37 replies to this topic

[mattscholey]

Hi,

About to upgrade, and thinking of getting either the Nokia 7610 (at present my preference) or the SPV C500.  I have owned the SPV E100 for 1 year now, and I think I've got tired and bored with the OS, and along with other reasons such as camera res and look, my 1st choice is the 7610.

But can you convince me to stick with Microsoft, and not buy a phone from Nokia.  What are the advantages of the C500 over the 7610?  Or do would you even advise me to go the other way?

All help would be great, but could you please justify your answer rather than just saying "Symbian sucks".  I want my phone generally for phone calls, camera and entertainment.

Thanks in advance,
Matt

[Helix]

Me myself will be interested in the MPx 220. It has the benefits of being a smartphone + having a decent res camera in it - 1.3 mega pixel (i think). Thats what the C500 appears to be lacking in - a decent camera.

[antlane]

I've gone from an SPV E100 to a Nokia 6600 (so I could use a bluetooth carkit).  Compared to Smartphone, Series 60 Symbian is incredibly unintuitive to use.  The only things that are better on Symbian are the SMSing (which is a dream to use), and an integrated media viewer which is able to send items via bluetooth / ir.  Oh yes, it keeps e-mails in a separate box from SMSes.

I really hope that the C500 lives up to expectations regarding battery life and bluetooth functionality as I'll definitely get one.  I can't help thinking though that we've been here before with the E200.  I had to send mine back after a week's use.  Total rubbish!

[sparkisgti]

i had a 7650 for ages and have always loved nokia.. but i found the symbian OS to be really really slow, specially opening up apps.. gimme a smartphone anyday  

[Dr Who]

Along with the faster chip and larger memory in the C500 it is also smaller than the 7610. I am going to check out the 7610 and C500 in my hand before I decide. If camera is an issue for you then 7610 it has to be. I am also expecting the 7610 to be the better 'phone'. The C500 will probably be the better piece of technology.

[midnight]

just curious, why do you think it will be the better 'phone'?

[Dr Who]

*Generally* IMO I have found that the Nokias I have had have behaved better as a *phone*, i.e. not cutting people off, receiving calls when they are made, sound quality. Having said that my E100 kills my missus' 7250i - I tried using her phone the other day and thought I had my ear pressed to the wrong bit the call was so muffled.

No question about the C500 being the better piece of technology, then  ;-)

[midnight]

i have an spv and an e100, this is why i asked, cos call quality on both is better than any nokia ive ever owned, ive never had it drop calls either, and, C500 has a reported 8hr talk time, which is far greater than the 3 hrs talk time offered from the 7610

[Dr Who]

E200 has had some well documented problems with call quality and bluetooth though.............

[Helix]

The 7610 looks huge, bigger than the E200 even!

[mattscholey]

Quote

The 7610 looks huge, bigger than the E200 even!

Not the case at all.  I'd already drawn out the sizes of the C500, 7610 and the E100/E200 on one diagram to compare the sizes.  I've drawn them actual size (although they probably won't appear the same size on your screen), from the dimesions given on the net.  I've scanned it for you all to see.

Basically, if you can't work the diagram out (I drew it for my own reference, not intending to post it, so it't not as clear as it might be), the C500's the smallest, 7610 is wider and very slightly taller.  The E100/E200 (there the same size) is not as wide as the 7610, but wider than the E100.  The E100 side is wider than the C500 side, but I haven't drawn the 7610 side.

Also at the bottom is the Samsung E600 - the world's smallest clamshell phone (not smart), just to see what we're missing.  I'm actually considering getting this and an mpx, so I get the small camera phone when I want it (eg. going out), and the feature rich phone when I don't mind carrying some extra weight (eg. at school).

Hope you can understand my drawings.

Matt

Attached Files

•  Size Comparison.JPG   83.07K   409 downloads

[Helix]

Aha! Yet again my screen has deceived me! Thx for that matt. Although confusing at first, I think I've worked it out  :roll:

Didnt know the difference was that small.

I'd put the MPx220 into account as well tho, seeing as u appear to have a MPx200 already.

[TANKERx]

If I were you, I'd wait for the SendoX which is already out in some countries, has been very well received..... probably on the grounds that it is an awesome, kickass smartphone.

[simonbratt99]

that nokia 7610 is hideous looking, especially the sweeping buttons, i would never get it, based on that shallow reason. :-)

[Maverick]

The 'phone' side of E200 has disappointed me so far... Dropped calls. Missed calls when I use GPRS, phone randomly switching off mid call. I think its a quality control issue with HTC/Orange rather than design issues with the model itself.

Its a bit irritating when ur 'potential employer' cant reach u becoz ur phone decided to switch itself off without letting u know about it.. Luckily I was at home to recieve the call on landline

[Dr Who]

I think the 7610 looks fab when kitted out in the ivory and gold colours. Looks a bit pony in black and red though. Knowing O they will supply the ugliest case/colour possible and sell the nice colour in their shops.

[mattscholey]

I love the look of the white version (I think this is the one you mean by ivory and gold), but not the black and red.  Can't see why anyone wouldn't.

Anyway, I posted basically the same post on www.my-symbian.com and got this reply:

Quote

This isn't even a comparison. The C500 is a Microsoft Smartphone, which brings with it poor battery life, a poorer and more expensive applications set compared to Series 60, lots of bugs and crashes, very little support as opposed to the large community of Series 60, and is more difficult to use than Series 60. The MS Smartphone platform just isn't worth the crashes, bugs and poor battery life. Go with the 7610.

What do the MS Smartphone fans have to say about this?  I can't help but agree with it I'm afraid.  Ok, he's wrong about the community point (MoDaCo rules), and you all seem to think that the C500's battery is going to last weeks, but everything else is true?  What do you think of this comment?

Thanks for all your replies,
Matt

[midnight]

wrong on several points really, battery life is a reported 8 hours talk time (7610 has a measly 3 hrs) and same 10 day standby time (one website reported a full week with bluetooth left switched on). We cant say if it has loads of bugs and crashes, cos, well, havent tested the wm2k3se OS yet, but, ive heard its MUCH improved and very stable with massivly improved BT, but, my E100 just doesnt crash and there are no real standout bugs. MS smartphone has a huge community here at MoDaCo, and we have MANY experts on here who arent just users but developers. Expensive applications???? hmmm, dunno about that, plenty of free applications, but its the lack of applications which is the only downer, however, .net makes it much easier to develop applications which makes it ideal for companies who wish to integrate inhouse software into phones (remote database lookups etc). More difficult to use????? i've argued about this before, and i really cant see why people think ms smartphone is hard to use, i have tried recent nokias and i cant use them, so i guess it depends what you are used to.
At the end of the day, people at my-symbian will argue symbian is better, people at modaco will argue ms smartphone is better, the choice is down to the user.

[beersoft]

i would go with the C500,

Nokia's design department need to put the crack pipe down and design a phone thats not going to look stupid by the end of the week (* read that as look more stupid than it already does).

i was going to say something about how the "other camp" talks about us lot, but i think we are above name calling and stuff


later

Owen

[Dr Who]

I got much the same reply when trolling about the allaboutsymbian website. My E100 HAS crashed a number of times and the current talk time is unacceptable. I have no issue with the apps available, although an MS office suite would be nice. The symbian OS might be easier for those that can't read 'cos of the pretty icons. As for community i thought the symbian mob were a bit crass (lowest common denominator?). The 7610 is by far the better looking phone, but this may depend if you are a conservative business user or a flamboyant geek?!?!

Posted from my SmartPhone!