Nokia 8800 Arte Review
The Nokia 8800 Arte is not exactly a new handset but because of the expensive price tag it has not been a phone I looked at buying for myself. So when eXpansys came along and offered me a loan unit for a week to review I was more than happy to take it off their hands.
A big thanks to the team over at eXpansys for arranging a loan 8800 Arte for review. So onto the specs…….
Now onto the main part of the review starting with a look at the phone
Looking Around The 8800 Arte
The left side of the 8800 Arte is pretty plain with just one of the release buttons for taking the back cover off
The top of the phone has a single button which is the power on and power off, Already you can see Nokia are trying to keep things pretty simple in the design of the phone
The right hand side of the phone has the other release button for the back cover and at the top there is the speakerphone.
The bottom of the Arte has a Mini-USB port which is used for the USB cable, the headset and the charger.
Looking straight at the phone you cannot help but notice just how good the phone really looks, its stunning black finish with silver trim on the slide and keeping buttons to a minimum really do the 8800 Arte a favor.
At the top of the phone you get a light sensor to adjust the keypad lighting and the backlight too which saves you power when you need it most. You get the speaker for when in calls and the audio was very clear and crisp from my testing, no echo or crackle effect its near on perfect which you would expect from a phone of this price. You get a 2.0 inch OLED screen which can display 16 million colours and the display is gorgeous it is so clear and bright, perfect for viewing photos although the size is a little on the small size.
Below the screen you get a up/down/left/right and middle select navigation pad which feels good when using and with the 8800 running S40 the phone is really snappy. There are 4 more buttons which are hidden when the phone is not in use and they are 2 shortcut keys which you can personalize to your needs, and 2 buttons to make and end phone calls. Again, Nokia keeping to a basic minimum look and this really works well.
Slide the cover down and you have a traditional 12 button keypad which is black but with silver buttons and these light up white when the phone is used in the dark.
The back of the phone is where you find the 3.15 megapixel camera, and it is a real shame there is no flash as you will see in some of the photo samples, the camera is good in sunlight but no so good when the conditions are not as good.
Specification & Features
The 8800 Arte is not a top spec phone, it has some good features though such as 1GB internal memory for storing your photos and videos, plus of course music, it is a shame there no external memory you are limited to what you are given. Although 1GB is a lot built in a phone, when you start adding video and music you can soon use that up in no time.
There is a high quality 16 million color screen using OLED but again it is a shame the size is only 2.0 inch.
Nokia say the 8800 Arte is ‘Scratch Resistant’ and it may well hold up to that status, I was not going to find out as this was a loan unit and if I scratched it I would be in trouble!. There was a tiny nick on the back when it came as this particular model was classed as a ‘refurbished’ model which was how I was able to get my hands on one. There is no GPS on this phone which in a way is no real problem because I would not want to view a map on such a small screen anyway and with no HSDPA it would not be ideal.
This is actually the first S40 handset I have reviewed as I have never really followed that area of Nokia before, instead gunning for the top end S60 range due to what I use a phone for, however S40 is making a good name for itself with handsets like the Nokia 6700 due end of June with a 5 megapixel camera, 10mb/s HSDPA and 2mb/s HSUPA which not even the top top end N/ESeries phones have yet. S40 would be for the every day user who does not want to get into all the advanced features of the phone but wants a nice phone with a good set of usable features.
eXpansys have the following information on their website where the phone is currently on sale for around £450.00:
Design.
An unmistakable passion for detail, the finest natural materials used and state-of-the-art precision engineering combine for an experience like no other. The unique open and closing mechanism features a bi-stable spring and stainless steel ball bearing system, similar to those used in high-performance automobiles; all combine to result in a elegant seamless glide.
Touch.
Subtle and tactile, a delight to the senses when ever you touch the Nokia 8800 Arte. A sensual statement of style in – black metal and glass. The Nokia 8800 Arte is crafted from carefully selected materials of the finest quality. A solid metal body and scratch resistant mineral glass display are some of the brilliant and eclectic materials used in the Nokia 8800 Arte. Experience cutting edge technology seamlessly concealed within a minimalist masterpiece of timeless elegance.Hear.
