Customer Reviews

Nokia 6030 (AT&T)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Ive been using a Nokia 6590i for a few years, and after dropping it repeatedly, subjecting it to all sorts of abuse, it's been rock solid - until recently. Starting getting that classic "insert sim card" problem, whenever I would jar the phone lightly. But hey, when it worked, it kicked butt. So, Ive moved up(?) to the 6030. The reason I bring up the 6590 is that I would be very surprised if this 6030 has a lifespan like the 6590, under similar operating conditions. The build quality is just not what it used to be. That said...let's see what we do have :

Let's clear up a few things from previous reviewers:

1) volume control - no, it doesnt have the side buttons like the 6590 has, and until you play around a bit, you'll be convinced, like I was, that it doesnt have a control. Ah, but it does, and it is buried in the menus. If you dont put this menu item as an option on your navigation button (manually), it's very hard to use. If you do, it's better than the side button setup. Click menu/settings/my shortcuts/navigation key/(select) and then choose which navig arrow of the four you want to put it on. Just scroll through the menu

2) Key response - this IS a problem, as others have noticed. There is a significant lag time between pressing a menu key item, and getting the phone to do what you want. This is irritating, but I can live with it, because it's not drastic.

3) key lock - if you are prone to put this in your pocket, then definitely learn the menuselect followed by asterix keystroke. Learn it, know it, live it. It's a lifesaver.

4) keys - yes, a bit small. Whoever wrote large here has never seen the phone. It's only marginally bigger than the 6590i, which was one of Nokia's smallest ever. The feel of the keys leaves somethign to be desired - they are a bit mushy and wiggly. The first unit I got I had to return because they keys did not press distinctly. If you have this problem, definitely bring it back and try another. My second phone was a big improvement. You can tell you have this problem if some of the keys dont press like the others (in terms of feel)

5) End call button - if your phone goes to speakerphone when you press this, it's probably defective. This has never happened to me.

6) Wallpaper, screensavers, etc - they suck. But this is part of the classic cingular mall scam, where they put a bunch of crap on the phone, in the hope that you go and buy different ones. Same with ringtones, although the ones with the phone are serviceable, just not good. There are ways around this issue, so do some reading, and you'll figure it out. google is your friend (at least in this case).

7) For the person who thinks it is not convenient to switch between silent,vib, and normal, I say not true. You have to stick them on your goto menu. Just click the upper left blue key, then the same key for options, then organize. You can change what is on the menu, and in what order you list the items.

8) NO headset, no car charger, no voice dialing. True. But what do you expect for something this cheap???

9) No nokia faceplate cover options, as far as I can tell. There are some for sale on the web, but they look to be the super cheapo crap they make in China that makes your phone look like a piece of stale candy. Avoid.

Aside from things mentioned in previous reviews - the screen resolution is not that good. You are looking at a small area, with 65k colors, but only 128*128 pixels, so it is pretty grainy. The brightness is decent, but its nothing to cheer about.

The word Cingular (or other carrier) is often printed on the bottom of this phone - really detracts from the otherwise decent looks. Here is a trick. Get a cotton shirt or other soft material, and a fingernail, still attached to finger. :) Wrap nail with shirt and rub back and forth. Presto - bye bye logo.

Of course, you know what this means though - the keys on this (if you are the type who puts it in your pocket) are going to have the numbers and letters wear off pretty quickly.

The calls made menu is an improvement (at least over my 3 yr old phone), so when you hit the green send key, it shows a recent call list, with date and time (not just name). So they have made some improvements to the menu system.

If I figure out any other major likes/dislikes, I'll come back and list more. Overall, if you arent looking for a fancy phone, and just want a phone with good battery life, a clear signal, decent reception (at least on cingular) and small form factor with good looks, you cant go wrong. If you are upgrading on cingular its actually free!

I find the phone to be nicely compact, but the keypad is a bit on the small side. Makes the whole phone feel a little bit "fiddly". I went to my local Cingular store to check out my other options and found that this is the norm for a phone of this size. No complaints about the reception. I switched from a Motorola V180--this phone is far superior in terms of reception.

I did not receive an earpiece with this phone which doesn't use the 2.5mm standard jack. It uses the same headset jack as on the Nokia candy bar style phones (3595, 6010). One feature I would have liked to have is voice dialing. This was standard on my 2 year old 3595 and much used.

Finally, I haven't found any accessories for this phone, yet. No perfectly sized holsters or the optional color masks.

In summary, this phone takes care of the basics well and is small enough to be carried everyday, all day. 4 stars for being a competent phone. Loses a star for the non-standard headset jack and lack of voice dialing.

