NOKIA E50: Taking care of business on the phone

What is it about doing business that makes it need a special phone? One thing we have noticed is that when taking care of business using the cell phone, good looks are not a must.

"Having a candy-bar shape" is about the closest fashionista comment that would fit the phone. And for those of us who like to make sure that our phones perform (and come across as eye candy, too) that means the Nokia E50 is really suited for the serious businessperson.

But don’t get me wrong; I am not griping about the E50. It was made for serious business, and serious business means no fuss, no frills, straight-to-the point sort of form, I guess.

The phone is loaded, though. Juts like what any businessman or woman may order from the phone provider.

The phone is in a classic candy-bar design with a sort of stylish outline. A large part of the phone is made of metal, the surface around the display and the whole battery cover, which takes up most of the backside of the phone.

The rest of the phone is dark-gray matte plastic and the keys, despite being plastic, are the same color as the metal parts and are suited really well to the whole design of the phone. They are tightly placed next to one another with no space between them and the size of the buttons in the middle column is slightly bigger. Although each of the keys is raised in the middle, they are sometimes hard to distinguish and there’s a big possibility of making a mistake while typing.

The joystick is located, just like in the other Nokia phones, at the center of the system buttons and it’s enclosed so that you don’t make a mistake while using it. The surrounding area lights up in blue when the backlight of the keypad is on. I noticed though that if you don’t have very good eyesight, the backlight can appear weak and you can hardly see the numbers in the dark, while the letters can be a bit difficult to read, unlike the phone display which is bright enough and well-lit, thanks to the light sensor, and it’s clearly seen even in bright sunlight. The display is a two-inch one with a resolution of 240 x 320 pixels and can reproduce up to 262k colors, which are not very saturated. The pixels are small and pictures viewed on the screen look precise and detailed.

The phone has four side buttons: the two on the left side are for the sound volume, and the ones on the right side are the Voice Key and the Edit button. The latter is usually located on the front of the phone; it’s used both for changing the way you enter text and selecting/marking multiple fields/items at a time, a few pictures, for example. The volume control buttons are easy to reach, though. The Power button, as usual, is located at the top; it’s a bit hidden as you have to push the whole surface, which in turn comes into contact with the button underneath. This is uncomfortable but at the same time, it makes sure that the button will not be pressed by accident while the phone’s in your pocket.

This latest addition to the Nokia Eseries family of business devices, the Nokia E50 has excellent voice, e-mail and data capabilities. It offers enterprises a cost-efficient way to extend mobility to a broader range of employees, enabling them to access company telephony and business applications whenever required. Just as important the globally viable Nokia E50 device is easily and securely managed by a company’s IT department through Intellisync Device Management solution.

With classic Nokia design, the small, sleek, and stylish Nokia E50 is also designed for people who want a single phone for both business and leisure use.

A mouthful for sure. Don’t let the techie jargon fool you though. The phone is simple to use and makes connections really quick. For example, the device comes equipped with pre-installed business applications, exceptional voice and calling functionality, and the ability to have two phone numbers in one phone, while lifestyle features include an MP3 player and optionally a 1.3-megapixel camera, all packaged in a discreet glossy metallic case with a touch of color.

I mean, gone are the days when we needed just to text and call. More and more people are coming to use the phone for downloading their e-mail and making sure connections can be made Wi-Fi. After all, there are so many hotspots all over the place that it would be a shame not to be able to get connected with your phone if you happen to be hanging out there.

Built on S60 third edition smartphone platform and Symbian OS for enhanced security features and device control, the Nokia E50 supports popular corporate mobile e-mail solutions, including Intellisync Wireless E-mail by Nokia, BlackBerry Connect, Visto Mobile, Altexia, and Microsoft ActiveSync.

The thinnest Nokia Eseries quad-band phone (EGSM 850/900/1800/1900), the Nokia E50 supports GSM networks worldwide, offering clear phone calls and rich voice and calling functionalities. With up to six hours of talk time, it offers significantly high battery performance for such a small phone.