Nokia E71x Phone, Black (AT&T)

Focusing on the PHONE May 8, 2009

Reviewer:  Chris Paluch  (VA) -

I never like it when people complain about a problem with "the plan" when doing a review for the phone. It is irrelevant.
With that being said, I own an E71-2 unlocked NA. While there is some features taken out, this is easily AT&Ts top tier phones and one of the best phones on the market, which honestly other carriers have not kept up with (save for t-mobile's G1 and soon Sprint's Pre).
The phone is comparable, not so much to an i-phone, but a blackberry, as the phone is pure business.
But its also FAST and reliable.
I have had very few glitches with the e71, symbian has been around long enough to become effecient and refined, even though its not always pretty. While they did take out some nice features from this phone, most have remained.
With that being said, I still think the e71 is a better phone to buy unlocked, but for the .01 entry fee, its probably the best entry phone out there. Largely because its internet browser capability is excellant (skyfire is notably great), but also because in terms of smart phones, nothing matches it features save for the bold. I would highly suggest this phone, and would urge people to pass on the Fuze or any other WinMo phone, and go with this phone. This is a better option.
With that being said, if you are going to be using this for business purposes, I would use the money you saved buying this free phone, and invest in Roadsync, which is a proper push email program. While this does have push email, its not fully capable...Roadsync is a great third party software for exchange that makes the phone fully capable.

Also this is probably the most sturdy phone on the market, thanks to its metal casing, it can take much abuse. It is great that AT&T is re-introducing symbian smart phones in such an elegant package. Its a great phone.
With everything being said, this great phone is mostly all business. Its great for that though.

Locked or unlocked, the e71 is an utter failure May 24, 2009

Reviewer:  Baron Von Pepperschnapp "Ba donk a donk"  (USA) -

I bought the Nokia e71 from Amazon to replace a broken T-mobile BlackBerry. I had about 5 months left on my contract, and after A LOT of research, the e71 was the only thing that seemed logical. It was a supposed "iPhone" competitor and had the Blackberry-like full QWERTY keyboard I wanted.

Here's my experience after 8+ months of using it nonstop, every day. (Heavy personal use and I am a business owner, so it is my main mobile tech device along with a MacBook Pro.)

Most people -- me included -- buy the e71 and have a great initial out-of-the-box reaction. It's a solid and handsome piece of hardware.

Unfortunately, it's a disaster of a solution for personal and business use. It really comes down to the simple things....

First, if you are not used to the Symbian operating system, you'll probably think it's hard to get around. I still don't like it. The thing these Symbian folks rave about is the depth of applications and such... If you're a Mac user, forget about using Nokia's own applications to update your phone or manage it in any way. All their stuff is PC only, and it feels very PC -- clunky and behind the curve.

Next, the e-mail support for MS Exchange ActiveSync is buggy. If you're going to be a serious user of this thing and have to connect with a company server, you'll probably need to buy a 3rd party app. I had to buy RoadSync just to get all my calendar and email synced up, and it still ignores my tasks.

The worst thing about the e71 is living with it every day. First, it's buggy as heck -- many users, me included, get a "Memory Full" message (that is completely untrue) at least once a month. The only way to solve this is to shut down the phone completely and reboot. Sometimes, it requires SIM card removal, too. Very frustrating.

Also.... It sounds stupid, but IN THE NOKIA E-71, YOU CANNOT CUSTOMIZE THE LEVEL AND FREQUENCY OF YOUR PHONE'S ALERT TONES. In real life, this means that you are stuck on an "Ascending loudness" tone for wake up. What's more, you cannot combine vibrate, ascending, 1-2-3 rings/beeps, etc on the same profile. On a Blackberry, you can choose one ring/beep, two, three, vibrate, off, etc. The way you set up your tones on the Blackberry is very flexible. YOU CANNOT DO THIS ON THE NOKIA E-71. Tones are managed in a way that does not allow you to mix and match different notification options. For example: say you want a phone that rings 3 times for a call; then an alarm that beeps twice for a wake up; then a vibrate alert for voicemail notification... YOU CAN'T DO IT on the e71. It won't customize your tones like that. This is a huge issue for your day-to-day sanity if you use your phone as your "personal device" for business and life in general.

