Nokia 6126 / 6131 / 6133
Phone Scoop Review
Sep 8, 2006 by Eric Lin
An in-depth review of Nokia's new flagship feature phone. Find out how this stylish GSM clamshell stacks up. Updated with a video review. read review ›
User Reviews
Average Ratings
Nokia puts out another good quality GSM phone
I have owned this phone for about two months and it is one of the best phones I have ever owned, and the best for reception on the t-mobile network. It is also the best selling phone at my store. The key features of this phone that stands it out from other handsets is it's 16 million color display which makes it the brightest handset in the t-mobile arsenal however it does dramatically decrease the battery life. It also has a side button on the right hinge of the phone that that allows for one touch opening, and unlike the pebble this phone, does not fly out of your hand when you try and open it.
Pros
* Side button allows for one touch opening
* 16 million color display inside 260k color out.
* Great reception
* Nokia OS allows you to set your shortcuts and customize your phone the way you like it
* Feels sturdy
* Blue tooth
* MP3
* FM Radio
* micro SD card slot
* Loud ringers
* speaker phone
Cons
* To sensitive of a side camera key you may take pictures in your pocket
* The charging port is on the top of the phone and it does not stay in
* Poor battery life
* The texting system can be a little frustrating
Nice phone depite the small bug...
First, (regarding the 6133), this phone has a known issue regarding the MMS part of the phone. The phone will re-boot itself if any of the MMS settings are changed. Nokia is aware of it, and (according to T-Mobile), working on a fix.
Having said that, I find this to be one of the best phones I've owned. The rubberized finish makes it easy to hold and hides fingerprints well. The ringers, while not many, are real loud. The speaker phone can be heard across a room. Most impressive feature goes to the screens). 16.7 million colors on internal and 225 to 250k colors on external.
PROs:
-Easy to use.
-Loud ringers/speakerphone.
-Push-button open.
-Great signal grab/call clarity.
-Adult sized keys.
-Battery life decent.
CONs:
-MMS bug (hopefully fixed soon).
-Shiny trim ring around keys (gets dirty).
Best Nokia In a Long Time!
First, let me start off saying, I wanted a phone that can do everything! The 6133 is it.
Pros: Nice, sleek design, bluetooth, huge mini and internal screen, good size keypad. Sound quality of calls is exceptional. I can browse the web, look up numbers and many other tasks, while on a call. I can record up to 2.23 minutes of videos and store them on my 1g memory card. It has a fm radio and music player with a equalizer and sound enhancers.
Upgrading from a Motorola v360 the menus took a little getting use to. The 6133 has an all silver keypad which is very attractive. Customizing this phone with themes, screensavers, and ringtones are a snap.
Overall, if you want a reliable and nicely designed phone, get this one!
Con: I took off half a point for the battery life. The phone sucks it up.
they're getting there --almost perfect
PROS
-screen is great
-menu layout is intuitive
-button layout is clear and easy to use
-camera is pretty good (for a phone cam- NOT for a primary camera), self-portrait feature is convenient, night mode works fairly well
-speakerphone\call vol.\ring vol are all satisfactory, though not exceptionally loud
-push to open button works as advertised (though is unnecessary)
-no stubby antenna
-reception is adequate
-media options are there radio\music\web (though no TV)
-battery life is adequate for moderate use -i shut off bluetooth whenever i'm not using it and i only talk about a half hour a day. i can see how heavier use would lead to a problem with battery life.
-works with most standard nokia accessories- data connections are the same (although the phone has to sit upside down as the contacts are on the top
CONS
-phone sometimes enters camera mode (self-portrait mode) when flip is closed and its in my pocket, only way to exit camera mode is to open the phone exit. I called nokia to ask is there was a way to exit camera mode without opening the flip and there is NOT. They advised using the automatic keyguard, but that precludes me from changing the ring profile and using self-portrait mode when i want, without opening the flip.
-if the phone is held a half each too high or low from your ear, then speaker sound drops almost completely. This means the sound is directed, using less power and its more private, but it takes some getting used to
-new charger miniplug is a pain if you have other nokia accessories-- you'll need an adapter for each (it comes with the proper charger).
-camera would be better with a flash
It's a good phone, i'm happy with it. It doesn't feel like its going to break. It's weight and feel are good.
If you want some bells and whistles and use your phone for medium or social use only, then this phone is great.
If you need a heavy-use full-featured, all-bells-and-whistles phone, then use something else.
Nokia Does It Again!
I have owned some great Nokia phones over the years. From the 6610 to the 6600 and the 6260, Nokia phones have never let me down. For some reason, I've strayed away from them on my last couple of phones - only to find disappointment. But now I'm back with the 6133, and once again, I couldn't be happier!
PROS:
-Slimmer design. It's no RAZR or NEC E949, but it's got a nice form.
-Display is AMAZING.
-RF is good, as always (TMobile; Milwaukee, WI).
-2GB expandable memory - who needs an IPod?
-Push-button flip - minor detail that I really enjoy!
CONS:
-Camera sucks, but I rarely use a phone camera, so it really doesn't matter for me.
-Battery life. I use the phone a fair amount, and thus far have had to charge it daily. I normally do anyway, but I was kinda surprised.
