Even though Siemens Mobile doen't exit anymore (nor does BenQ mobile), the SX1 was a symbian 6.1 device with stereo sound, an FM radio and a special keyboard ( http://www.symbian.com/phones/siemens_sx1.html ). I had the o2 black edition and it looked pretty good, but the build quality of the joystick was bad. May be the device wasn't so popular outside of Germany ( www.club-sx1.de ) where it even had it's own fan page.
Top 10 - Classic Smartphones
N770 runs on a modified Debian distro, not symbian.
Nokia 7610 was probably the first mass adopted smart phone,being the first with 1.3 mp camera and a designer look.
N70 was the first symbian phone, arguable with sufficient ram to fully multitask.
6120 c is probably the first device to be put in a small case that look like a phone, that has the true power of Symbian OS with speedy 369 mhz cpu and fp1.
I'm sorry but the Nokia 3650 should be in the top 5 there, the N95 8GB doesn't deserve to be, maybe replace it with the N95-1. the 3650 was the 1st widely marketed s60 phone with video recording capabilities, way ahead of its time, for me, the top 5 would be
5. N95
4. 6630
3. 6600
2. P800
1. 3650 - a 7650 with removable media.
But good article, nice idea :icon14:
A top 10 smartphones list with no 6600 is absurd!
The only thing I'd take serious issue with on that list is the E61 - unlikel most of the others it's not a 'game changer' it's just an S60 stab at Blackberry. It's a decent phone - if spectacularly ugly - and a capable - if slow - PDA and web device.
But, it's derivative and therefore not a classic.
6600 - the top phone in its time and almost one of the characters in the Hollywood movie 'Cellular'.
6630, the lock-shaped 3G phone with a megapixel camera.
N80, the first mainstream S60 Nseries phone with wi-fi?
The best of the lot was the 6820.. it was the smallest phone with a qwerty keyboard ever, and very comfortable to use.
The nature of most of the above shows just how hard (and possibly pointless 😊) it is to come up with a top 10 of this kind....
Even if Steve had run a poll and published the results, the postings that followed would probably still have been similar.....
It sure makes you wonder who the hell would want to be a mobile phone designer?!
Oh indeed. My aims were to inform, entertain and provoke discussion. I hope I succeeded in all three!
yeah really! it's an interesting read. i agree with that guy who said that the article is somehow inevitable of personal subjectivity, but i enjoyed reading it, reminiscing those times since i first fell in love with phones (not just as communication implements, but real buddies and celebrities - persons, that is).
about the motorola a1000, i don't think it should be included in the list. yes, it's got truckload of features, but i just wonder if it really turned the heads of other major phone manufacturers and hit themselves back to the drawing board. so for the one suggesting that moto, the top 10 is about the revolutionary phones.
honestly, when i was going down the bottom, i was expecting to see the iphone. i was quite shocked why the n93 made the #1 slot, until i realized, the top 10 is all about revolutionary SYMBIAN phones.
anyway, continue symbian. continue ALLaboutsymbian. forever symbian!!!
great list, thanks
i got 2 of the phones, the 7650 and the n95 8gb.
i miss my 7650... it was stolen.. 😞
7650 was my first S60 phone, really great phone with lot's of software and apps, but with one serious flaw (slowness) battery was resolve with some 1600mh 3rd party batter, 3 days without charge 😃 but still if a phone i have most fun with
however, after that i stick with S40 phones as they are zippy, fast, long battery life and really good functionality without the fancy media capabilities, but it was enough
until N73 camera phone show up, however it reminded me of dreaded slow S60 phones. Swear that i would not go back to S60, until i saw the n95 8gb... it drive me nuts with its speed and memory.
just bought it 3 months ago.. i think i at least spend on avg 3 - 4 hours on it daily
truly a great phone
I think the reason the 6600 was left out and the w960 made it was mentioned by steve. He didn't want it to become the 10 classic Nokia smartphones.
Says something about nokia's place in the industry though.
Personally i'd have added the n73. Despite all the criticism its still a great phone with a mindblowing camera for its time. It also became very mainstream.
Yes - why is the 6600 not there?
I agree - the 6600 and N80 are missing.
i agree with the views of those who mentioned the 6600 in the comments above.
It was this phone that introduced me to the world of smartphones, and it turned me from a guy who used to say that "phones are for making phone calls" to the e90 owner of today.
Btw, that ("phones are not just for making phone calls"😉 was the tag line of the introductory 6600 ads here in india. The perfect entry level smartphone....
I own an e61 too, and i have to say that it is one of the best smartphones i have ever used. The build quality is especially awesome. I bought it in mid 2006 and used it until about two months ago - i used it almost constantly and it went everywhere with me(the top of a mountain, treks, the pub, the tub), and it is none the worse for it except for a couple of surface scratches. it was kinda sad when the e61i came out and people stopped talking about this phone, but i must admit that was a change for the better. But I still feel grateful that you have included the e61 in this list.
Richard Ross wrote:The only thing I'd take serious issue with on that list is the E61 - unlikel most of the others it's not a 'game changer' it's just an S60 stab at Blackberry. It's a decent phone - if spectacularly ugly - and a capable - if slow - PDA and web device.But, it's derivative and therefore not a classic.
Richard,
That is a very objective level headed judgement.
i say this with respect, but I have owned a 6600, a 6270, a 7650, an e65, an e90 and a p1i in addition to the e61. Typing was never such an absolute pleasure on any of these phones as it was on the e61.
The display too, third party applications used to fit just right - try papyrus, handy calendar, resco news, mobizines,gmail, profimail etc on the e61 screen and you will probably realize what i mean. Of course this is a very subjective thing, but it just used to feel right to me.
I mostly use an e90 these days, but i do pick up the e61 once in a while. After using the e90, initially it looks a little sad, but after i send a couple of messages or reply to a few email messages, i am left wondering how i could ever use anything else. And if I have done that, it is for one simple reason only - newer features, cant be stuck in the past, gotta move on.......
Nokia 3650 was the precursor to the n series afaik, I still have my old one, wife is using it with a new faceplate, faster than my N80.