The Nokia 6680 imaging smartphone has been declared the new ‘Best in Class’ 3G device according to a report by Strategy Analytics.
Four of the best 3G devices currently available in Western European were put under the microscope by Strategy Analytics’ Advanced Wireless Laboratory (AWL) panels in London, UK and Milan, Italy.
All of the phones were assessed on four categories: Video Features, User Interface & Input, Display, and Style/Design, with the Nokia reigning supreme in two categories, Display and Style/Design, as well as registering a joint highest score for User Interface.
When the white-coated, clipboard-toting boffins had finished tallying up the scores, the Nokia 6680 was also the only device to score above the mean score across all four categories.
The 6680 achieved a composite mean rating of 73, compared with 71 for the Sony Ericsson V800, 69 for the Motorola E1000 and 64 for the NEC e338.
The report noted strong deviations (oo-er!) in the results of these evaluations by gender with the lay-deees preferring the Sony Ericsson and NEC devices, whereas the geezers exhibited a strong preference for the Nokia and Motorola handsets.
“This acknowledgment underscores Nokia’s leadership in 3G devices,” purred Joe Coles, Director of imaging product marketing at Nokia. “The Nokia 6680 is an example of an engineering masterpiece that offers very sophisticated technology combined with ease of use and extremely desirable design. Devices like it pave the way for transforming the way people live, work, play and communicate.”
The Nokia scored particularly well in the Style/Design category, with 98% of participants nominating the phone as the ‘coolest’.
Users were also mightily impressed with the clarity, resolution and brightness of the Nokia 6680 smartphone’s display.
The phone’s User Interface and menu system was considered “logical and easy to use” by the majority of users, with the smartphone scoring highest in the exciting sounding categories of ‘Configuration and Usability of Hot-Buttons’ and ‘Ease of switching between text options’ (who dreams these things up?).
Kevin Nolan, Director of Strategy Analytics’ Advanced Wireless Laboratory commented: “As handset manufacturers compete to launch compelling devices that will meet the demands of the advanced buyers who will drive multimedia content consumption across 3G networks, the Nokia 6680 has set a new standard for performance in terms of usability and device size and style.”
As we announced in March, the Nokia 6680 imaging smartphone comes with a shedload of features including two integrated cameras, a flash, the Nokia XpressPrint printing solution, an active slide for easy camera activation and a bright screen of up to 262,144 colours.
All the vogue Smartphone features are present and correct, with the Nokia sporting an organiser, video streaming, Internet browser, email and 3G-enabled services, such as two-way video calling and video sharing.
As competing handset manufacturers try to catch the eye of consumers by ramping up the gizmos and widgets, it’s important that the phones remain easy to use.
Nokia have acquired a well earned reputation for the simplicity of their interfaces and this writer still rues the day he moved from his Nokia phone to a fiddly-tastic Sony Ericsson.