Nokia 6500 Classic – lacks dedicated volume rocker
Thumbs Up:
Sturdy and simple design; nice call quality; colorful display; functional feature set.
Thumbs Down:
Cramped alphanumeric keypad; lacks dedicated volume rocker and speakerphone key; average photo quality.
Inside the Trunk:
Technology: WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM
Band: Quad-band of WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM 850/900/1800/1900
Phone Design: Candy Bar
Caller ID: Yes
Other Features: Bluetooth, Speakerphone, 1GB internal memory, 2-megapixel camera with flash
The Whiz Kid Speaks:
The Nokia 6500 Classic has inbuilt 1GB memory. The additional features are Java applications, Opera Mini Web browser, Class 32 EDGE, GPRS, and Bluetooth.
2-inch LCD display is based on TFT technology and has 320×240 pixels resolution that supports 24-bit (16.7 million colors).
2-megapixel camera features flash, 8x digital zoom, and video recording. The still image format is JPEG and the storage resolution options are seven including 160×120 and 1600×1200. The digital video format is MPEG4 and video recording resolution options are 128×96 and 176×144 pixels resolution.
830mAH lithium ion battery has a life of 210 minutes talk time and 216 hours of idle standby time.
Razzle Dazzle:
The Nokia 6500 Classic is 4.32 inches tall, 1.77 inches wide, and 0.37 inch deep and weighs 3.31 ounces. It has metallic skin with thin profile. The handset feels great while holding in hand.
Inside Dope:
The Nokia 6500 Classic continues to have traditional candy bar design and features mid-range feature set and simple interface. However, this cell phone is not supported by any U.S. carrier so you can buy its unlocked version for $279 from online retailers. The 6500 Classic is completely centered towards basic communication. It offers large display, but cramped alphanumeric keypad. There is also no dedicated volume rocker. If you need a basic unlocked phone in affordable price range, then go for – Nokia 6500 Classic.
2 inches display of Nokia 6500 Classic has 320×240 pixels resolution that supports 16.7 million colors. You can customize the font size and colors, but cannot change the backlight time and brightness. The 6500 Classic has Series 40 5th edition menu interface, which is easy to use and intuitive.
The navigation array sits beneath the display and consists of two soft keys, round toggle with middle OK button, Talk key, and Power/End button. The Nokia 6500 Classic does not have dedicated back key and speakerphone button, but we will prefer to have the same. You can customize the four directions of toggle with different functions and activate the onscreen shortcut icons.
The Nokia 6500 Classic has cramped alphanumeric keypad. The silver keys give tactile feedback on pressing, while the black keys are small in size. In addition, the backlit letters and numbers are tiny in size. We will recommend you to check the visual representation over keypad before buying this phone.
There is no dedicated volume rocker on the Nokia 6500 Classic. Therefore, you can use the toggle to adjust the volume during call. The combined micro-USB port for both charging and headset is located on the top, while camera lens with flash are on the back side.
The Nokia 6500 Classic store contacts in its phonebook as per available memory, while SIM card can store additional 250 contacts. Each entry contact five number, one email address, a format name, a nickname, a company name, job title, one URL, a street address, notes, and a birthday. You can organize the contacts into caller groups and pair them with one polyphonic ring tone and a video or photo for caller ID.
The basic feature set includes a stopwatch, a countdown timer, a voice recorder, a world clock, a speakerphone, a notepad, a to-do list, a calculator, 26 polyphonic 64-chord ring-tones, a calendar, an alarm clock, text and multimedia messages, and a vibrate mode.
The additional highlights are Web-based email, a unit and currency converter, PC synchronization, an internal search application, USB mass storage, audio messaging, voice commands, and stereo Bluetooth.
The Nokia 6500 Classic supports Yahoo Go for direct access to Yahoo content and email. It also supports 850/2100 UMTS 3G bands that includes streaming video support if the carrier supports the same.
2-megapixel camera of Nokia 6500 Classic features a flash, digital zoom, night-mode, and multi-shot mode. The still capture settings include seven resolutions, white-balance, flash modes, self-timer, five color effects, and three quality settings. You can also record videos up to 10 seconds for MMS and longer in normal mode.
We captured some pictures for testing. The overall photo quality was good for a 2-megapixel camera. The images appeared grainy with visible noise. The video quality was also average. As there is no memory card slot for external storage, so you have to save the pictures and videos on inbuilt 1GB memory.
The inbuilt music player of the Nokia 6500 Classic features equalizer, stereo widening, repeat and shuffle modes, and play-lists. You can set the equalizer with four presets and two customizable options. The supported music formats are WMA, AAC, eAAC+, MP3, and MP4.
The Nokia 6500 Classic comes with four games: Sudoku, Snake III, Golf Tour, and Backgammon. The phone can be personalized with available alert-tones, ring-tones, themes, wallpapers, and screensavers. More options can be downloaded through Opera-Mini browser.
We made few calls through quad-band based the Nokia 6500 Classic via T-Mobile service. The overall call quality was good. We received clear, loud, and natural sound at our end without any interference. The callers received good sound at their end with some wind noise. The speakerphone call quality was also good.
The music quality was good with tinny sound on the speakers. However, the headset provided the best music experience.
The battery life of the Nokia 6500 Classic is 3.5 hours of talk time and 9 days of idle standby time. Its digital SAR is 1.20 watts per kg in accordance with the FCC radiation tests.
Nitty Gritty:
If you need a basic unlocked handset with functional features and do not mind cramped keyboard, then go for – Nokia 6500 Classic.
