This article is more than 1 year old

Nokia C5-03 budget touchscreen smartphone

Pocket friendly in more ways than one

Basic skills

The camera is a fixed-focus device with no LED, so you won't be using it close-up or at night, but in daylight – and at ranges beyond a metre – the results are more than acceptable and a a good deal better than anything you get from an Orange San Francisco's 3.2Mp snapper.
 Moreover, the C5's OS/CPU combination works wonders for the 1,000mAh battery. Even with regular use of the Wi-Fi and GPS radios it is perfectly possible to get the best part of three days between charges. Try doing that with an Android handset.

Nokia C5-03

As budget smarties go, it has a decent share of plus points

As with most Nokia handsets, the often overlooked basics are very well covered. Call quality and signal reception were faultless and audio playback commendably rich and clear once some decent earphones were brought into play. While only a few might consider chucking it away as soon as they get one, another enticement is that Nokia claims 80 per cent of the phone is recyclable. Apparently, all of its packaging is made from recycled material, so you can make a call and hug a tree at the same time.

Verdict

The Nokia C5-03 is all about value for money. At £130 pre-paid it's significantly cheaper than its, admittedly, significantly better C6 and C7 brothers, which will set you back around £200 and £300 respectively. However, for the price you get a reasonable camera, good wireless connectivity, all the smartphone functionality many people are ever likely to need, excellent call quality and good battery life. On the down side, despite improvements, Symbian^1 is now yesterday's technology and the screen is underwhelming.
 ®

More Smartphone Reviews...

LG
Optimus One
Ten... dirt-cheap
voice phones
Palm
Pixi Plus
Ten Essential…
Budget Android
Smartphones
70%
Nokia C5-03

Nokia C5-03 budget touchscreen smartphone

A basic touchscreen Nokia smartphone at a knock-down price.
Price: £189, £129 (PAYG), £15pm contract RRP

More about

TIP US OFF

Send us news


Other stories you might like