Nokia 5320 XpressMusic - First Impressions and Q&A

First of all, if anyone has questions about the tech specs, have a look at the Forum Nokia page for the official specifications:

http://www.forum.nokia.com/devices/5320_XpressMusic

Secondly, I'll try to add stuff to the article as the day progresses.

Thirdly... ask away, any questions are acceptable, though I can't promise to always know the answer. 😊

first of all tnx for d hands-on preview. i know dat 5320XM also runs under OS 9.3 FP2 (S60 3.2) like N78 but could u pls confirm if ds XpressMusic hav d same menu effects and transitions as d ones found on N78, particularly demoed in ds link? current reviews and video previews i've seen does not show or mention anything about it. i'd b more than contented if it does, even f d gallery, i assume, is still not d Nseries esque rotating gallery..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sbYRiDchZ8o

and could also inform us if d videos on its gallery are now shown as thumbnails? previous non Nseries device only hav an inadequate video icon.. im hopin' dat d sound output thru its 'mono' speaker is in stereo (juz like my 3250). im plannin to get d blue variant.

thanks in advance

lookin forward for d updates

could u pls confirm if ds XpressMusic hav d same menu effects and transitions as d ones found on N78, particularly demoed in ds link?

It doesn't have the transitions, but it does have all the menu themes and standby themes in that video. In fact the 5320 has one more standby theme than in that video, a theme called "Nokia Default".

allery, i assume, is still not d Nseries esque rotating gallery..

It's not the Nseries gallery, it's a series of thumbnails presented in a 4 picture by 5 picture grid.

and could also inform us if d videos on its gallery are now shown as thumbnails?

Yes they are, the video thumbnails are shown in the same 4 x 5 format as the photos.

im hopin' dat d sound output thru its 'mono' speaker is in stereo (juz like my 3250)

If you only have one external speaker, you can only produce mono sound externally. As far as I can tell, the 5320 only has one external speaker.

It's a good external speaker though, nice and loud, very crisp and clear.

Great stuff,awaiting the review full review with anticipation.

I just want to ask,is this the smallest,most compact S60 phone with a 3,5mm jack?

I also have to ask how did Nokia managed to incorporate the massive 128mb RAM,(with 85mb Free) at this price point. It really is plentiful & will the target audience even really know the multitasking potential of this device?

And lastly how does the phone feel like in the hand,does it have this nasty plasticky feel that some people are attributing to the 6220C?

Some other owners of the phone are mentioning that the screen size is bigger than the quoted 2",its more like 2,2",whats your view?

Chepest s60? Cheapest s60 si n70

Chepest s60? Cheapest s60 si n70

The N70 launched in 2005, and its launch price was a lot more than 200 euros plus taxes.

I just want to ask,is this the smallest,most compact S60 phone with a 3,5mm jack?

Hmm... well the 5310 is smaller but it's not S60, so you could well be right! I can't think of a smaller S60 with 3.5mm.

I also have to ask how did Nokia managed to incorporate the massive 128mb RAM,(with 85mb Free) at this price point. It really is plentiful & will the target audience even really know the multitasking potential of this device

It is a lot, isn't it! I'd forgotten that spec until you mentioned it.

I'm not an expert on manufacturing but that may just be the march of technology, RAM may not be as expensive or bulky as it used to be. Maybe this level of free RAM will start to be the norm pretty soon?

Another theory: Nokia may have included a lot of RAM partly because this is meant to be a gaming phone and RAM may help N-Gage to run more reliably, especially if other apps like the music player are also running.

They were originally supposed to include N-Gage in the firmware, but it seems the FP2 version of the application is too late for the launch. There's a lot of N-Gage stuff elsewhere on the phone though like an N-Gage video ringtone, and a link to N-Gage in the browser bookmarks.

And lastly how does the phone feel like in the hand,does it have this nasty plasticky feel that some people are attributing to the 6220C?

I haven't yet used the 6220C so I can't compare them directly. However, here's what I can tell you:

In terms of sturdiness and reliability the casing is fine. Nothing is loose, there's no rattling, it feels completely solid. In fact comparing it to the E51 I'd say the 5320 feels a little bit more solid.

The 5320 has an entirely plastic-covered casing, there are no metal exterior panels or details. However, the colourful part of the casing has a metallic sheen so it looks a little bit classier in real life than the photos convey.

It is entirely covered in plastic though, so if you don't like the feel of plastic then it may not be for you. Personally though I love plastic, especially in bright colours... 😊

Does this phone have TV-out capabilities at all?

Does this phone have TV-out capabilities at all?

No, it doesn't.

You might want to get the Nokia 6220 Classic instead, or the N95 or N82.

