E61i Thoughts - Oh That Build Quality!
The moment you hold the E61i in your hand, you know that this device was built with respect to the customer in mind. The materials are noble and there’s no way someone could mistake the E61i for a cheapo. From the silver metal that covers the battery and surrounds the screen, to the non slipping brown coated plastic that lays on the borders, to the nice rubbery feeling of the keys, and even the white sturdy plastic that is used on the top and bottom, everything on this device begs to be caressed. Everything also snaps into place, with no gaps, no wobbles and no squeaks, making the E61i a whole unit, that will take some beating and still come out victorious.
The battery cover, which I said is made of a silver metallic material, collects some fingerprints, but it’s nothing like the N81 for example, so it’s barely annoying. Also the E61i is rather a chubby device, but it it is refreshingly thin and fits so nicely in the hand, especially in mine which seems awkwardly adapted to its dimensions. It is also a heavy handset, but that doesn’t come as a negative aspect since the weight is due to all that metal and thick plastic that it uses.
The keypad is very well lit in white and blue, and you can laugh at me, but this is the first time I notice the light sensor in action. When in poor light conditions, the keypad will light up, but when there’s enough light around, it will turn off, saving some battery. I know many devices have it, but no one mentions it, so I think it should be said every once in a while to remind the customers.
All in all, I am still totally in love with the way the E61i looks and feels. Now if I HAD TO find some defaults, there would be 3 things I would’ve liked to be improved :
- the center d-pad button: it’s somehow less intuitive than the other buttons to press, partly due to the raised d-pad rectangle surrounding it. I am getting the hang of it, but still it’s not very intuitive.
- the difficulty of removing and placing the battery cover in, since there are rails to guide it, but they are on different level on each side. But this somehow contributes to the overall no-gap advantage of the device, so I won’t complain a lot about it.
- the lack of any sort of light around the d-pad, not that it’s hard to find in darkness, but it would’ve been aesthetically better to have one.
I honestly wish all Nokia devices were built like the E61i, especially Nseries, something I moaned about just the other day. To me, a device is as sexy as it is elegant. And the E61i is more than just elegant, it is elegantly robust.
I agree with you that it´s a great device. Had mine since April last year. A perfect device would be E61i with better camera, video 30 fps, TV Out, Xenon flash and the most important update would be More RAM. It´s so annoying many times when browsing the web and all is shut down because the lack of enough RAM. I was looking forward to the upcoming E71 but guess it will not be my next device because of the smaller screen. Guess it´s not have my wishes above regarding video and TV Out as well. Was planning to get a N95 8GB but afraid I will miss the E61i keyboard too much.
I saw one at a trade show last summer where Nokia was an exhibitor and the steel (aluminum, whatever) back was completely scratched up… To me that’s a turn off if a device shows extreme signs of wear and tear like that.
-Pete
After more then a years heavy using I still can`t complain regarding the battery cover that is still pretty nice!
I agree with Janptr, it doesn’t seem that the back can be scratched THAT easily. It will take some scratches if it’s put in the same pocket with some keys, but other than that, i believe it’ll stay like it is.
Dotsisx, as a fellow S60 N95 user and medical student, I’d like to ask you if you find the E61i and soon to be E71i to be more suitable for medical work than the N95. Particulary because of the full querty keyboard and all the situations when you have to look something up really fast.
Off topic: I know you’ve been wondering how skyscape is working on S60. Judging from my expirience with the N95 and Tabers, it’s too slow to be usable and nowhere near the expirience on a Windows Mobile or Palm device. So for now I’d advise you to stay away from it.
MaTiCek, you are right about the use as a medical assistant, and I sent you a detailed email regarding that.
I am completely in love with my E61i. I’ve had it for over a year now, but there is just one small problem that’s developed. When I just the keyboard, I hear a cracking/snapping noise. I believe this may be some sort of membrane under the keypad that’s shifted position, but I’m not sure. It doesn’t affect the functionality of the phone, but it is slightly annoying.
Oh well, my E61i has gotten a lot of use. I hope to get the E71 when it becomes available.
Jun 2nd, 2008 at 10:25 am
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Jun 3rd, 2008 at 8:19 am
[...] Over at Symbian Guru, Dotsisx has been waxing lyrical about the build quality of the E61i. [...]