Speaking of personal functionality, don't expect much from the camera. Sounds great at 3.2 MB, but the picture quality on the e71 camera is atrocious. Everything is tinged bluish purple, so if you want to create any decent shots, you'll need to export the pic into Photosho and adjust colpor and contrast. Awful.

The last straw? Nokia has STILL not come out with a firmware update for this phone. The iPhone is consistently upgraded, but Nokia has only released a firmware update for e-71 users OUTSIDE North America. I also hear that the update is buggy. That's no big surprise based on my experience with this phone.

If you are serious about the e71, you should visit Nokia's Support section of their website and look at the "E Series" discussion boards. There are real users there, in real pain, with real issues that YOU will encounter. I wish I had read through their experiences first.

The final recommendation here? If you are considering this phone and are a business user, it may be fine for corporate work. Battery life is good. Keyboard is nice. If you will be using this phone for personal AND business use, and you are a PC owner, it's an OK alternative to a Blackberry. You'll also probably be able to deal with the clunky, lame user interface because you've been a PC user for so long. If you are a Mac user, or you use your phone as your main "lifestyle device," stay far away from the e71. It's a huge disappointment in functionality and ease of use, and its performance does not outweigh its negatives.

Part of the reason I decided on the e71 was the volume of 5 star reviews on Amazon for this device. Now that I've lived with it, it just seems like there are thousands of "Nokia fanboys" who are just as rabid as the Mac fanatics. The difference here is, the iPhone delivers on probably 90% of what it promises (my wife has one), and the e71 is an evolutionary device based on Blackberrys and the Symbian OS. It delivers maybe 60% of the kudos it gets. And as much as people want to pair them as competitors, the iPhone and e71 are not even in the same league as far as livability is concerned. I'd venture a guess that the Blackberry Bold is the closer competitor.

Personally, I'll likely be moving to an iPhone in the next month or so. I can't deal with the bugs and clunky user interface and limitations of the e71. At the end of the day ... I don't like the Apple touchscreen, but the Nokia e71 is an utter failure as a modern, integrated mobile communicator.

Best phone I've had yet. May 19, 2009

Reviewer:  Aaron Smith 

I've had many cell phones over the years and this phone is the best I've had yet.

I had an LG VU before this one and I loved the VU's capabilities as an internet device because of the full touch screen. However, I found myself using java chat apps on it and the touchscreen was not that great. Plus, I needed a better way to get my work e-mail than using the outlook web access.

My wife saw an ad for this phone on a web site and we visited a store to check it out. I played around with it for 25 minutes in the store and decided that I had to have it. The build in web browser is far better than I expected and was used to. Pages render well and navigating them is far easier than most devices I have used. The full keyboard makes it easy to enter in search terms, addresses, and even full messages on forums.

Installing Opera Mini creates an excellent experiance as well. The only thing missing is flash support.

For java applications, it works perfect, although now I am finding that there are a ton of Symbian S60 apps available that run far better and far faster than java apps. Using instant messenger is super easy and combined with the multitasking ability, I can be chatting in IM and talking on the phone with my bluetooth headset at the same time.

Syncing my work e-mail with this phone was a snap. I just installed the Mail for Exchange and put in my username, password, and server address and all of my outlook contacts, calendar items, and e-mails instantly showed up. This was far better than what had to be done for blackberry (it costs extra if there are more than 1 blackberry phones in an organization and IT has to install server software!).

I'm really surprised that no one has mentioned the camera. This phone has a 3.2 MP camera on it with flash. The color is amazing for a cell phone and pictures are clear.

This phone comes with a data cable and sync software can be downloaded for free. The software installs easily and allows you to install applications, sync your contacts and address book with outlook (if not using exchange server) and also make a backup of your phone should something bad happen.

Call quality is great to excellent. I can hear people very clear and they can hear me just fine and say I sound better than my VU. Signal strength has been as good as the VU if not a little better.

The GPS, while not super fast, is great. Combined with the free google maps, it does exactly what I need it to do and I didn't even know I would use it.

