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The lowdown
The Nokia 6280 is a sign that the Finnish company are taking 3g seriously. Their previous outings into 3g have been disappointing fortunately this handset sets out to right those wrongs. With the days of comically big 3g handsets now officially over, the 6280 rivals many 2g phones with its compact size. Nokia have managed to cram almost every conceivable feature into this handset yet remarkably the result is far from brick-like.
What's good?
The slider design, as well as looking the part, allows for a large screen on the front of the device. Nokia don't have the best reputation for screens but they seem to have forgotten that whilst manufacturing the 6280; the screen is absolutely stunning. With 262k worth of colour and a high resolution of 320 x 240 pixels it equals anything on the market today.
Flip over the phone and on the back you'll find, much like Sony Ericsson's dual front approach, a 2mp camera and dedicated controls on the side. The camera works work best with the phone closed and turned to landscape view. Picture quality is generally very good, though it just falls short of the benchmark made by the k750i/w800i. Like all camera phones the absense of a proper flash means pictures in low light will always be populated with noise.
The music player of the 6280 is generally good and has support for mp3, mp4, m4a and aac - that means it will work with any iTunes encoded songs you may have downloaded. Only 7mb of on board memory may sound a little prohibitive but there's room for a mini SD card (64mb card included) so you can expand to what you need. The supplied headphones are reasonable: the sound is airy with good trebles but the bass is pretty much redundant.
The 3g features the 6280 has to offer work well: the VGA camera at the front is of the perfect quality to make video calls and the internet speed is lightning quick, up to 384kbps. This allows smooth and quick navigation as well as fast downloads of the various content available.
What's bad?
Unfortunately the 6280 isn't quite perfect and there are a few niggling issues that take the shine off of it a little. The major factor is the short battery life: up to 4 hours talk time isn't exactly mind blowing. Similarly the 7mb of on board memory isn't the most generous and we'd liked to have seen a 512mb card thrown in rather than the 64mb card supplied. As ever there's an absense of a 3.5mm jack so you can't easily use your own headphones.
Do you need it?
If you're on Three and you've despaired over so many poor quality handsets then the Nokia 6280 will answer your prayers. This is best 3g handset I've come across, it even rivals a lot of standard GSM phones. You get a great camera, a good media player, fast internet, an excellent screen, crystal clear phone calls and funky design to boot. If you want more bang for your buck then I'm guessing you're the kind of person that takes a doggy bag to an all-you-can-eat buffet. Great work Nokia, the 6280 is a roaring success.
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| Useful Links: |
Smart Phones, www.nokia.co.uk, Three |
| Features: |
Two integrated digital cameras: 2-megapixel and VGA
High-resolution, 262,144-color display
MiniSD card support
WCDMA 2100 with simultaneous voice and packet data (PS max speed UL/DL = 128/384kbps, CS max speed 64kpbs)
Bluetooth wireless technology
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| Verdict: | 
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