Nokia 6030

...time to go for a nokia one. I looked on the internet and to my surprise there was only one nokia phone listed, the nokia 6030 but one that was good enough to do the job. As I will only be using this phone for calling and texting agencies for work, I wasn't too fussed by the fact that there was no camera, Bluetooth etc.

I ordered this phone using the free landline ordering service 2 days ago and was pleasantly surprised at how quick ...
...card, Orange user guide and nokia 6030 manual that comes with it. Sometimes you can get phones that come in boxes that are 2 big for the amount of stuff you get which in my opinion is a complete waste of space. Others come with their accessories sent in several boxes which take up too much storage space. So this time I think orange have got it right.

On one side of the box it tells me all the information on the phone such as its sim ... more

*Updated Review 1st January 2007*

*Pre-amble*

When my existing contract had expired and sticking with an orange pay as you go was costing me a fortune (especially after Orange had removed text saver from their packages), it was time for me to shop around and see what deals I could get. Yes before you ask I do have 2 phones (one I use for work and the other for leisure).

I saw an advert in the metro last week that got my heart racing and sounded exciting. A company that work alongside Carphone Warehouse were offering people 12 months free line rental on a 12 month contract. I looked further and noticed that orange had a couple up for grabs. Great I thought just what I need. I don't have a landline so I'm constantly relying on my mobile phone. The fact that I could get 200 free minutes and 75 free texts and a further 50 weekends/evenings orange - orange minutes a month was even better. What's more is the 200 minutes you get a month are rollover ones so if you don't use them all up; your balance gets transferred onto the following month. Unfortunately, if you don't use your 50 orange to orange minutes and or your 75 free texts in a month, these are lost and will not rollover to the next month.

Having experienced problems in the past with my Sony Ericsson T630 (as previously reviewed) and found the battery life on the LG's don't last as long in my experience than the nokia's I decided this time to go for a nokia one. I looked on the internet and to my surprise there was only one nokia phone listed, the nokia 6030 but one that was good enough to do the job. As I will only be using this phone for calling and texting agencies for work, I wasn't too fussed by the fact that there was no camera, Bluetooth etc.

I ordered this phone using the free landline ordering service 2 days ago and was pleasantly surprised at how quick they managed to get it out to me. It came as promised this morning and so far so good.

*Packaging*

The phone itself comes in the standard orange boxes with some advertising of their orange Wednesdays 2 for 1 offer on cinema tickets. The size of the box is adequate for the charger, hands free kit, sim card, Orange user guide and nokia 6030 manual that comes with it. Sometimes you can get phones that come in boxes that are 2 big for the amount of stuff you get which in my opinion is a complete waste of space. Others come with their accessories sent in several boxes which take up too much storage space. So this time I think orange have got it right.

On one side of the box it tells me all the information on the phone such as its sim card number, IMEI, Mobile number etc. This is handy (especially if you have to ring up customer services for any faults with the phone it saves alot of time and effort in the long term).

Another side it gives me all the orange terms and conditions with regards to the phone.

The back of the box tells me what additional services Nokia provide. Always useful to know, showing that they really do care for their customers.

I am really impressed with the box itself. I might store the phone in there whenever not in use.

*Instruction Manuals*

This particular phone comes with 3 comprehensive user guides: - Nokia 6030 quick Start guide
Nokia 6030 instruction manual
Orange user guide.

*Nokia 6030 quick start guide*

This is a 6 page pamphlet giving you step by step instructions on how to put your phone together before you can start using it. Don't worry you don't have to be a wiz kid to suss this out as it comes with illustrations to help out even the non-techno minded. It also provides you with a brief overview on the various buttons and their functions. On the final page it tells you the different menu options and their functions.

*Nokia 6030 instruction manual*

This is probably the one thing you need to get the most out of your phone. If you have used nokia mobiles before, some things are pretty standard. Like the whole installation process, charging, switching the phone on and off, setting the dates and times etc. It's all set out in such a way that is easy to understand. This booklet too comes with illustrations. Of course there will be chapters you can skip to suit your needs. All clearly headed and outlined.

*Orange User guide*

This booklet is mainly aimed and new orange customers, advising them of what things orange has to offer. Also tells you which buttons to press if you want to check your existing balance, listen to voicemails etc. It is also useful for existing orange customers too as it keeps them informed and upto date with the additional extras such as memory mate, family plans and even tells you how you can recycle your old phones. Towards of the back of the manual it goes through the terms and conditions and the frequently asked questions from customers. Perhaps that is worth a quick glance so that you are familiar with your contract/pre-pay and what services you can get on either (depending on whichever one you have gone for).

Now on to the Nokia 6030 itself.......

*Appearance*

It comes in 2 different colours, matt black or silver. Lucky me I've ended up with a beaming silver one that looks so cool and sophisticated. I definitely won't be embarrassed to carry this little beauty around with me.