Now on to some of the bad points:
The battery life kind of sucks. I have to charge it EVERY DAY. As you have read, I am a power user, so I am constantly using it. I am always on IM, twitter using Gravity, and my phone is constantly syncing with the exchange server. Not doing all these and you may have better luck. I keep my charger at my desk during the week and charge it before leaving for the day and have to recharge it by noon the next day. The charge comes home on the weekend so I will be buying another one...

I ran out of memory pretty quick with all the stuff I put on it. So I bought a $15 2 gig memory card. I haven't come close to filling that yet.

This will definitely be my phone for a very long time.

P.S. I have a family plan and had no problem buying this phone.

Not able to extend existing AT&T "family" plan w/this offer! May 7, 2009

Reviewer:  Joan C. Sticha "puzzled"  (Minnesota USA) -

I'm ready to buy -- this phone. Eligible to extend/upgrade my existing AT&T phone..... BUT, not able to do so if on a "family plan". Why? Still adding service, still purchasing equipment.

Love it! May 21, 2009

Reviewer:  MyPenName  (Pennsylvania) -

First off, I have to say that I am a long time diehard fan of Nokia phones. In fact, I have never owned another brand. I am totally loyal! They take a beating and last forever. They have exceptional call quality and clarity. They are durable and biult to last. Never once had a problem with any that I owned.

Typically I don't like the Blackberry style phones, however, this is a Nokia we're talking about! So I had to get it. It was time to replace my 6682 anyway. I had it for quite a while. I tend to keep my Nokia's for a while because I become so attached to them and they just never die!

I love the E71x! Very easy to use. The WiFi is great! Buttons are a little small, but I am sure I will adapt quickly. The selection of ringtones is great - funny too because they have a few on there that are actually sung by a female voice lol. I love that the casing is made of stainless steel - adds to the durability. The lcd screen is a decent size. If you like a full screen like on the iPhone, you might not like this one, but I don't have a problem with it at all. After seeing it online, I thought I would be disappointed with the screen size, but it turns out it is just right. Plenty big enough for me.

The phone is slim, but a tad heavy. Nothing to complain about though and I believe the weight is due to the battery. I love the sleek black finish on it. It does gather fingerprints easily but they are easily "polished" off using a cloth. A microfiber cloth is great for this... kinda like the ones you use for eyeglass lenses.

The buttons feel good when using. The back casing snaps on and off easily and feels secure when doing so. This one actually latches very well and has 2 push buttons to release it.

The feature list is complete and useful. All functions process fast too! My 6682 always seemed a little sluggish at times, however I still loved it just the same. I wish this E71x had a sliding case for the camera like my 6682 did. I absolutely loved that feature! There was no chance of damaging the lens, getting dust in it, etc. The camera on this phone, as with all Nokia's is great and includes all of the features/settings you could ask for. I truly believe that Nokia phones have the best cameras. I have messed around with bzillions of other cell phones and I just have never found one to rank up there with Nokia phones in regards to any features, wether technical or physical.

I have only been using my phone for 2 days now, but I have tested all of the features and "played" with it extensively and I have to say that I am totally happy with my purchase and would recommend this phone to anyone. It will appeal to business users and "regular" users as well. In fact, my 15 yr old son who likes the full screen touch screen phones w/slide out QWERTY boards actually said "Whoa! That's nice!" when he saw my phone. He does not like the Blackberry/Palm phones either. He was quite impressed and also played with it for a while.

I am not a business user, but I do like to have all of the features as I do find use for them from time to time and it comes in handy to have them. I use all of the multi media features though and always use the camera/video features as primary camera. I text a TON and also email quite often from my cell phone. Like I said, this phone will appeal to the business user as well the non business user.

Definitely a 5 star phone in all regards!

Now, I am just waiting for Krusell to release a leather case for the E71x. Their cases are the best! I buy one for all of my phones and all of my family's phones. They fit perfectly and totally protect all surfaces of the phone while allowing full functions while the case is on. Highly recommend Krusell as well!

