Nokia Astound:For Free or Too Expensive

Nokia Astound, released a few weeks back is a device that comes free with a two year $79.99 T-Mobile USA contract. Even existing T-Mobile contracts can be extended or users may add a line using the Nokia USA website. So is this a good deal for smartphone customers in USA? Here’s taking a closer look


Nokia Astound Display and Design

Nokia Astound is a revamped version of the Nokia C7, with a major difference in appearance being the T-Mobile Logo at the bottom of this frosty metal device. It looks sturdy and fits well in the hand, with a stainless steel back cover and around the edges plastic cover surrounding the glass screen.
The display on Nokia Astound consists of a 3.5″ AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, of 360х640 pixel resolution. There is a proximity sensor, surrounding light detector and accelerometer for user convenience. However, screen visibility outdoors is a slight problem.
Send, End and Menu keys are located below the display. While the right spine contains the volume rocker, lock/unlock key, camera and voice recognition key, the top left contains the microUSB port, 3.5mm headset jack and power key.

Features

Nokia Astound runs on Symbian^3 OS for Nokia. While most functions can be performed, there is a time lag while accessing certain apps. Three customizable home screens are provided with widgets for navigation, themes for personalization and icons and shortcuts for easy access.
The phonebook can store a large amount of contacts, based on available memory. For sending texts, the Swype keyboard is present in landscape mode. Not only does the portrait keyboard feel cramped, it has no Swype support. For instant messaging, users will have to download apps from the Ovi Store. With Symbian^3, multitouch option is provided in the browser and navigation is smoother. However, web browsing is average on this device, far behind the Android experience. Fortunately, social networking sites can be easily accessed through a widget.
The music player works well, but speaker volume is not too great. Navigation options include GPS and WiFi. Bluetooth 3.0 is present for quick transfers. Call quality on the Nokia Astound is very good.

Camera

This smartphone has a front facing VGA camera for self photography and video calls. Apart from this, Nokia Astound sports an 8MP camera lens at the back of the device. Camera features include full focus, zoom and dual LED flash to shoot images. However, image quality depends on surrounding light and with the absence of auto focus images look blurry at times.

Battery


Nokia Astound has a talktime of 576 minutes and a standby time of 555 hours on GSM. Video playback time is rated to be upto 6.5 hours. For moderate users, this device can be used for more than a day before it needs to be charged again.

Nokia Astound is targeted at new smartphone users who are looking for a reasonably priced device that offers basic features. Indeed, this device performs well, apart from the glitches faced using Symbian^3 OS.