So here's my (subjective, and note that the list isn't definitive) rating of a variety of Symbian-powered smartphones (from 2007 onwards, up to May 2010) purely on their mechanical robustness. Which ones would best survive a fall? In decreasing order of robustness (i.e. most robust first, most fragile last):
- Nokia E51 (S60 3rd Ed FP1, my wife's had a dousing in a 'clean' toilet, was dried out and has worked perfectly for the next nine months to the current day)
- Samsung i7110 (S60 3rd Ed FP2, all metal candybar)
- Nokia N82 (S60 3rd Ed FP1, all plastic candybar, but very resilient, as demonstrated here)
The editorial N82 after my fall 18 months ago, having taken a lot of my weight. Still working perfectly.
- Nokia E90 (S60 3rd Ed FP1, metal, metal, metal, despite the existence of the hinge mechanism - which is also metal)
- Nokia N79 (S60 3rd Ed FP2, similar to the N82 in terms of build and form, have seen this tortured at Nokia testing labs in person!)
- Nokia E71 (S60 3rd Ed FP1, lots of fiddly keys to break or let in dust, but really solid monoblock construction with plenty of metal - Rafe's has survived 10 minutes underwater in a stream)
- Samsung i550 (S60 3rd Ed FP1, metal chassis, very solid indeed, but a little thin)
- Nokia E52 (S60 3rd Ed FP2, aluminium candybar construction, not as solid as the E51 - can be twisted in the hand etc.
- Nokia E55 (S60 3rd Ed FP2, as for the E52 but with more keys, a fraction more to go wrong?!)
- Nokia N78 (S60 3rd Ed FP1, similar to the N82 but not quite as confidence-inspiring and no camera cover)
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That's my top 10. Here's the next 20, in order, for interest sake and for discussion. Again, note the list isn't definitive:
- Nokia E72 (S60 3rd Ed FP2, as with the E71, but not built quite as well, especially in terms of back cover retention and fit)
- Nokia N86 8MP (S60 3rd Ed FP2, toughened glass fascia, metal slide mechanism, excellent build)
- Nokia E63 (S60 3rd FP1, all plastic but fairly rugged)
- Nokia X6 (S60 5th Ed, toughened glass touchscreen, plastic candybar construction, camera glass exposed)
- Nokia 6650 (S60 3rd Ed, much underrated - and rare - clamshell, beautifully made and surprisingly tough - Rafe's survived a lot of beach use by me on holiday - don't tell Rafe, or he'll blame me for the sand in the hinge.....!)
- Samsung i8910 HD (S60 5th Ed, large but toughened glass screen, heavy duty plastic, heavily recessed camera glass, easy to drop because of its width/form factor)
- Samsung INNOV8 (S60 3rd Ed FP2, good build quality, slightly loose slide, camera protected)
- Nokia 5230 (S60 5th, rugged plastic (shock absorbent) candybar, recessed plastic touchscreen, lower spec components marginally less easily damaged than 5800's?)
- Nokia 5800 (S60 5th, rugged plastic candybar again, recessed plastic touchscreen)
- Nokia N85 (S60 3rd Ed FP2, all plastic, not brilliant build quality)
- Nokia E75 (S60 3rd Ed FP2, good metal build, but slide mechanism can wobble in various ways, huge number of moving parts too)
- Nokia 5530 (S60 5th, cheap plastic, screen not so recessed. Probably difficult to actually break though!)
- Nokia N97 mini (S60 5th Ed, fabulous build quality, considering the complexity of the mechanism, and stainless steel back, only the plastic touchscreen remains vulnerable)
- Nokia N96 (S60 3rd Ed FP2, a more secure slide mechanism than the N95's, slightly recessed camera glass - better than N95 8GB's)
- Nokia 5730 (S60 3rd Ed FP2, as E75 but in all-plastic, slide mechanism can wobble in various ways, huge number of moving parts too)
- Sony Ericsson Satio (S60 5th Ed, tablet form factor, cheap plastic all round and easily scratched, flush, resistive touchscreen)
- Nokia N95 8GB (S60 3rd Ed FP1, better slide than the N95's, but no camera protection - this is far too easily scratched)
- Nokia N97 (S60 5th Ed, fairly robust, considering the mechanism, but the touchscreen is easily scratched)
- Nokia N95 (S60 3rd Ed FP1, wobbly slide and weak plastic sides, and all)
- Sony Ericsson Vivaz (S60 5th Ed, tablet form factor, cheap plastic all round and easily scratched, flush, resistive touchscreen, plus appallingly exposed camera glass/lens)
What about you? Do you have any recent tales of Symbian-powered hardware surviving something dramatic?
Steve Litchfield, AAS, 28 May 2010