For us, the E71 is the upgrade from the Nokia E61i which I have written about previously (Sony Ericsson p1i and the Nokia e61i) so it was interesting to compare this new kid on the block with both the E61i and my Nokia N95 8GB.

The E71 is smaller in dimensions than the E61i but larger (though slimmer) than the N95. The device feels a lot weightier in the hand than the Nokia N95 but it does feel more substantial (in comparison the N95 feels a little plasticky) and the ridge on the back underneath the camera helps prevent it sliding away. The metallic shininess of this model (Grey Steel) reflects a lot of light especially when sitting in an office with fluorescent lighting – but at least the screen display feels brighter although the screen is a lot smaller (2.4") than the E61i screen (2.8").

The interface feels a lot snappier, it is a little different too. Whereas the N95 interface is similar to the E61i the E71 has a less corporate feel to it. Also, the camera has undergone a bit of an upgrade to 3.2MP from the 2MP on the E61i but this rarely gets used in our environment where messaging is the key – and it is no match for the beefy 5MP on my Nokia N95 8GB.

The QWERTY keyboard, although much smaller than the E61i, with its domed keys, is surprising user friendly even for big fingers like mine and even though the keys are much smaller than those on the N95 it does have a more definite feel to press the keys – I wouldn’t want to be typing long wordy masterpieces though – I haven’t found a mobile device yet that offers that sort of luxury. Mind you, it took quite a few seconds figuring out what and where the function key was (you have to find this unlabelled function key to unlock the phone from standby – hint: it is at the bottom on the left).

Fortunately Mail for Exchange feels pretty familiar although it’s not in the same place as it was on the e61i – I couldn’t find the configuration section at first then discovered that the first time I tried to install a mailbox – it self installed Mail for Exchange. After that point, configuring messaging using Mail for Exchange was very straightforward as it was with the e61i which I imagine is a boon when configuring lots of these devices.

Time will tell whether the Google based G1 will prove to be a viable alternative, but so far the Nokia E71, as a step up from the e61i, is my current preferred choice for corporate messaging.

Further Reading

• PC Pro Product Reviews: Nokia E71
• Nokia E71
• Nokia E71 Review on CNET.co.uk
• Wiki: Nokia E71
• Nokia E71 smartphone | Register Hardware
• JKE’s Nokia E71 review: (6) software
• TheTechnologyBlog.biz Nokia E71