Edited to add: In case anyone is interestes, the Krusell case for the Nokia e71 also fits the e71x perfectly. I don't know why I assumed it wouldn't since they are both the same size/design. I got my case and my Nokia is snuggled inside it :). I could not be any more happy with either purchase!

UPDATE - I do have to admit that the battery life on this is on the short side. It pains me to find a complaint with this phone, but I have to be honest. All my previous Nokia's we able to go DAYS without charging. I charge this phone everyday and sometimes twice a day. I have gotten in the habit of plugging it in to charge each night when I go to bed. It seems to charge more slowly than my previous phones too. I am not sure if it makes a difference or not, but my other (Nokia) chargers always had the "rapid charger" claim in the name .. this one doesn't. I also plug it into the car charger during any and all car trips, no matter how short, just to get a little extra charge on it.

One final peeve, as someone else also has mentioned, you cannot dial by letter; for example 1-800-SEPHORA .. you have to dial the actual numbers because of the qwery keypad. That really threw me off when I wanted to call Sephora lol. Just something to keep in mind. Hopefully I won't run into too many situations where it will be an issue, but it is soo much easier to dial 1-800-PROGRESSIVE than to memorize the number lol. I guess anyone who already uses qwerty phones will already be used to this issue anyway.

All in all, I still love the phone. Those things aren't enough to change that. It is a beautiful phone! :)

Oh, one more thing.. I am also on a family plan.

Nokia E71X Review June 2009 June 28, 2009

Reviewer:  S. Voebel "svoebel"  (USA) -

Background,

I am a librarian and a very patient person. Through my work, I support engineers, chemists, scientist, physicians and attorneys. One of my professional functions is to work with the IT group to design end user interfaces and train end users new database products. So, I am not technologically challenged.

If you buy this phone, become familiar with these Nokia e71 blogs as well as the Nokia website. You may want to read up on it here first. [...]


After receiving the phone, I showed the E71X to some of our non-IT techie professional types. I just handed them the phone and did not try to prejudice their views. Most were Blackberry users or IPhone users and said that it was not very intuitive and the screen was very small. They all commented that there was a steep learning curve just to be able to use all the functionality.

I could use all the functions on my boyfriends Blackberry and on my friends Apple IPhone without picking up a user manual. Compared to the Blackberry or IPhone it is not user friendly at all. The phone is way too complicated for the average user. I also believe that AT&T does not support this phone well. I've only found one support person at the local corporate AT&T store that is extremely familiar. He has an E71X and loves it. But he has been trained on the phone and uses it himself.

I consider myself an early adopter and will patiently learn new applications and work through issues. I ordered the phone May 18. After having the phone for one month, I am in agreement with others. It has a lot of functionality for the freebie price on Amazon, if you have the time and inclination to work through a steep learning curve.


I believe that most of the problems I had are related to the AT&T software applications and the screen "theme" because the unlocked version E71 carries high marks.

Negatives

Headphones:
A non-standard 2.5mm instead of 3.5mm headphone jack (remedied by an aftermarket radio shack $9.99 headphone adapter or from an Amazon 3rd party seller). An EE friend who is quite good with technology said that some of the headphones sold by AT&T for use with the E71X do not provide stereo. Take the E71X into the store with the adapter and try the headphones before you buy. A cheap headset that works is the plantronics MHS213. I'm looking into the Sony earbuds that will work with the above adapter.

Screen size:
The screen size is too small -- not enough real estate space. No fix.

Screen theme:
The screen is not well organized and is cluttered. I would like to easily remove unneeded application icons. The only option that I know of is to uninstall the application. [...]

FRING vs SKYPE:
I hear that others on the BLOG have been able to make it work with FRING but I was unable to make the E71X work with SKYPE and most of my overseas friends have SKYPE.
This may be the AT&T E71X software. One blog said the developers are working on a SKYPE application.

Locked vs. unlocked:
If I were to purchase this phone again, I would buy the unlocked version E71 and pay the difference and hold off buying until Nokia supports SKYPE applications. The unlocked version has a different software load and software can be downloaded easily from the Nokia site.

