Nokia E7-00

We've been waiting for the Nokia E7 for a few months now, but the new high-end smartphone aimed at business users is finally here.  The Finnish manufacturer's latest flagship has a touchscreen, a full-size slide-out keyboard and a whole range of multimedia features.  But what's it like as an everyday mobile?  And does it have much hope of reaching a wider public, just as keen at staying in contact as busy professionals?  Let's take a closer look ...

Strong and solid

More or less the same size as the N8, which has more media features and is aimed at a wider user base, the E7 has a rather unusual look.  It's a mixture of classic Nokia styling and a more modern approach.  Whether you like the look of it or not though, it's easy to hold.


But if you're used to thinner, lighter handsets, the bulk and weight (176 g) of the E7 might take some getting used to.  You definitely realise you've got a small computer in your pocket.


Nokia has clearly paid some careful attention to the choice of materials and the build quality, which is reassuringly solid.  Indeed, it's so tough that we wonder if the manufacturer hasn't gone too far in this direction: the keyboard, for instance, is pretty stiff, and you have to push pretty hard on both sides of the screen to slide it out.  It doesn't feel very natural but you have to get used to.  It doesn't fall over on a flat surface with the screen tilted back, which is useful for watching a film, reading an article or even writing a message.


The 4'',  640 x 360 pixel touchscreen displays deep blacks, mostly accurate colours and is accurate enough. It's still usable outside, even in bright sunlight.

 
But what about that backlit keyboard, which is supposed to be one of the main draws on this phone that's all about messaging?   It's fine, as long as you don't mind keys that aren't very deep and don't stick out very far.  There's plenty of space between them so you don't run the risk of a typo, and we're sure some people will be able to bash out a message without even looking down at the keyboard.  As is usual on a phone with a physical keyboard, there are some direct shortcuts to some key features.

We'd happily do without the virtual keyboard.  It's handy if you want to jot something down quickly while holding the phone in one hand.  One of the disadvantages of phones with a slide-out landscape keyboard like this is that you always need two hands for typing.  If you have a portrait keyboard—whether it moves or not—you don't face the same problem.

Interface and menus

The E7 runs Nokia's own operating system, Symbian ^3 which is showings its age, doesn't look great and quite frankly can't rival the easy of use and simplicity of most of its rivals.  Nokia has tried hard over the past few months, but it's not been a total success.  The only hope for the E7 in this area is the fact that it's mostly aimed at business people rather than the general public.

Apps open quickly, but the whole experience is far from smooth.  Moving from one homescreen to the next can sometimes be jumpy, as can scrolling through a web page or playing a game.  Gaming, of course, it's exactly what this phone is designed for.

Multimedia

Nokia might not be billing the E7 as a multimedia smartphone, but it still has an 8 Megapixel camera, an FM radio and the ability to shoot 720p video.

The interface in the audio player app could use a facelift, but the E7 is more than capable of satisfying anybody who wants to listen to a few songs on their mobile every now and again.  There's support for plenty of audio formats, including MP3, WMA and AAC.

Although it's lacking in power, the output from the loudspeaker is reasonable, and the signal from the headphone jack is acceptable.  The FM radio works very well and only takes five seconds to identify a list of stations.  Mobile professionals will no doubt be impressed.

Let's take a look at the camera on the E7, which Nokia has decided didn't need an autofocus.  To avoid blurry photos, you need to stand a long way back from what you're taking a photo of.  There's not much point in trying the flash, which often leads to over-exposure.  You get much better results in a well-lit environment.  The photos produced are decent overall, with a reasonable level of detail for a phone like this.  There is still, however, a little bit of discolouration around the edges.

You can zoom in while you're recording video and the results are decent and relatively smooth.