Overview
Introduction
An enhancement to the Nokia 3100, the Nokia 3200 includes a few more features that are heaps of fun to use; even if they’re only little, things have been added and changed. The whole new design of the handset on the outside is great, and is fully customizable, and I mean fully.
This isn’t just another update of a handset that has just had a new name, you’re wrong. The 3200 has been changed on the inside and out, as you’ll see as you read deeper into this review.
New/outstanding features
If you had a look at the 3100, but then realized you wanted a bit more, like a camera, infrared, and more - than maybe have a bit of a look at the 3200, you may end up getting it instead! This section of the article will go over the new and updated/outstanding features of the 3200.
First off we’ll have to start with the camera. It’s embedded into the back of the handset, and is a CIF camera capable of capturing images up to 352 x 288 pixels. A whole range of settings and picture sizes are available for you to play around with, and the images look great when sent via MMS to another handset or e-mail address. An embedded camera is much easier to use than an enhancement like the PT-3 camera.
The new design also must be mentioned. Now you don’t need to purchase Xpress-On™ covers, special inserts slide into the clear cover, and then change the whole look of the phone. Back and front covers are supported, and you can even create your own with pre-packaged blank inserts. They are easily changeable, all you have to do is remove the clear cover, and replace the insert! Change the overall look of your 3200 in seconds.
An increase of memory from the Nokia 3100 is also noted, the memory boosted up to around 1mB. This isn’t much, but still better than almost half that in the 3100. More space to store photos, messages, and Java games & applications! More memory is always a good idea - in any aspect.
Other little things in the 3200 that are a change for the good is the addition of an Infrared port, which you can transfer files with directly from the options menu. This also makes connecting to a computer a lot easier, and cheaper if that’s what you’re concerned about. Another thing is a torch, located at the bottom of the 3200. The torch is activated with a long hold of a button, and de-activated the same way. A funky little feature that may very well be needed some time.
The voice recorder on the 3200 enables you to even attach audio files onto your MMS messages, so you can say how you feel verbally - as well as with text, and images.
Physical aspects
An entire design overhaul is visible on the Nokia 3200. A clear cover fully is customizable with packaged colour inserts, and blank ones to express your own works of art. The keypad has also been changed, circular groups of keys. An overall great looking handset, the 3200 will look good with anyone anywhere they go.
First glance at the front of the handset, you will probably first notice the keypad. The buttons are all circular, are arranged around the phone in symmetrical order, vertically. The first two rows of buttons are aligned, the middle row being slightly below the others. The buttons look quite challenging to use, and they are. It took me, and will probably take you a while to get used to them, the fact of the buttons not being directly attached to each other and moved around, not aligned like in other handsets. However, if you’ve bought this phone you’re probably willing to get used to the keypad, but you have been warned!
The colour inserts just fit into the clear cover of the 3200 nicely and some what neatly. I had some problems with the inserts wiggling around a little bit when using the handset and pressing buttons closest to the display. Other than that, it’s pretty simple to change and remove the inserts, and the overall look is changed dramatically. You can then change your wallpaper to match your new inserts, and the whole phone will look customized to what you want. Blank inserts in the sales package of the 3200 are ready for you to draw or print what you want on them. They are pre-cut to fit perfectly into the 3200’s covers, with holes for the camera lens, keys, and display. There are a fair few included, so you have room to make some small mistakes - and get your masterpiece into your handset!
A couple of inserts are included in the Nokia 3200 sales package that have some designs printed onto them. They are holograms, so they change when you move them around. The insert that is in your phone when you receive it will match with the wallpaper on your handset when you turn it on. I personally like the orange one, but the blue and the others are really cool as well :)
From the bottom of the handset you will see the familiar Pop-Port™ connector, and charging port. They are surrounded by a light grey plastic, which covers the whole phone. This doesn’t mean that the phone is a dull grey though; the clear covers on the 3200 are slightly foggy, like the keys on the Sony Ericsson T630. This fogs out the grey, and takes the attraction from the grey and onto the design inserts. At the top of the handset is the on/off button, and the Infrared panel. Unlike a usual Infrared panel, the window isn’t black; it’s clear like the rest of the 3200’s covers. The torch at the bottom of the handset isn’t noticeable, and hides away above the Pop-port™ nicely.