When I pick up the phone, it is so light. Mind you according to the nokia website it only weighs 90g. It can easily fit into your pocket or a handbag. The size of the phone itself is about right. Not too big not too small. If you put it in your pocket you can easily feel it's there.

*Functions of the Nokia 6030*

So you have read the manuals and installed the phone. All that's left is switch on the phone and let's go.

It comes on with the welcome display. On the bottom of the display screen it has 3 subheadings: Goto, Menu and Names

Goto:
This is a shortcut way of getting to your favourite orange menu. The most recently looked at options will come up first. Always handy when you are in a hurry.

I say this section of the phone only has shortcuts but after hours of playing with it I notice that I have to use this menu option if I want to change the sound level of the ringing/messaging tone. This is a pain as I have been so used to nokia's having a separate menu called "Profiles" where you can change the sound level to discreet, silent, outdoor etc. I think this is probably one of the most important features of a phone and one that this one lacks. Not only do I have to scroll through serveral shortcut option bars but I can only see 2 different sound level options. Silent and General. Today I have a few missed calls but I didn't even hear the phone ring nor vibrate. I always found outdoor profile useful whenever I was in noisy shopping malls or concerts. Discrete was good for those times when you want to know someone's been trying to get hold of you without others knowing. Now those useful options have gone, I have to make do with the display screen.

Menu:

Unfortunately this is another thing you have to get used to. To actually get into this option I have to press on the joystick which I've found to be abit temperamental. Especially if your a person like me whose always used to buttons.

If I scroll down using the joystick it gives me over 10 different options.

1) Messages: The standard options required for text messaging such as inbox, outbox, save sent items, save messages, delete, settings. All easy to get to and use.

2) Call register: This allows me to see the lists of whom I have dialled and who's called me. Even gives me a counter so I can keep an account of how long I've been on the phone. Of course this counter can be reset at any time.

In this menu section I can check how much data has been received and how long I have been on the orange WAP service (internet on the mobile). If you are only using the phone to call and text (like me) don't worry about those features as they won't be required.

Although cunning orange have automatically put me on a 4MB World access pack (apparently this is common practise for all new connection users for them to do this but you should be able to cancel this function when you've received your first invoice for the phone). If you are a pre pay (pay as you go) customer there is no need to panic. As long as you don't use the WAP you won't be charged.

3) Contacts: This is probably one of the most important features of the phone. This is the menu which keeps your entire phonebook. You can also access your contact phone book by going to the Name option that you saw on the welcome display.

You can choose how you want to see your numbers appear on the display within this option. You can even back up, copy or move numbers from your phone to sim or sim to phone. How you like it so there's no excuses for not being able to get hold of those important people in your life. I can look at a glance as to how much memory I have left on both sim and phone 2. If you are concerned about losing your numbers, orange provide a service called memory mate. All you do is take your phone to your local retail outlet and they'll back upto 250 numbers and 10 text messages onto a memory mate card for you at the price of £2.99.

4) Settings:

This menu allows you to change the overall look of your phone. You can switch your phone to silent, loud, and even off in the profile section. It allows you to change the wallpaper (what shows up on display when you switch on your phone), ring tones, set the time and date and change your call settings.

5) Gallery:

In this section you will be able to view all the wallpaper and pictures along with ring tones you have stored on your phone. If you don't like any you see you can easily download more from the WAP service but be warned there will be an additional item per item received.

6) Radio:

Unfortunately you cannot listen to the radio unless your hands free kit is securely in place. I can save upto 20 different channels on this device. These have to be manually set. This can take ages (especially if you are a joystick hater). Frequency is in MHZ. I've tried to set and I've got alot of background noise. Well I guess this is standard if you are not on a frequency station. When I've finally got to a station the volume on it isn't brilliant so might have to go back to the settings to make it louder. Pity because this volume setting is fine for chatting to friends on the phone. In fact in some cases it's been quite loud and hurt my ears. However there is a loudspeaker facility but that's really ideal (especially if you want to listen on the move).

7) Organiser:

This menu is perfect for getting you up in the morning. Comes with the standard incredibly loud alarm clock that will wake anyone up. No excuses now, you will be in time for work, school etc.

Comes with calendar. Ideal for keeping alerts for important meetings.

Calculator. Always handy to have one on the go

8) Applications:

This is the option to keep you entertained when you're bored. Unfortunately this phone only comes with 1 game called adventure park, a modern version of Tetras. Even gives you instructions on how to get to grips with the game. I love this game (especially to pass the time on those long coach/train journeys). The downside of playing this game is that you need to use the joystick and I keep losing because of it!!

You can always download more again from the orange WAP service which I probably won't be doing as like with the downloaded ring tones there is an additional charge that's not included in the package :-(.

The 2nd application on the phone is called converter II. It is a useful tool to have, giving various conversion options for currency, weight, length, area and volume. You'll never get stuck again!!