I have only had this phone for a few days but I am already very pleased. I was having major reception problems with my old LG L1400, so Cingular credited me to get a new phone, and this one happened to fit the bill. I don't need lots of extras, I just want to be able to store #'s and make calls, and this phone does just that. I agree that the navigation key is a bit small, but not at all a "deal-breaker" for me. I love that you can customize the shortcut keys... I would much rather have quick access to things like the calculator and received call log than the internet. Also, I had some pictures stored in my old LG that I wanted to get onto this phone, and it was the simplest thing to email them to myself, then send them to the new phone. They look great, and I was actually very impressed by the clarity on screen... no visible pixels. Also, the phone is sleek and compact, and looks good while being sturdy and solid. And the battery life is amazing... I am already on my 4th day and I still have a FULL charge... I used to have to charge my LG every other night! All in all, I forgot how much I used to love Nokia, and would definitely recommend this phone.

A couple of months ago I upgraded from the old ATT TDMA service to this phone and GSM service. I'd held on to the old TDMA for better coverage in remote areas of West Texas where I travel, but it was time...

Turns out I now have even better coverage and a great little phone. I'm an "older" user, not so much into ringtones and wallpaper. But what this phone and Cingular pull off is great reception and great coverage. The speakerphone works well, and the radio is a nice feature (mono, but very crisp reception). Nokia promises a 2-bud headset soon. I especially like being able to pull all my most-used features into a custom menu.

The Amazon product review uses the word "large" at least twice. There's nothing large about this phone. Tiny phone, tiny keys, tiny screen, tiny, tiny everything. It feels solid though, looks very sleek and cool, and the white letters on black look a bit retro. Battery lasts forever. Solid Nokia quality.

I have had this model phone from Cingular for about two months without problems. Also got one for my mother who is not very technically savvy and needed something simple. You really get don't many of the bells and whistles of other phones but if you want something with a decent speaker and good reception this will fit the bill. I have dropped the phone from a hight of 3 feet 3 times without it showing any damage (it was in a leather case for 2 drops). Also its a very "nice" looking phone.

Only a few critisms. Seems a bit small for my male hand, but maybe I am a bit clumbsy. Its NOT ready to be an FM radio out of the box. I called Cingular and they told me Nokia had an accessory for it. Going to Nokia's webpage you are informed the addon component will be out soon. This brings me to my last point which is that there are not a lot of ringtones or accessories for this model as of this date, but I image this will change soon.

I have to admit when I first got this phone I did not like it at all. In fact I had every intention of getting rid of it ASAP. I have since decided to keep it because it really is a nice phone. I had a Motorola before this and the reception was horrible. This phone has outstanding reception and in response to a previous review yes there is a way to adjust the volume. I had the opposite problem...my volume was too low and I could not figure out how to adjust it. There is NO mention of it in the handbook which is odd, but just google it and you will find the instructions how to do it. Once I got the volume controls taken care of it was smooth sailing. I would like a few more choices for wallpaper and ringtones but if you need a tough little phone that gets the job done this is it.

Each time I get a new phone, I always seem to go to this style Nokia. They have changed them slightly over the years, but they are still a good, reliable, and easy-to-use phone.
I have Rheumatoid Arthritis and some days I can hardly hold a phone, but this one is lightweight and the buttons are still big enough for me to hit. I tried a cameraphone last year and the buttons were raised so much and so small that my fingers kept slipping off of them. And I never could figure out to get permanent prints of my pictures.

It's certainly not like the "young" phones that can attach to your I-Pod, etc. But the price is right and is a good phone for this 57-year-old.

There is a lot to like about this little plain phone. It gives great reception and excellent sound quality. Easy to use. Cheap. Its a good phone. Easy to slip into a pocket.

It is not an exciting phone. The display washes out in bright light. Only two themes for your wallpaper come with the phone and only some 6 or so ringtones and the tones arent that interesting. No bluetooth. It does not officially support connection to your computer by a data cable.

Having said all of that, it gets great reception and great for making and receiving phone calls. I enjoy using mine and am glad I bought one. They can be found fairly cheap.

I have a old Nokia 3650. I had to ditch it as it was a part of AT&T ( now Cingular). I always liked Nokia for its audio quality and functionality.

I had a blackberry from my company for the last 12 months and the audio quality was very bad. I hated blackberry.

This is a nice phone for sombody who just want to make/receive calls. Nice looks, small and the battery lasts a lot longer than expected. It's great if you are traveling and have forgotten the charger. It's free if you sign for a 2 year contract with cingular.

I like this phone quite a bit. It really has all the bells and whistles that the more expensive ones have except for the camera (which I never used anyway). The main complaint I have is that when you put it in your pocket or purse, numbers on the keypad get hit and entered. I have been locking the phone when I don't use it (very easy to do) so this won't happen. If it rings, I can still answer it, I just can't call out while it is locked. I couldn't decide between this and the razr but read too many complaints about the razr and didn't want to get mixed up with a phone that seemed to have quite a few faults. Navagation key is also quite small but isn't really a big problem. I like the fact that the speaking headset also is the listening headset for the radio. You can take the phone on walks while listening to the radio and not worry about missing a call.