Positives:

Nokia support:
Through the Nokia website, the online support engineers are very knowledgeable and helpful. Someone usually gets back to you within 2 days by email.

Storage:
The E71X will hold a 8GB of music or files and you can buy memory cheap on Amazon. Amazon is currently selling the "Transcend 8 GB Class 6 microSDHC Flash Memory Card TS8GUSDHC6". Transcend's micro SDHC Class 6 memory cards work with your cell phone, game console, GPS, cameras and other portable devices. Your phone doesn't need a class 6 memory card. It will actually work with a class 4.[...]

WIFI:
The e71X works in WIFI locations. You need to know the WEP key info. Easy to set up.

International SIM:
E71X can work with an international SIM card if you can get AT&T to supply the unlock code. Shortly, I will be working in the Middle East and am hoping that I can at least use the phone at WIFI locations and with the international SIM card. AT&T quoted me $2.49 per minute to use this phone in Qatar in addition to my domestic contract.

Push Mail:
To use the phone overseas, I will have to pay for every e-mail in my inbox that is pushed through unless I have AT&T turn off the e-mail push feature. That is a minimum of %59.99 extra per month for additional GB storage and the domestic unlimited data contract I purchased does not apply.

In retrospect, I would pay the diffference and buy the E71 unlocked.

svoebel

Perfect for anyone who does not demand a touch screen August 23, 2009

Reviewer:  JESSE DEROUEN "MaTwoCents"  (USA) -

[[VIDEOID:37819541]]Pros:
*Wi-Fi: Take advantage of your own wireless internet for blazing fast connections or use a friend's or your company's or a Wi-Fi hotspot at, say, Starbucks
*Syncs contacts and calendar with Google, and syncs completely with MS Outlook
*USB REMOVABLE storage up to 8GB. Replace your memory card as often as you want with various music collections or movies. Your phone can act as a USB mass storage device for dragging and dropping files
*DRAG AND DROP media (music, videos, pictures, ANYTHING) - use Windows Media Player or Windows Explorer or iTunes, but realize you can use whatever you want!
*Bluetooth 2.0 Stereo
*play FULL-LENGTH movies on your phone (e.g., .mp4) by just loading them to a memory card(s) before a trip. (about 3 movies will fit only an 8GB memory card) - use offline mode for airplanes
*browse multiple web pages easily with image previews of the pages, so it's easy to multi-task (multi-surf?)
*Type with ONE HAND - this is why the QWERTY keyboard is more narrow - so you can reach all the keys without needing two hands.
*multi-task with ease - never have to close an application - pressing options displays a list of all your open "windows"
*music player has an EQUALIZER, PLAYLIST ability BUILT-IN, plus visualizations to boot! displays album artwork too. WOW!
*OS has NO LAG - VERY FAST web browsing even for videos [...]
*at&t's THINNEST smart phone - fits into my pocket without adding bulk
*lightweight considering all its features
*can be tethered to a computer (PC or laptop) and used a modem! (useful for power outages or during hurricane season if you have a laptop or UPSupply) via Bluetooth or USB
*3.2MP camera can also do up to an hour of VIDEO...AND it offers many adjustment features plus a self-timer and LED Flash
*download and view office documents such as MS Word, Powerpoint, Excel and PDF

Cons:
*not a touch screen (but i prefer physical keys instead of on-screen ones anyway)
*interface is not as intuitive to navigate (find things) as others I've used including the t-mobile G1
*my package did not include a 2.0 to 3.5mm headphone adapter (but this is very cheap to buy on eBay) needed to use with most headphones
*no letters associated (on screen) for the numbers, so dialing a number like 800-GOOG-411 can be a problem if you can't figure out the numbers (or guess them)

Note:
*GPS location-based services (such as for Google Latitude or AT&T Navigator) will drain the battery, but this is true for ALL PHONES with GPS services, so i prefer NOT to leave this enabled

Bottom line:
*Perfect for business people and tech enthusiasts who do not demand a touch screen. This phone does absolutely everything you could ever expect a phone to do and then some, plus it's stylish and extremely thin. I recommend this phone to anyone who is not concerned with using their phone as a status symbol but more for the purpose of what amazing capabilities and tools it offers them.

