Something very different for AAS here - what we have here is custom firmware for a Nokia smartphone, in this case created by a Colombian enthusiast and aiming to bring old S60 5th Edition phones up as close to the modern Symbian experience as possible. That 'CFW Symbian Anna 7.9' (links and caveats below) ultimately still disappoints a 2012 phone user is 99% down to the limitations of the hardware of the time, mainly in terms of free RAM - but such improvements are still tremendously interesting, which is why it's receiving the review treatment here.
Following on from our favourable look at the Nokia C5-03's hardware, it's time to take the latest budget touchscreen and see how well it works as a smartphone. It's running Symbian^1, with the standard software load, but some love and attention on the user interface, with a touch of consistency and some backporting of Symbian^3 elements, proves that the C5-03 can still surprise us.
Nokia's latest handset in the lower ends of the market, the C5-03, comes with smart styling, lots of plastic and a price tag to match. Running Symbian^1 (the OS formerly known as S60 5th Edition), it appears to be Nokia's entry level touchscreen device for 2011. It's likely to be a popular handset on Pay as you Go and low priced monthly contracts, so let's have a closer look at it.
In the second part of his review of Nokia's new C6 (here's part 1), David Gilson looks at its camera and multimedia software bundle. Although there's little here that's actually new, what's surprising is the C6's speed - it seems that S60 5th Edition is now pretty well optimised in this regard.
David Gilson takes on Nokia's latest touchscreen hybrid smartphone, the C6-00, looking in this first review part at the raw hardware - how does the C6 stack up against the hardware in the 5800 and N97 mini, between which it seems to represent a middle ground? From overall styling and shape to keyboard ergonomics, David leaves no stone unturned... Future review parts will look at the C6's camera, multimedia and general applications and performance.
Steve Litchfield dons his sports gear and trials the new Sports Tracker application with wireless heart rate monitor. Can this new version of an old favourite, in conjunction with some Bluetooth accessory magic, help you improve your workouts, whether walking, cycling or jogging? (Short answer: Yes. With bells on!)
David Gilson and I play tag team reviewer for our coverage of Sony Ericsson's Vivaz range. Having tackled the Vivaz, I hand over to David for the Vivaz Pro - in this, part 1 of a two part review special, he examines the Vivaz Pro's hardware in detail and runs it heavily for an intensive week of duty. Despite an appealing design generally, David was very disappointed by the battery life and felt a bit let down by the output from the 5mp stills and 720p-recording video cameras.
In part one of our Sony Ericsson Vivaz Pro review, David Gilson looked at the device's ergonomic hardware design and camera performance. This time, David examines the user experience of Sony Ericsson's implementation of S60 5th Edition and the Vivaz Pro's software suite, before pronouncing a verdict - the device represents "an unfortunate set of contradictions". Read on for the full review.
In part 1 of my Nokia X6 16GB review (that's the Nokia X6-00, officially), I looked at its hardware and general performance. The latter also applies to this, part 2 (of 2), of course, as I look at the X6's software and interface, before summing the device up. Is it just a 5800 upgrade? Or a stepping stone to newer devices like the Nokia N8?