Powerful and dramatic as life can be, the Nokia 8800 Arte lets capture these moments and preserve them on the 1GB of internal memory. A commissioned soundtrack by the master produces Kruder & Dorfmeister, with visuals by Fritz Fitzke, compositions exclusive to the Nokia 8800 Arte to delight the senses and underscore the sensual nature of the Nokia 8800 Arte.See.
An integrated 3.2 mega-pixel camera with automatic auto focus; captures the world around you. The brilliant 2″ OLED with 16 million colours plays back that world with exceptional clarity. Personal living wallpaper organically changes and grows with your own individual usage, reflecting the subtle and personal nature of the Nokia 8800 Arte.Powerful.
Responsive yet discreet. Simply tap the Nokia 8800 Arte lightly to reveal the time, or simply turn it face down to silence a ring. Ambient light sensors adjust the brightness of the screen according to your surroundings, to provide a vibrant display of light and contract.In The Box
- Nokia 8800 Arte
- Battery BL-4U
- Mains Charger
- User guide
As you can see in these camera examples, the camera is ‘ok’ but appears to have a blue/purple tint to the photos which does not help. There is also no flash, not even an LED one so you have to go with what ever lighting you have been given which is fine if the sun is out but if its cloudy or indoors there is no real use for the camera. Shame too. The camera is 3.15 megapixels and has Auto-Focus to help get a better shot.
Have you got one phone for work and another for play?. Well another handy tool up the sleeve of the E71 is a simple idea called ‘Switch’ where you can get one mode for personal settings like email accounts, to do lists and ringtone and have another profile for personal settings so once your out of work you can switch with one simple key press.
This is a first I have seen in a phone and once you have set it up right it is like you have two phones in one. More phones should have this feature going forward. Nokia if you are reading please keep this feature it is so handy especially for people who use the one phone for work and personal but want to keep work for work and personal for personal.
Connectivity Options
The 8800 Arte has the basics for connecting, it has:
- GPRS
- HSCSD
- EDGE
- Bluetooth
It is a shame there is no HSDPA on here but then again this phone is not exactly new, it went on sale early 2008 but still HSDPA was around. 3G is there for fast browsing on the phone and using the Opera browser which is pre-installed you do get a good on the phone browsing experience.
Battery Life & Build Quality
The build quality is what the Nokia 8800 Arte is all about. Made of Stainless Steel and with a sleek black and silver finish the 8800 defiantly looks the part and with a weight of 150g it feels it too!.
The reason this is such an expensive phone is the materials used and you would not expect anything less than the best for a phone at this price tag. The phone is heavy and most of the weight appeared to be in the bottom half of the slider.
Battery was REALLY good in testing, I charged it up on Tuesday night when I got it and started using from Wednesday. I did not have to charge again until Saturday and that was with phone calls, texts, web browsing and email being checked every 30 minutes. I think the power saving feature with the backlight and keypad light really helped me get this outstanding battery life.
Final Thoughts
I will be totally honest, the 8800 Arte is not a well specced phone. It lacks HSDPA, it lacks a camera flash and is very basic. However if you are looking at the phone or interested in buying it you already know that and are buying it for the premium materials used and high quality finish to the phone.
The 8800 Arte still goes for around £600-£700 online and this should be pretty much the base price as it will be discontinued before going any lower. When you look that the Carbon model is going for around £900 and the Gold model which we posted about a while back will set you back around £1,300, the black model for £600 is not a bad buy.
If you love your gadgets and features this wont be for you, if you put style and cost over features then take a look at the Nokia 8800 Arte, it screams expensive!
The great thing is, the 8800 Arte I was sent was not even new, it was a refurbished model but apart from the box I would not be able to tell the difference. Where I would notice the difference is the big saving in costs as a referb model comes in around £300 cheaper than a brand new model
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