One of the best deals on one of the best phones around May 17, 2009

Reviewer:  Jeffry Yang "Jeff"  (Bay Area, CA USA) -

Since I don't need it for a family plan, I'll try to review the phone:

1. This is the best deal round on one of the best smart phones around

2. Feel and touch: just go to the store and pick it up, you won't want to put it down.

3. Applications: Great multi-tasking - was listening to music over my Bluetooth stereo headset, while running GPS application and browsing the net in 3G speed.

Love it !

No NOKIA Accessories Work May 11, 2009

Reviewer:  P. Sanchez "Where Ever you go there you are."  (Twighlight Zone) -

I bought this phone directly from AT&T and aside from the normal crippling by Service Providers I liked the phone, but here's the major malfunction, I have 2 E71's and a E66 I love the phones but when I tried to use the ACC's that came with the E71 not one of them worked with the E71x except the charger.
The BH-903 Headset caused the X to reboot randomly and disconnect.
The 2.5mm to 3.5mm adapter only played out of the left side
The Included with the E71 NAM-2 Headset only played out of the left.

Now these issues maybe fixed with a firmware update but this is totally unacceptable. I thought at first I received a bad unit and took it back to a corps store for a replacement, the replacement did the exact same thing.
Buyer beware this may be one of those "I need to replace all my accessories phone."

Great Phone, but AT&T June 5, 2009

Reviewer:  Glenn Nelson  (Santa Cruz, CA United States) -

The phone is mostly as good as everyone says. However, I have returned it. The return is due to both the keyboard and AT&T crippling. Instead, I am willing to pay around $300 for an unlocked phone - read on.

I could not easily use the keyboard, even after 3 weeks, and my hands are smaller than average. Forget touch-typing a phone number in the dark. Also I made frequent mistypes when writing a message. After I returned the phone and reverted to my old Nokia 6085, I realized the simple numeric pad was much better for me. I will be buying a Nokia E75 or maybe E66 when I find the right price; my only regret with those models will be the smaller battery.

But my real complaint is AT&T. I installed the GMail Java app, and would be quite happy with it except that AT&T has imposed settings that require you to allow network access *everytime* you try to open a message. There is supposed to be a setting like "ask me once, when I run the application", but it has been removed (although it exists for some other apps).

My Motorola H680 headsets (I have 2) had extremely low volume when used with E71x, but function fine with my old 6085. Probably Nokia or AT&T has messed with the bluetooth profile, but with engineering codes I could fix it, but that won't happen with AT&T lockdown. When AT&T suggested that I buy their one and only approved bluetooth brand, Superior, I just about choked. Would you buy a product whose brand name was Superior? I don't want to hunt for yet another headset (I went thru 7 different headsets before I settled on the Moto H680); my hope is that an unlocked phone will act better.

Without the AT&T E71x, I can buy the $15/mo unlimited plan, as opposed to the $30/mo unlimited plan that AT&T forces on users of locked PDA style phones. Interesting, different degrees of unlimited, just like transcendental numbers - different degrees of infinity.

I stumbled upon other gotchas with AT&T E71x, not too serious. You are unable to dial phone numbers that are a mix of numbers and letters, e.g., 1-800-CALLATT, in part because the numeric pad is embedded in the QWERTY, like on your laptop computer. Nevertheless, the unlocked E71 reportedly has a way around it that has been removed in E71x. Why?

Quick summary:
PROS: great phone, but maybe you want the unlocked version. Great battery life.
CONS: keyboard too small. Maybe you want E66 or E75 instead.

====
Followup
I got the Nokia E75 unlocked. Despite the much higher cost, I am totally satisfied. Two important improvements: my Moto bluetooth headsets now have normal volume and Gmail application only requires one confirmation to allow network access.
The shorter battery life has not been a problem - it's still pretty good. Access to Nokia OVI store is a plus. Nokia Maps is fully functional and has turn-by-turn voice directions.
Photos can be geotagged and then uploaded to Flickr with only a few button presses.
Of course the E75 keyboard is really a joy!