The Nokia 6233 is a 3G candy bar that is just as comfortable meeting business demands as it is playing music and games. The candy bar design of the 6233 makes all its features easily accessible, the front fascia boasting the selection buttons and call and end keys of its 2G predecessor, the 6230. The 6233’s central selection key is surrounded by a four-way navigation key which you use to navigate the phone’s animated menu system.
The phone itself feels sturdy, its glossy front face and 240x320-pixel screen backing onto a rubber-coated back fascia which adds to the grip and protects somewhat against drops and shocks. The large keys on the 6233’s keypad have no metal dividers between them, making it easy to text at speed or dial numbers quickly.Powered by Nokia’s Series 40 system, the 6233 offers voice calling, texting, internet access and email, as well as the ability to run applications written in Java and Shockwave formats.
As with all Series 40 models, the animated menus are easy to use, and additional productivity features include the usual calendar, calculator, to-do list, notes, and alarm clock and stopwatch tools. The phone can be customized to your own taste by installing ringtones, wallpapers and screensavers via Bluetooth, internet download and MMS, or via a USB cable connected to a PC running Nokia’s bundled PC Suite. You can also download or create themes for your phone – small packaged files that add all such desktop enhancements in one go.
The back of the phone features the Nokia 6233’s 2-megapixel camera along with a handy self-portrait mirror. The camera is activated by pressing a button on the side of the phone; this key doubles up as the capture button. The camera takes clear shots at a choice of five resolutions from the full 1600x1200 down to an icon-sized 160x120, and the phone’s video capture resolution is a healthy 640x480 pixels.
Various quality settings are available so you can compromise quality with memory space – the 6233’s own built-in 6MB won’t hold much, but the standard 64MB MicroSD card is enough for around 100 top-quality images or a handful of your favorite music tracks. And while it’s unlikely that you’d use the 6233 as an iPod replacement, its built-in music player plays imported tracks to a high standard.The phone also features an FM radio and voice recorder, which will record until the phone or card memory is full, should you choose. Large buttons for controlling both voice calling and music player/radio volume are conveniently located on the right side of the phone.On the whole, the Nokia 6233 is a terrific 3G phone because I have got one for myself.