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Nokia E5 Qwertyphone
Maps, snaps and office apps
Review Under Nokia's new naming regime all future handsets will fall into one of four series; X for entertainment, N for high-end smartphones, C for consumer handsets and E for business and enterprise. Each handset's place within its series will be denoted by a number between 1 and 10.
Mid-range smartie: Nokia's E5
Given that naming convention, the E5 sits bang in the middle of Nokia's business range as a cheaper alternative to the E72 and 73 handsets. The design of the E5 is a subtle advance on that of the E72. Albeit a shade thicker, the E5 is lighter and, to my eyes, looks both sleeker and more modern.
Despite its largely plastic construction the E5 is well made with tight shut lines and not a hint of flex or creak, even under stress. To add some panache, brushed metal has been used for both the battery cover and the strip that surrounds the major controls.
Peripheral controls have been kept to a minimum. There is a very solid volume rocker on the right, a 2mm power socket, 3.5mm audio jack and covered micro USB on top and that's it. The MicroSD card slot is next to the Sim bay under the battery, which rules out hot-swapping.
Curiously it keeps the 2mm pin charging input rather than use the micro USB slot
The keyboard is very similar to the rather fine example used on the E72 with slightly rubberized and domed keys that help minimise typing errors. It also features three handy shortcuts that let you fire up Bluetooth, switch on the LED 'torch' and engage silent mode with a single long button push.