TbayTel customers in the Thunder Bay, ON area. For a frugal budget, you will like what the 610 can offer as a basic smartphone, but don’t expect it to be viable for you longer than 12 months.
The Nokia Lumia 610 is a smartphone that was designed to keep you connected. Beyond its sleek metallic design, you'll find Windows' interface with People Hub which integrates all your social networks to keep you in touch and up to date. Other features include a 3.7" display, 5MP camera, built-in WiFi, and a huge selection of apps.
The Nokia Lumia 610 is a smartphone that was designed to keep you connected. Beyond its sleek metallic design, you'll find Windows' interface with People Hub which integrates all your social networks to keep you in touch and up to date. Other features include a 3.7" display, 5MP camera, built-in WiFi, and a huge selection of apps.