This is not first symbian phone made in hungarian factory as you said. Because I had 5700 musicexpress with s60v3 FP1 that was made in hungary.

I managed to get a hold of its sibling, the s40 series 5220 a couple of weeks back and was very impressed by the built quality. It was very solid. I assume the 5320 would have the same built characteristics? If that's the case then yeah, the photos are not doing it justice. I love the metallic sheen and choice of colours as well. This is way better than 6220c built wise. And the ram? Seems like Nokia have learned their lesson I'd say. Ram is 1 of the 1st thgs I'd look out for in any phone nowadays. Well done Nokia.

This is not first symbian phone made in hungarian factory as you said. Because I had 5700 musicexpress with s60v3 FP1 that was made in hungary.

Aha, didn't know that. Sorry, I stand corrected! 😊

I managed to get a hold of its sibling, the s40 series 5220 a couple of weeks back and was very impressed by the built quality. It was very solid. I assume the 5320 would have the same built characteristics?

As I said before the 5320 does feel very solid indeed. The build quality is very good, it feels like a very durable phone.

If that's the case then yeah, the photos are not doing it justice. I love the metallic sheen and choice of colours as well.

It is indeed metallic, it's difficult to get that to come across on the photos though. Not even Nokia's official photos get this effect across.

What, you mean you *could* fit a 3.5mm headphone jack in a compact candybar form-factor after all? Who knew?

Seriously -- what was with Nokia's little foray into the 2.5mm I-need-a-friggin'-adaptor socket? What did it serve? How did it make Nokia any money? How did it do *anything at all* other than piss of users?

Seriously -- what was with Nokia's little foray into the 2.5mm I-need-a-friggin'-adaptor socket? What did it serve?

I used to say the same kind of things, but according to forum folks 2.5mm and 3.5mm aren't as interchangeable as we might think.

Apparently 2.5mm headphone sockets use a significantly smaller jack inside the phone as the plugs are shorter and thinner. Using a 2.5mm jack means you can fit more hardware in the phone without making the casing bigger, or alternatively it lets you make smaller and lighter phones.

On the other hand, it's difficult to see why that should be applied to music phones, because 3.5mm would be such an important feature for music lovers.

How did it make Nokia any money? How did it do *anything at all* other than piss of users?

See above.

I used to also think this was a way of artificially separating music phones from non-music phones, but the 5200, 5300 and 5700 XpressMusic phones all had 2.5mm so that didn't really fit the theory.

However, with the 5310, 5220 and 5320 it seems Nokia's definitely now able to put 3.5mm in very small and cheap devices, so maybe music phones will be entirely 3.5mm from now on. Hopefully Nokia will bring in some internal rule that any device marketed for music must have a 3.5mm audio socket, it would be silly not to.

BTW most top manufacturers have made 2.5mm models including Samsung, Motorola, LG, Sony Ericsson, Blackberry, Palm etc.

The reason is probably that most phones aren't bought as music devices, and even when they are used for music a lot of people just use the headphones that are included in the box. In that situation there isn't a huge advantage in letting people use their 3.5mm headphones, because they probably wouldn't do so.

is the sound quality comparable with the sound quality of the 5700?

Everything looks great so far, but does it have Wi-Fi?

is the sound quality comparable with the sound quality of the 5700?

It's been a year since I last used a 5700 so it's difficult to compare, but so far the 5320's sound quality seems very good. The 5320 has a dedicated audio chip, which should make it better quality than most other S60s, but I'll try to be more specific when I do the full review.

Everything looks great so far, but does it have Wi-Fi?

No, none of the numbered S60 devices have Wi-Fi. Only Nseries and Eseries have it.

Tzer2 wrote:It's been a year since I last used a 5700 so it's difficult to compare, but so far the 5320's sound quality seems very good. The 5320 has a dedicated audio chip, which should make it better quality than most other S60s, but I'll try to be more specific when I do the full review.

thanks for the answer 😉

looks like a kiddie phone to me.

lot of new phones have hit the market recently including the nokia's and iPhone 3g but happy to be with my n 82. Its amazing sometimes how much do you get addicted to one of your smartphones especially when you install lot of apps on it and use them too!

looks like a kiddie phone to me.

As I said in the article and replies above, in real life the 5320's red sections have a metallic sheen, they're not just pure red. I couldn't get the metallic effect to show up on photos though, and apparently neither could Nokia judging from their press photos.

Its amazing sometimes how much do you get addicted to one of your smartphones especially when you install lot of apps on it and use them too!

Yeah, I think that's why so many people are offering extra services for phones because more and more people are using them.

Quote:
looks like a kiddie phone to me.
Yup..it's for the young and active. Tired old N95 users stay far far away 😊..seriously though this phone looks good..live n in ur hands.