User Interface & display
The display on the Nokia 3200 is a 128 x 128 pixel 4,096 colour LCD, the standard for the series that the 3200 belongs in. This display is quite good for day to day use, and most users who are moving up to colour-screen mobiles will like the change. However, if you’re moving down to this phone from one with a larger display capable of more colours, you will notice the difference - big time!
The UI is the same as what is found in the Nokia 6610, 7250i, and other models in the Series 40 range. In the 3200 you can view the menu icons in a gird view as well as a list, something I like to do. The grid mode has a whole different feel than the list view. If you’ve used another Series 40 phone before, there will be no transition stage from that handset to the 3200; it’s pretty much the same. One thing I did notice was that the Connections icon has been removed and placed in the Settings menu, which I had some trouble finding!
There are normally 10 things on the menu to select from, however if you have a SIM services menu there will be 11. The most used function for most phones, messaging, is first on the list, for easy access.
Everything is pretty laid-out on the 3200, and it’s mostly easy to find what you want. The Applications menu now contains the games, all in one section. The four-way navigational key and two soft selection keys also make things easier. If you want to quickly get out of somewhere in the menu, just press the red button to be taken back to the idle screen with your selected background.
Colour operator logos are supported on the 3200, something I like on my handsets. The name of my service provider isn’t very exciting, but a colour image is! These can be received by a special message from some users or from special websites.
Making and receiving calls
Great quality audio from Nokia phones is to be expected, and the 3200 is at this standard. Even when using the loudspeaker function when I was unable to hold the phone to my ear I could still hear what the other person was saying, and I only had to raise my voice a little for the receiver to hear what I was saying - which is what generally needs to be done. Background noise also wasn’t a problem, and the location of the microphone aids to this.
This said, you will gather that there are more than two ways to take and make calls using the 3200. You can do it the regular way, use the loudspeaker, or use a stereo headset connected to the Pop-Port™ at the bottom of the 3200. Volume wasn’t ever a problem for me, having the setting at about half-way. This handset is large enough to rest comfortably in your hand or lean against your shoulder.
Making calls is easy, entering numbers straight into the handset and pressing the green button or finding a number in your contacts is a stress-less action. All calls are started by pressing the green button underneath the left selection key, which also jumps to the send menu when you’re writing a message. If you find a number you want to call, select it and press the green button. Searching through the contacts list, if I felt the need to call my friend “Tim” all I would have to do is select search, key in “Ti” and then find “Tim”, who appears to be the only “Ti” name in my phone book. If there were any other users with “Ti” at the start of their name they would also show up, and I can select between which contact I want. All I have to do now is select the number I want, and press the green button! To end a call at any time, or reject a call, press the opposing button on the other side of the keypad, which has a red streak on it.
When someone calls you, they’re picture may show up if you’ve attached them to your phone book. It’s a nice delight to see the person you’re about to talk to when the call, sometimes puts a smile on your face. If you don’t have a picture on a user, their name and caller group logo will show, if it’s set up of course! The ring tone that will sound will be in 16-chord polyphonic MIDI format, sounding quite real.
You can even set pre-recorded voice messages as your ring tone if you want to! :)
Messaging
The two basic messaging formats, SMS and MMS are included on the 3200 for your enjoyment. Short messages, and longer more enhanced messages, with pictures, text, and sounds can all be sent and received.
