Nokia X2-01 review: Loads of attitude

Introduction

Good build, QWERTY keyboard and one-touch access to music: the Nokia X2-01 has the right ingredients to serve and entertain. And if you’re looking to buy cheap, it’s an offer that’s hard to beat.

Nokia X2-01 official photos

Nokia has long made the low-end their fortress and X2-01 must be following a strategy that’s proven to work. The Nokia X2-01 is a music phone for the young with emphasis on Facebook and messaging.

With its combination of features and form factor versus price, the Nokia X2-01 has a market segment of its own. It’s another foot soldier in Nokia’s offensive in becoming the world’s number one QWERTY phone manufacturer.

Key features

• Entry level QWERTY messenger bar
• Quad-band GSM/EDGE connectivity
• 2.4" 256K-color QVGA TFT display with great sunlight legibility
• VGA camera with QVGA video recording at 24fps
• Series 40 UI, 6th edition
• Stereo FM radio with RDS
• Bluetooth 2.1 (with EDR)
• Standard microUSB port
• microSD card slot (8GB supported, 2GB included)
• 3.5mm audio jack
• Good audio quality

Main disadvantages

• No 3G
• Piss poor camera
• No smart dialing
• No USB charging

We are ready to turn a blind eye to some of the disadvantages. 3G is not essential in this price range and so is a decent camera. The S40 is not the best-looking feature phone interface but it would’ve been a lot easier to live with if it had smart dial, some document viewer capabilities or basic multitasking.

Cost-cutting is key for the X2-01. Nokia obviously presumes the target audience doesn’t really need those things. The X2-01 is all about simplicity and ease of use plus some great build quality. This entry-level messenger will not be bothered by comparisons.

Nokia X2-01 live shots

Don’t hesitate to follow us along as we check up the exterior and internals of the X2-01 – we’re about to find out exactly what you’re getting for your hard earned cash.

Editorial: Normally, phones like the X2-01 stay under our review radar as they rarely excite much interest in our readers. However, the Nokia X2-01 is special. Its Daily Interest rating has hit 35% at the time of writing this. That’s an impressive number for a low-end handset – it equals the daily interest rating of the Google Nexus S and the Motorola DEFY combined. Obviously Nokia X2-01 has somehow managed to attract our visitors’ attention.