I just saw the price for the phone today. 249�
Thats as much as the N81 (NOT 8GB) the last time I saw one, since phones get a special offer like after 4 months of their arrival to retail. Around here anyways.
I think Nokia just jacked up the price and will lower it in a few months so it's like 199� or 119� or sumthin.

sorry for the double post. -_-
Anywho, what would be the tech specs in comparison to other N-Gage phones? Even the soon or not so soon to be N-Gage compatible N73 and N93? I'm mostly interested in the differences between this and the N81, but if you have the time the other comparisons would be appriciated.

A few things I noticed that seem a little bad for a gaming view:
1. The buttons are tiny. The game key is as small as the 2nd camera. Looks like you need a toothpick to press it. You also said the softkeys, clear and menu key are annoyingly placed. How is the number pad and Navi wheel?
2. The screen looks very small too. What is it's size and resolution?
3. Where is the WiFi? I heard it was originally planned for it. How it got cancelled? Now if you want online gaming you NEED a good network and a dataplan.
4. MONO speaker? Oh c'mon! And they call it a music phone? >__<
5. How does landscape FEEl on it? I mean, it's not a slider, it's a solid "candy bar" of a phone. And how does the shoulder button feel? To me it looks just oddly placed, the N81 and N95 landscape looks better.
6. Nice touch with the grips on the back, they should help the clumsy people.
7. Is there a "Discover N-Gage" application? Did you try it? How was it playing on the 5320?

As you see I'm very doubtful on the gaming specs on this phone. But if it drops below 200� then it could be a good cheap N-Gage Candy Bar model. My brother was thinking of getting it somehow (hes only 14) but now I have to tell him to hold the thought untill I can get him the specs and comparisons. As I said, the N81 price has dropped drastically from it's first few months, so if a few extra euro would be better.

I also looked around the web for N81 & 8GB prices. They vary a LOT!
N81 8GB: from 315� to 529� as you can see, some online stores are trying to rip you off. And online stores are always slightly more expensive, than actual phone retailers.
N81: 280� to 299� as you can see, online retailers are really greedy. I swear I saw this for 260� at a service provider store (the ones who sell phones and contracts.)
And the 5320 so far the only price I have seen is 249�, so an extra 20� can get you a bigger screen, WLAN, stereo speakers, N-Gage compatibility, better button layout, a nice feeling landscape mode and a better looking slider phone. The losses would be that it'slarger and is almost 100% plastic. Some say they hear rattling inside if they shake it, but it's infact the power button, camera and smart-key-lock keys. Those 3 are a little loose for some reason, but they're not falling off.

But lets see when Nokia fulfills it's promise and make this the cheapest N-Gage device by dropping it's price in a few months and release compatibility. Right now it just seems too expensive to be a "cheap" N-Gage phone. Even the N73 tops it with a price between 235� and 354� online. (damn online retailers rip people off.) of course it has no WiFi or landscape, but it's still cheaper and will be "soon" N-Gage compatible, if thats all you need.

Oh man this turned into a rant, sorry for that but I had to state my opinion how crudely this is supposed to be a "cheap" phone I bet the production costs are the only cheap thing, not the retail price, as for now. But seeing as how phone prices vary, it could drop below 200� in a few months. Hmmm... meaby this should go in my blog too...

Thats as much as the N81 (NOT 8GB) the last time I saw one, since phones get a special offer like after 4 months of their arrival to retail. Around here anyways.

Right now it just seems too expensive to be a "cheap" N-Gage phone.

Remember, it only came out a few days ago! 😊

All devices are expensive so close to their release, manufacturers start high because early adopters are willing to pay more for brand new models. As time goes on though they drop the price to reach a wider audience.

Just to put this in perspective, when the Nokia 5300 came out at the end of 2006 it started at 200 euros plus taxes, but a year and a half later it's about 100 euros plus taxes. That's the kind of level we could expect the 5320 to drop to in late 2009.

The 5320 being 200 euros plus taxes isn't cheap in itself, it's the fact that it's LAUNCHING for that price which is extremely cheap. No other S60 has ever started so low, and this is just a starting point.

If you can't wait for the price drops, then go ahead and buy the N81. If you can wait for the price drops though, you will probably see the 5320 dropping very low indeed.

Anywho, what would be the tech specs in comparison to other N-Gage phones? Even the soon or not so soon to be N-Gage compatible N73 and N93? I'm mostly interested in the differences between this and the N81, but if you have the time the other comparisons would be appriciated.

I put a link to the official 5320 tech spec page at the start of this thread, here it is again:

http://www.forum.nokia.com/devices/5320_XpressMusic

In specs the main standout feature is the 85 megabytes of free RAM (!) which is apparently more than any other S60 so far, even more than the E90.