Overall, I'm thoroughly pleased with this phone. I had to re-up for 2 years to get it on an upgrade, but I think it'll be a while before I'm in the market for a phone again!
NOkia 6133: A Real Hit
First off, I would like to say that I got this phone for free. Letstalk.com had this phone for free with new activation, so I asked my local T-Mobile corporate store if they would match, and they did. Great Deal!
I have owned this phone for about 2 weeks now, and so far so good. Here's a summary of what I thought.
Pro:
Amazing Display, Nicest I have seen in a regular cell phone.
Keypad is one of the easiest to type on.
UI is very user friendly.
Processor is lightning quick
Memory expansion slot
speaker phone is loud
ear piece is good
outside display is sharp and bright
sending messages is simple, especially with myFaves.
EDGE is super quick.
Themes, this phone lets you download themes to your phone which add great graphical interface with icons.
Decent applications installed.
Quick flip open button on side of phone, this makes it easy to flip open the phone with ease.
Plus more, but these are the most important to me.
Cons:
Battery Life, shame on you Nokia. It would be a good idea to get an upgraded battery.
T-Mobile has blocked Internet access to certain applications like Opera Mini and Google Maps. I believed unlocking and or re flashing phone would solve the problem.
Those are the only major cons I can think of.
So all in all, this is a great phone. Easy to use for novice users and advanced enough for experienced users. The giant crisp display will have you glued to this phone, trust me.
Best Yet...
Having been with TMO since I left Sprint in August, I have switched phones a few times...Blackberry to SDA to Trace back to Blackberry and now Nokia 6133...I must say I like this phone pretty much the best out the other TMO phones I have had...not going in to the pro and cons...There will always be good and bad features, but this may be the keeper I have looked for from TMO...
Try for yourself and make your on decision...
All glitz and no guts?
After reading all the glowing reviews for this phone and my less then satisfactory experience with Samsung T-609 and Motorola V300 on T-mobile I decided to get a factory unlocked Nokia 6131. When I first opened the box and turned it on, and played with it I thought âWowâ now after three days I am less impressed.
Sound quality: I have to listen through a lot of clicks, pops, and fragmented speech. The ear speaker is very small and harsh sounding, and if you move the earpiece has to be just right or the sound becomes muffled or very low
The âPush to open buttonâ is a nice feature but after only two days itâs loose, and the latch is starting to not latch properly. The slide-off back is a thin and cheap plastic thing you have to remove to access the Micro XD card. Once off, the battery simply falls out, and the plastic plug cover for the hands free and data connection after a 5 or 6 removals is almost ready to tear loose. The rest of the case appears to be low quality plastic, not metal as the chrome suggests.
The side buttons are small, loose and rattle. The two color screens are sharp high resolution and brilliant, but they are so high resolution the text ends up very, very small, I have 20/10 vision but nearly canât read the contacts list while driving or with sunglasses. Plus the default wallpaper Gray text over light blue background, over a photo of and beach chairs for added viewing discomfort.
Menus are extensive and complex but you have to back out of menus before you can make or receive a call. After dialing a number you have to manually clear all numbers (one at a time) before you can turn on the speaker phone or headset.
Pros:
Quad mode with Edge, (If it works, have to tried it yet)
Nice Camera.
Hi-res screen.
Small and thin
XD Card slot.
Cons:
Cheap case, flip/hinge design.
Signal and talk quality
Hi-res screen (hard to read)
Complex menus.
Average battery life.
Small, cheap earpiece speaker
Nokia 6131 Rocks!
I purchased an unlocked Nokia 6131 for use with T-Mobile, and am VERY pleased.
PROS: Excellent sound quality and design. The screen on this phone is to DIE for! It is the sharpest phone screen I've seen to date. Easy menu navigation system. The phone is soft to the touch, and perfect for text messaging. You can text messge with ONE hand! I LOVE the button on the side you push to open the phone. Comes in handy when you're walking the streets of New York City and your hands are full. Great bluetooth connections. People have complained about bad battery life. I had that problem the first time I charged it, now I charge the phone every 4 days, which is fine for me.
CONS: Tacky ring tones. I was not pleased with ANY of the ringtones the phone came with. I actually used an alarm clock tone as my ringtone until I was able to find one that I liked on line. I downloaded it from the nokia.com website.
To sum up: If you want a sleek, compact, lightweight phone, with excellent reception, then the Nokia 6131 is the way to go.
Wonderful phone best nokia i have had yet!
Ok so far i have had every nokia that t-mobile has made and overall this phone is the best!
Basically why i write this is because alot of you have issues with the battery life but really if you all charged the phone correctly by letting it discharge from the first day you purchased it and then charge it for the full six to eight hours and repeated this 3 times you would have 2 to 3 days standby and six straight hours talk time.
As far as the camera your right there is no flash but if your in a well lit area or outdoors this camera cannot touch any of the 1.3 MP camera phone camera ever.
Put it this way i have dropped this phone in a two inch puddle of water waited two hours and let it air out, and still works!
BTW: i work for t-mobile USA and would recommend this phone for the clumsiest person such as myself. also it is by far the best nokia phone yet. (not including the nokia 5300 smart phone)
