| Review of the Nokia 6120 Classic |
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Despite its somewhat familiar numeric designation, the 6120 Classic has nothing in common with the old TDMA model with which it shares this number. The 6120 classis is a GSM Smartphone using the Symbian operating system.
The 6120 Classic is not sold through any providers in Canada. Last Updated: 24-Aug-2007 |
Before reading this review, please read
Some Thoughts on Phone Reviewing.
RF Performance
RF Sensitivity: I performed the usual tests of the
phone over at the Hall of Shame 2 in Square One shopping center in Mississauga.
The phone was compared to the Nokia E65, which I
reviewed previously. The 6120 performed identically to the E65, which in
previous test was compared with the aging, but otherwise excellent,
Siemens A56. Subsequently the 6120 proves that,
like virtually all of Nokia’s recent models, it has excellent RF sensitivity
that is among the best out there.
Over-the-road Performance: I found this aspect of
the phone to be almost identical to that of the E65. I will therefore use the
exact sentences I wrote for that phone. The 6120 has approximately the same
over-the-road performance as most other Nokia models I’ve tested, which is to
say okay, but hardly stellar. Handoffs are generally tamer than in earlier Nokia
models, but the number of handoffs and the overall network experience while on
the move is decidedly sub-par compared the recently-tested
Sony-Ericsson z710i. If it weren’t for the
z710i I might be more impressed with the E65, but alas technology marches on and
the z710i raises the bar. That leaves the E65 looking like old-tech.
Click on this link for a full description of
RF Performance, and how to interpret it.
Audio Performance
Tonal Balance: I was a bit disappointed in the
6120’s overall balance, which was generally okay, but with a distinct hollowness
to it. I also found that some voices sounded a bit harsh, whereas they sounded
fine on other phones, such as my old Nokia 6310i.
Fortunately it didn’t seem to suffer from the muddiness that I complained of in
the E65.
Sound Reproduction: This aspect of the audio was
fine however, with no difficulty reproducing the nuances of speech. Typically
Nokia’s GSM phones provide excellent sound reproduction, and the 6120 is no
different.
Earpiece Volume: Earpiece volume is often a problem
with Nokia phones, but the 6120 produced globs of audio, even before the
standard Volume Boost feature kicked in. The boost feature has been on virtually
every Nokia model since the days of 6190. The phone automatically kicks up the
volume (even when it’s set to full) when it detects loud background noise. The
only fly-in-the-ointment was that the earpiece had a rather low ceiling on
maximum volume before it began to distort.
Outgoing Audio: This is perhaps the best-sounding
Nokia I’ve tested to date in terms outgoing audio. The tonal balance and overall
clarity is astonishingly good, and the phone deals quite well with background
noise, for the most part. When it was tested on the highway with opened car
windows the phone did a very credible job of keeping the audio perfectly clean,
despite the terrible wind noise.
In the noisy food court at Square One the phone continued the Nokia trait of
picking up quick a bit of the background din, but the audio remained remarkably
clean and distinct in spite of the noise.
Speakerphone: As I’ve noted before, Nokia
speakerphones seem to range from virtually inaudible to quite loud. The 6120
falls decided upon the quite loud end of the spectrum. While it wasn’t loud
enough to use in a noisy environment (like the Square One food court), in quiet
and moderately-noisy conditions it’s terrific. And not only does it have good
volume, it has exceptionally good sound quality. The microphone sensitivity it
boosted during a speakerphone call and it continues to provide the excellent
sound quality I noted for regular non-speakerphone calls.
Click on this link for a full description of
Audio Performance, and how to interpret it.
Support Features
Ringer Volume: As with all recent Nokia phones, the
same device is used as the speakerphone speaker as the ringer speaker. When the
speakerphone has good volume, the ringer has good volume. That’s certainly true
of the 6120, which has excellent ring volume.
Keypad Design: Here’s one aspect of the phone
that’s simple way below part. The keys are so tiny and fiddly that it’s nearly
impossible to use them. Even Howard Chu, who lent me the phone, said that his
smaller fingers still had enormous problems with the keys. I was forever
pressing incorrect keys during my testing and I found it really annoying.
Especially poor are the keys clustered around the tiny 4-way pad below the
screen.
Display: Like all Nokia Smartphones that I’ve
tested, the 6120 comes with a gorgeous-looking 320 x 240 screen. The only
problem is its overall tiny size, which makes seeing many things on the screen a
real squinter for many people (especially those who wear contact lenses for
distance viewing). The backlighting is bright, and the screen is visible in
bright daylight (though direct sunlight is a bit of an issue).
Icing on the Cake
Camera: The 2-megapixel camera is about par for
Nokia, which means it suffers from a lot of digital noise. If that noise was
just noise, it wouldn’t be so bad, but the noise gives shadows a distinct green
cast that impossible to remove easily with photo-editing software such as
Photoshop. I reported exactly the same problem with the E65’s camera, and so
most likely they both use the same device.
Conclusions
With the exception of the really fiddly keypad and the slightly harsh incoming
audio quality, there’s very little to complain about in the 6120 Classic. It has
excellent RF performance, generally good audio performance (the harshness
notwithstanding), and a terrific speakerphone. It’s also quite small, which is a
good thing in many ways, but a bit of issue when it comes to the screen.