The 5320 processor is much faster than the N73, but somewhat similar to the N93 (the N93 has a lower clock speed but has dual processors).

1. The buttons are tiny. The game key is as small as the 2nd camera. Looks like you need a toothpick to press it.

Regarding the game key, it's not a problem, you can actually press it very easily. It sticks out a tiny bit from the surface and general pressure on the corner of the phone presses the button.

Regarding the main keypad, its buttons are about the same size as the 6120, so if you can live with that you can live with the 5320. Some people can, some people can't.

What annoys me are the buttons around the direction pad, they're very awkward to press, but then the 6120 had the same layout problem too.

4. MONO speaker? Oh c'mon! And they call it a music phone? >__<

It is mono, but it's also the loudest speaker I've ever had on a phone, I'd much rather have this than weak stereo speakers. I'm pretty happy with it as it's good for listening to while cooking, typing, in the park etc.

Where is the WiFi? I heard it was originally planned for it. How it got cancelled? Now if you want online gaming you NEED a good network and a dataplan.

I'm not sure where you heard that rumour, but none of the numbered S60 phones have Wi-Fi. So far, only Nseries and Eseries devices have Wi-Fi connections, though that may change in the future of course.

You don't need Wi-Fi for online gaming if you have a cheap or unlimited data plan from your phone network. None of the N-Gage games so far use real time interaction, they're all turn-based or simultaneous races, so latency is not a problem. Wi-fi is inaccessible while on the move, which means phone games generally have to cope without it anyway.

If you're worried about data charges from downloading games, you can avoid them by downloading the games onto your PC from the N-Gage website, then transferring them to the phone by USB cable.

Also, it's worth remembering that most people play games offline. 😊

5. How does landscape FEEl on it? I mean, it's not a slider, it's a solid "candy bar" of a phone. And how does the shoulder button feel? To me it looks just oddly placed, the N81 and N95 landscape looks better.

I wish I could answer that, but N-Gage hasn't launched on the 5320 yet.

There's no way to put the phone itself in landscape mode, the only way to do it is if a game has that option (which most N-Gage games do but most other games don't).

The shoulder button is oddly placed for gaming, but for music it's very well placed, and it's clearly intended mainly as a music control as it has a fast forward logo on it.

2. The screen looks very small too. What is it's size and resolution?

It's the same as the 6120 and E51, QVGA (240x320) and 2 inches physically.

7. Is there a "Discover N-Gage" application? Did you try it? How was it playing on the 5320?

No. All they have is an N-Gage download link in the "Games" folder which takes you to the N-Gage app download page, but the 5320's app isn't there yet.

I get the feeling that this firmware isn't the one they inteded to release, it has some inconsistencies in the way the applications are laid out in the main menu.

I think they were waiting for N-Gage to be ready, but when it wasn't ready they panicked and cobbled this firmware together. We can expect an update when N-Gage does make it to the 5320, and as the phone has over-the-air updating it will be very easy to do.

I'll write more about this in the review.

As you see I'm very doubtful on the gaming specs on this phone. But if it drops below 200&#8364; then it could be a good cheap N-Gage Candy Bar model.

I think that's exactly what Nokia has in mind for this model, a cheap entry level device for someone who wants a good music phone and N-Gage access.

If the price now is 200 euros plus taxes, it will probably be closer to 150 euros plus taxes by Christmas (which would be under 200 euros in Finland including taxes).

Pls tell us where the loudspeaker of 5320 is located. If possible, give us also the audio test compared to other handsets.

I couldn't care less if it got a mono speaker or not. A phone being advertised as a music device; to me is that something with a 3.5mm jack that will work well as a portable mp3 player. Not something that will replace the home hi-fi system.

It looks so cheap... i mean really really cheap quality.... an ugly design too... red and blue colour? what is this? a disneys cell phone made for kids? i always preferred candybar phone factor over sliding and flipping ones and replaced N73 and then N82 with 6120c just because it didnt feel like i was carrying a brick inside my pocket. i was thinking of getting 5320 xpress music but... its damn ugly. will see when my friend gets one and thats makes me change my mind

I just bought it.It's flashy compared to my old N70.Entering to menu and opening apps going just smootly.It also has very good internet brovser, and that is without WiFi doesn't make it any bad.I didn't noticed it has a mono speaker, but quality of the sound is better than on N70.Gallery is impracticall,but it does open pictures much faster, there is not much difference than on n95 my friend have.What I miss the most is that pen button.With all that buttons they could at last put one pen button too😊.For now I am having problems with installing apps and games,mostly because of the certificates.But I will check it soon.