Nokia 2710 Navigation Edition review: Lead the way

We like the retail package

Recent Nokia phones come in quite compact boxes but the Nokia 2710 Navigation Edition is an exception. The reason? A smaller package wouldn’t have been able to accommodate all the standard accessories the phone comes with.

Along with the handset you get a compact charger, a tiny USB-to-microUSB data cable, some paperwork and the cheap one-piece stereo headset we see bundled with most of Nokia’s recent phones.

On top of that (or underneath it actually) you’ll also find the enclosed in-car holder and charger. That, combined with 2710 Navigation Edition’s free walk-and-drive navigation license, turns the device into a capable GPS navigation solution.

And in the phone’s card slot there was a 2GB microSD card.

The Nokia 2710 Navigation Edition retail package exposed

The in-car holder works fine. It is easy to attach and detach from the windscreen. You have to press the suction cup against the windscreen and rotate the ring clockwise. Once you’ve placed the phone in the holder, you can be sure it’s in “safe hands”. An optional pad would allow you to stick the holder directly to the dashboard.

The in-car holder in action

Nokia 2710 Navigation Edition 360-degree spin

The Nokia 2710 Navigation Edition measures 111.2 x 45.7 x 13.7 mm with a volume of 60.4 cc – more or less the same size as the other models in the 27XX lineup.

The phone hits the sweetspot of comfortable handling. Neither too small, nor too big - it fits nicely into any pocket but it’s not too small to use.

Due to the lack of any outer metal elements the weight is kept well down to only 87 grams. The build quality is ok, 2710 feels solid enough.

Design and construction

The all-plastic Nokia 2710 Navigation Edition is cute and feels nice when held in hand. There is nothing special about its design – it’s more on the conservative side really.

The device is available in three color versions: Jet Black, Warm Silver, and White Silver.

Nokia 2710 Navigation Edition

Nokia 2710 Navigation Edition comes with a 2.2" 256K-color QVGA display. And if it wasn’t for the “Navigation” moniker we wouldn’t say a word against it in this price range. When navigation is involved however we like our screens big and bright with wide viewing angles and good sunlight legibility.

We hardly find any 2.2-inch unit suitable for in-car navigation. We reckon the bare comfort minimum for that is a diagonal of at least 2.6 inches. Even an extra 0.2 inches would’ve improved the user experience dramatically.

And while sunlight legibility with the Nokia 2710 is fine, we can’t pass on the poor viewing angles. We’ve seen S40 devices do way better than that.

The Nokia 2710 Navigation Edition display

Continuing our roundtrip of the Nokia 2710 externals, each of the rocker-styled buttons beneath the display accommodates one soft key and one call key. The navigation frame of the D-pad projects nicely over a roomy confirm key.

On the right-hand side of the D-pad there is one more knob – the Maps button, which starts the Nokia Maps application. All controls are comfortable to use and occasional mispresses are very rare.

All keys here are easy on the fingers

The display backlighting and the white keypad illumination are very strong. However, in typical S40 style, there’s no option to set the brightness manually.

The strong and even white backlighting is a treat

The top side of Nokia 2710 Navigation Edition hosts the lanyard eyelet, the charger plug and the 3.5mm audio jack ready to accommodate your pair of standard headphones.

The top side of Nokia 2710 Navigation Edition

On the left side of the 2710 we find the microSD card slot and the microUSB port right above it. Both feature protective lids to keep away dirt and dust.

The phone has no problem handling a 16GB microSD cards.

The left side of 2710 Navigation Edition: a microUSB port and a microSD card slot

The right side only features a camera key made of cheapo plastics with faux metallic finish. Well, at least it’s comfy though. Quite unusually, there are not volume keys on any of the sides.

The camera key is on the right

We can conclude this part of the 2710 Navigation Edition review with the back panel, which is quite reminiscent of the one of Nokia 6700 classic. This is where you find the 2-megapixel fixed-focus camera and the loudspeaker. One complaint we have here is that sound does get muffled when the phone is lying on a flat surface.

The rear: camera lens and loudspeaker grill

Releasing the battery cover (by sliding it downwards) reveals the capable Li-Ion 1020 mAh (BL-5C) battery. The Nokia 2710 Navigation Edition charges through the standard charger plug but not through the microUSB port (unlike many competitors).

The Nokia 2710 Navigation Edition wasn’t with us for long, but in the two days of use following the intensive reviewing routine the battery didn’t budge, it still read full. We made about 10 minutes of phone calls, about half an hour of shooting photos, then music and games (about 15 min each) and then there was quite a bit of general prodding of the interface.

This power efficiency makes the 2710 a very reliable handset – it’ll run for days on a single charge.

The SIM card compartment is housed under a hinged metal bracket and swapping it is a quick and easy job.

Rear cover comes off easily

Even though the 2710 Navigation Edition is all-plastic, it feels quite solid when held in hand. The phone handles nicely and navigation around the UI is quite straightforward. Fingerprints are not a problem at all.

The small Nokia 2710 Navigation Edition classic is a joy to handle