Hands-On: Nokia X2
Feb 14, 2011, 3:25 PM by Eric M. Zeman
Nokia had the X2 available for us to take a look at. The X2 runs Series 40 and has a full QWERTY keyboard for messaging. How does it stack up?
Nokia dives into the messaging phone space with the X2. It resembles Noia's E Series devices, but runs Series 40 instead of Series 60.
The X2 is obviously a cheap phone, meant for markets where inexpensive is the way to go. The white plastic shell covering the X2 is uber-cheap feeling and cheap-looking. It reeks of the Budget Bin Plastic Co. The exterior feels OK in the hand, though, and the plastic skin is obviously on the thicker side. The back is oddly curved, but it rests comfortably in your hand.
The front of the X2 has a small-ish display that offers just enough resolution to satisfy. If it had even a few less pixels, it might disappoint. Brightness of the display is excellent, though.
The keyboard is nearly identical to those found on the E71, E72, E73, etc. The keys have the same shape, travel and feedback, and the size of the keyboard looks to be about exactly the same as those older phones. It's a solid keyboard for messaging, if you don't mind the small button size.
A d-pad and send/end keys, soft keys, and dedicated shortcut keys are placed between the keyboard and the display. These are all flush buttons that don't have any shape or way to tell where your thumb is. They have good travel and feedback, though.
The user interface is good old Series 40. It has all the same tools we're used to seeing on Series 40 handsets, though it looks like the menus have been flattened out a bit — it doesn't take as much digging to find stuff.
This handset hasn't been announced for a U.S. carrier yet.
About the author, Eric M. Zeman:Eric has been covering the mobile telecommunications industry for 17 years at various print and online publications. He studied at Rutgers Newark and University of Kentucky, and has a degree in writing. He likes playing guitar, attending concerts, listening to music, and driving sports cars.
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