9) Web:

All the basic functions required to access and use the web. This isn't really relevant if you will only be using the phone for calling and texting. If you click on the home option it'll come with the orange home WAP page and you can choose what options you desire from it. With this menu you can bookmark your favourite links too. Again another tool handy for when you're in a hurry.

And last but not least

10) Orange Plus
Useful menu option if you want to check your account to discover how many free minutes and you have left in the month, along with an option to call orange for any queries you may have. The orange helpline is open 24 hours a day so you have a peace of mind knowing that they'll be someone there on the other end of the phone to help you out as and when needed.

*Battery Life*

As with most nokia's I have used in the past, this phone is no exception. Some days I forget to charge it up and it's still going strong. It has taken me approximately 5 days of normal usage before the battery has gone flat. I have used LG phones where the battery life seems to be no more than a day. In fact, I remember one day using an LG phone and it merely lasted 40 minutes before the battery went dead. I have managed to survive without charging this phone for an entire week too and it still goes strong. I'm not saying it would be like that for everyone but on that side of things I'm quite satisfied with it.

*Overall*

I am impressed with the phone itself. It does what I need and it's not as slow as my Sony Ericsson (which I've endless problems with). The phone came with some charge so it didn't take long to restore it upto it's full battery life. The only downside is the joystick which I'm still having difficulty getting my head or hand around it but I'm sure with time that'll be resolved.

Some might be disappointed that there is no camera facility with this phone. Nor does it have Bluetooth or infra red. On mine the connectivity is packet data (which I think is the standard one orange has put on there). But if you are just using the phone for calling and texting then it does it job and does it well.

*Price*

I have seen it on www.carphonewarehouse.com priced at £49.95, which includes £10 airtime credit on T-mobile pay as you go (including delivery). You might be able to get one cheaper on Amazon or eBay. Some networks lock the phones so if you get one and you want to put any sim card in it you might have to unlock it first. Please note thou if you do unlock the phone you might not necessarily be able to use all the features such as the WAP. But if it's purely for basic use what you can use (calling and texting facilities) will be sufficient.

As I said before, I got mine on a 12 months line rental contract deal on orange via The One Stop Phone Shop website. How this works is I have to pay orange £32.55 each month (£30 line rental plus VAT and billing charges) to orange. After the first two months, Carphone Warehouse automatically sends me a cheque back for £113. Then after the 4th, 8th and 12th months I send copies of the 1st 2 pages of my original bill statements from orange and they send me cheques of £83 each time. This can take upto 3 months after sending your bill to come through but don't despair you do get them eventually.

*Update 1st January 2007*

I would definitely recommend this company to anyone and you do get your money back as promised. I sent my 4th bill statements at beginning November 2006 and I received the cheque just before Christmas 2006. I managed to cash it in without any problems.

They told me you will get the billing charges refunded back but when I have calculated you only get the basic line rental. This means you are still paying approximately £2 a month for the phone but it is still worth it considering the amount of minutes and text messages you get with it.

*But what if I need to keep my statements?*

Don't worry you can keep your original bill statements from orange or whoever you take up the contract with. In fact it is advisable to send them copies (NOT originals) as these can easily get lost in the post. They only need this as proof of who the money is going to etc.

You have 28 days from the time you get your bill to the time they have to have received it by. I know some companies are harsh and have more restrictions but Carphone Warehouse are pretty good in looking after their customers by giving them enough time to do this. I would advise sending the bills out to them via registered post. This is the safest way plus you can check online to track the order and see for yourself as to whether or not they have actually received it.

If you are still worried, you should get a text message from Carphone Warehouse a week later to say that your credit has been raised and an approximate date as to when you will receive the cheque.

*So if it's almost free does it ever run out*

Depending on which type of contract you go for will determine how much discount you can have. Contracts on mobile phones are usually either 12 months or 18. If you are like me and always looking for the best deal on the market, I would recommend only going for 12 months. If you do choose this option, please remember to let your network provider know your cancelling either by telephone or writing 6 weeks prior to the contract expiring. This gives them enough time to terminate the contract, port your number across (if you want to keep that number) and complete all the necessary paperwork. If you fail to let them know within the 12 months then the network will assume you are happy and you won't be entitled for any further reductions/discounts.

If you want to know more about the mobile phone itself, why not visit the official nokia website at www.nokia.com and type Nokia 6030 into the search box. Gives you a good guide with all its specifications.

If you want to know more about the various deals you can get log onto www.carphonewarehouseclearance.com. It then gives you various options depending on the type of handset, network or phone package you are after. The other website I used has links to this one so more or less the same deals/packages are on both.

Unfortunately, since I purchased this phone 6 months ago you can no longer obtain this particuliar phone on the same package as I have described but you may be able to get similiar deals.

Thanks for reading!!
 

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