T9 text support is quicker than any other input method, because even if you usually have to press a key twice or three times to get your selected letter, you won’t have to. Press the key once, and move onto the next letter. The phone will make a list of words that can be made with that letter combination, and allow you to choose the word you want. If the word you want isn’t there, teach the phone the word by manually entering it in (multi-tap method) and add it to the memory. The phone will remember the word next time, so you won’t ever have to put it in slowly again! Like other Nokia phones, the ‘*’ button will change the word to the next on the list, and the ‘0’ button will insert a space. Changing case is done by pressing the ‘#’ button.
MMS messages can have an image, up to 1000 text-based characters, and even sound. When you’ve finished making one, you can then send it off to another MMS-enabled phone or off around the world to an e-mail address. Everything MMS-wise will work once you have activated your settings available from your service provider - or if you’re smart enough you can manually input them. If you want to, the audio clip attached to your MMS message can be of your own voice using the Voice Recorder function in the Media function on the 3200.
The messaging menu on the 3200 is easy to navigate, and is put into sections. Text Messages, Multi-media Messages, Voice Messages, and Info Messages. If you need to change you messaging settings a menu is there for that as well, great if you change providers and need to change MMS message settings, which are listed on the phone already for you.
Connectivity
Infrared, and data-cable support is compiled into the 3200, along with wireless connectivity options like EDGE, GPRS, and HSCSD. No Bluetooth however, which has aided to keeping the cost down on the 3200. Whether it’s connecting remotely to a source of information, or connecting to a PC or laptop, the 3200 has you covered.
Starting off with PC connectivity, you can connect your Nokia 3200 to a PC using one of two methods. Wirelessly with Infrared, or with wires using a USB data-cable connection to the Pop-Port™. If you have already got a USB data-cable that you might have used with other Pop-Port™ phones, you can simply connect the 3200 as well, no changes are necessary. The same goes for Infrared. If your laptop (most do) has an infrared port you can just turn on infrared on the 3200 and place it in the specified area. If you’ve got a PC that has an Infrared adapter, you just do the same and fire up the software you want.
If you’re a first-timer and don’t have a data-cable or infrared port/adapter, you can buy one from most good phone accessory shops or online. They’re not hard to obtain, and are pretty useful. Infrared adapters are great, because most phones are building support for infrared into their handsets, so one adapter will be able to work with all handsets. Data-cables are slightly limited to certain models/series. When you’re connected to your PC via data-cable or infrared, you can then hook up to the internet using your phone.
When you’re out and about and need connection to the mobile internet fast, EDGE would have to be the obvious choice. It’s faster than GPRS, and has around the same reception as GPRS does. When you can’t or don’t want to use EDGE, GPRS is another well-used alternative. Most large telco companies use this technology, so its reception area is very wide. It’s fast enough for the average user, and is much cheaper than older wireless options - because you can be billed for bytes sent/received, not time.
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Build quality
The Nokia 3200 is built quite tough, and is quite sturdy. The only removable parts on the 3200 are the clear covers, and the battery. The inserts are like paper, but won’t rip as easily. Virtually nothing else can be removed from the 3200, so there isn’t any room for anything to break.
Removing the back and front covers is an somewhat job, and only requires a small amount of force, except for the front cover. The back cover comes off easily, because all you have to do it press the button down and it pushes the cover off the rest of the handset so you can fit your finger in and pull it off. The battery is then easily removed, and SIM card inserted neatly. The front cover however you will need to find a good grip on the cover and pull it off, as there isn’t really an access point to go for. Flashbacks of the 6610 were going through my mind changing the inserts! =)
Battery life
The battery used in the Nokia 3200 is the same as the one you will find in the Nokia 6610/7250i. It’s reasonably slim, and not awkwardly shaped to put into the phone. On average, the Lithium-ion BLD-3 battery will power the 3200 for around 144 - 288 hours standby, and around 2 - 4 hours talk time.
Animated screen savers may drain battery life, so unless you’re charging quite a bit you may find the digital clock screensaver is a much better alternative. Overall however, battery life is quite good.
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Take a closer look!
Take a closer look!
Overview (Page 1)
