The X6 factor

MANILA, Philippines - It was Holy Week. It was the perfect time to get to know the Nokia X6.

So, I sat myself down, loaded the ever-reliable SIM card and got cracking, or techie-cracking, I should say.

The experience with this Nokia began with its name. X6. Sounds kinda techie, kinda robotic, or so I thought.

And then I got into the many meanings of “X” mode.

There are many kinds of Xs in one’s life. Let’s see.

For the broken hearted there is always an ex or several exes (depending on how broken the heart is). For those of us who are always looking to lose a few pounds there is always an “X-cess” of weight. For those who love to spin wild tales there is “X-agg” factor. And for the person who has it all, well there is the “X” factor.

I know that cellphone reviews are supposed to talk about the X factor of the gadget — so, I had to look a little beyond the name Nokia X6 to find just what X factors this candybar-music cellphone had.

For starters its launch came close at the heels of the Nokia X3 and then there were a few Nokia Xpress Music phones launched recently.

So, you could say that the Finish company was developing its X factor cellphone — and then some.

For starters the Nokia X6 is an all-touch flagship cellphone with 32GB internal memory and a five-megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss optics.

First impression: Just perfect.

I am not one of those to quibble too much about how many megapixels a cellphone camera has; if I want a camera, I would get one. And I believe that the cellphone camera is good to have in situations where you might need a backup photo — not the main photo.

Yet let me add here that I liked the resolution and the photos I took with the X6. Just great.

It seemed to me with this new Nokia X6 the Finnish company aims to have cellphones that can reach all markets. And the Xpress Music cellphones, the X3 and the Nokia X6 are testaments to this.

Particularly, the Nokia X3 is the first S40 based phone to offer the Ovi Store, while the Nokia X6 is a full-fledged smartphone powered by Symbian S60 5th Edition.

Time to rock

I had to get my fave tunes loaded in the X6 using my reliable microSD, which is loaded with the only tunes I listen to.

It was fun, I mean playing music on the X6. First, the cellphone was very much capable of music and video playback. The video playback I discovered when I played the pre-installed video on the phone.

“Did you notice how much internal memory there is?” asked Richie Garcia, my not-so-young techie friend. “Just think about how good the music player on this baby is. Large internal memory for more songs, a 3.5-mm headphone jack, and an on-screen Media Bar. Time to chill to the music.”

OK, so I did take a few minutes to check on the music player. But, I told Richie that I use the cellphone for texting, calling, surfing, personalizing, taking emergency shots, and then perhaps if there is time, listening to music.

Surfs up

So, I checked out the Nokia X6s browser. The OSS Web browser is another plus going for this cellphone. I logged on to one of my favorite sites — and browsing was easy as easy as can be. The Webkit engine rendering of webpages and Adobe Flash Lite 3 even let me play YouTube right from the site.

I was glued to the X6 for quite a while — surfing had won me over.

I was equally impressed with how quickly the touch screen on the X6 responded. Really, there was no lag time — you know the few seconds it takes for the cellphone to react when you touch the screen. Well, the X6 has none of that. It responds to touch really well. With the 3.2-inch screen of the Nokia X6, overall sensitivity is substantially improved.

The front side of the Nokia X6 is where the video, call, camera touch-sensitive buttons are located. These buttons call up a dedicated shortcut menu, send and end keys as well as a button to open the main menu.

It was easy to fall for the touch and feel of the X6. The cellphone is light, but its feel in the hand is solid.

The X factors

I’m never sure what anyone means when they talk about the X factor.

For some people it’s that something extra that a person has, beyond looks and personality. For others it’s the combination of personality and looks that make up the X factor.

For the Nokia X6 the X factor starts from the outside and goes all the way to what it has inside.

The front side of the Nokia X6 is where the video call camera and some of the hardware buttons are. The SIM card slot is located on the left side. On the opposite side is the camera shutter, screen lock switch and volume rocker. All the buttons were easy to use and very Nokia. So, they felt familiar all at once. The X6 also has a symmetrical design and the space above and below the display and to the edges is equal.

What more can I say?

The Nokia X6 is one compact cellphone that can do so much more than meets the eye. Matter of fact, at first look I though the X6 was no big deal.

But it feels great to be wrong. The Nokia X6 is everything that any music lover would look for in a cellphone. Really, it plays all those tunes, really well. It functions like a cellphone, I mean, it can send and receive text messages and calls. It takes cool photos and above all it can get to websites really quick and keep you connected for as long as your connection provider will allow. What more can there be?

I guess, for the younger set of cellphone users — these functions would make the cut. But if I could dream on, I would. And let me share with you what I wish a cellphone could also do.

I wish that cellphones came with plugs that could take my BP anytime I felt it was getting a little too high for comfort. I wish the cellphone had a sensor, which I could place in my underarm, to check if I had a fever.

I know, I know, my age is showing — and so are my concerns. But really we live in a world where everything (almost everything) is portable.

From games, to MP3 players to DVD players to laptops and then to cellphones.

But, for now, I am happy that Nokia has loaded all it possibly can into a nifty cellphone called the X6.

With the X6, X6 marks the spot in this techie-lover’s heart.