Review of Nokia's 3G Capable 6680

Nokia 6680

Nokia 6680

Nokia 6680

The Nokia 6680 is the latest 3G effort by Nokia. The 6680 is armed with dual cameras: a 1.3 megapixel camera on the back, and a VGA camera up front. It is a Dual Mode phone, featuring UMTS and tri-band GSM operation (900/1800/1900MHz). The 6680 is capable of switching automatically between bands and modes. I do not have access to any 3G SIM cards, though, so this review will be about the 6680's capabilities in GSM mode. Our review unit is from Malaysia and its firmware is version 2.04.15, 04-03-05, RM-36.

With features set to blow the competition away, does the 6680 make up for Nokia's past 3G missteps? We'll take a look.

Physical Aspects

Unlike the pear-shaped 6630, the 6680 takes on a more traditional candybar form, making it look more professional. Although some might think of it as boring and unfashionable, I think the shape is just great, with a slightly curved back, which makes it really comfortable to hold in your hand. On the front, you will find a large Active Matrix display that is capable of displaying 262K colours, and has a resolution of 176 x 208 pixels. The screen is bright and fully readable under direct sunlight. You will find a light sensor on the top left corner of the front cover that automatically adjusts the display brightness and keypad backlight, such as was first seen on the 7650. So let's say you are in a dimly lit room and you whip out your 6680, the light sensor will automatically switch on the keypad backlight, and dim the screen. When you're out in the sun, or a brightly lit place instead, the keypad backlight will be turned off, and the screen brightness will be maximized. The maximum level of the display brightness is set by the user via the Settings menu. I found keeping the level one notch below maximum to produce the best results with vivid colours. The light sensor worked well most of the time, thus saving some battery life, and your eyes from being blinded by the screen at night.

At the top right corner of the 6680 you will find the front VGA camera. The placement of the camera right next to the earpiece makes it easily smudged by face oils. The raised rim around the camera lens is plated with chrome, making it even easier to be smudged and dirtied. Yes, no doubt chrome makes all things nice, but it also turns the phone into a fingerprint magnet. The 6680 has quite a lot of parts plated with chrome actually, so keep your cleaning cloth ready at all times.

Below the display, the large left and right soft keys flank the navigational D-pad. A quick glance would probably give you the impression that Nokia has finally put the days of swirling and odd keypad layouts behind them. Look closer, though, and you will notice that the Menu, Call, End, Clear, and Edit keys are placed vertically on each side of the keypad. These keys are thin and plated with chrome. This makes for quite an odd layout, though I got used to it fairly quickly. But the keypad felt cramped, and my big thumbs had a hard time trying to get at the right keys. However, the keys had good feedback, and were responsive. I didn't like the placement of the 0-key, which was very near the bottom edge of the 6680. The white backlit keypad is bright and easily readable at night. The unevenness of the backlighting found in the 6230i we reviewed earlier is absent here.

 

Featured products from the MobileBurn store