Nokia C1

To keep up with the pace of the Chinese market’s dual-SIM enabled mobiles, Nokia has finally joined the marathon. Nokia C1 is the first dual-SIM mobile launched by the company.  It is a simple entry level handset which is extremely easy to use and has a good overall appearance. Although being an entry level phone, this handset is enabled with various latest features like, flashlight, FM radio, 3.5 mm headphone jack and of course the dual-SIM facility.

The handset looks quite tough and sturdy. The casing is made of plastic, which is moderately durable. But, surprisingly the call quality of the handset is not very satisfying. Users have complained about the problems of network congestion that the handset faces. In spite of being a dual SIM phone, it is not possible to use both the SIMs at the same time. Complaints of a bad battery have also been reported. Basically, this phone is meant for those who have a limited knowledge or usage of the latest technologies. But in spite of these shortcomings, the phone can easily withstand small misplacement and accidents.

The handset touts some basic features which are important for day to day activities. The basic features of the phone, such as double-SIM, flashlight, FM radio player and instant messaging, are absolutely justifiable with its price range. 

First of all, the handset is a dual-SIM enabled handset, which is the first of its kind in Nokia phones. This feature enables the user to attach two SIM cards in the same phone at one time. The SIMs can be altered with just the press of the asterisk (*) button. However, the user can use only one SIM at a time and the other SIM becomes inactive and unreachable. But, to justify this shortcoming, Nokia has powered its users to flip between the two SIMs without switching off the phone each time you want to change the SIM. 

Apart from that, this GSM phone consists of a flashlight, which is definitely a nice addition. MP3 and vibrating ringtones are available as options for ringtones.

This handy Nokia handset is a bar phone, with a dimension of 107.1×45×15 mm and a weight of 72.9 grams. The phone looks smart with its slightly tapering ends. The body of the handset is made of plastic, which doesn’t make it look very expensive. 

The front portion of the phone is mostly occupied by the 65 K-color TFT screen and the keypad. The TFT screen is awesome for a phone in this price range. 

Below the screen sits the keypad. The keypad is a normal alphanumeric keypad and the buttons are quite soft to touch, which makes messaging quite comfortable. The navigation button is situated right below the screen and has a nice silvery outline around it. The navigation button is a little harder than the other buttons, but it surely has some advantages. The navigation button is also enabled to turn off and turn on the flash light easily. Pressing it twice towards the upward direction turns on the flashlight and just a single press in the same direction quickly turns off the light. Overall, the keypad is very user friendly.

The 2 mm charging slot is situated on the right panel of the phone, while the left side is bare. The flashlight and the 3.5 mm audio jack are located at the top portion of the phone, while the downside consists of a slot for fancy accessories and the mouthpiece.

Finally, the back side of the phone consists of nothing but a speaker grill and the Nokia logo. Last but not the least, the handset comes in a variety of colors like gray, red, blue and sea green.

This phone is just fine as an entry level phone. Nokia should be able to penetrate the dual-SIM market with this affordable handset. The biggest disadvantage of the phone is its incapability of using two SIMs together. Although Nokia named it as a dual-SIM phone, but it is lacking in its own feature. Although the handset won’t be a big hit in the market, but users would definitely switch to this top mobile phone brand because of Nokia’s market reputation and the handset’s affordable price. Apart from the price range, another big advantage that the phone has is color options. An array of four color options makes it suitable for most people. With these pros and cons, this handset is not at all a bad purchase for the price that you pay.