Nokia 3555 (T-Mobile)

The buzz on this phone is the 1700/2100 AWS feature. That means when T-Mobile rolls out 3G in your area you'll be ready to download those ringtones and games in record breaking time. But until then this particular feature is not important. So why the 3555 now?

Let's start with the camera. The specs say it is VGA, and it is. But it takes some really nice photographs. It has a decent lens, unlike the 6103, see my 6103 review and you'll see what I mean. There has been a huge improvement here. There is a 4X digital zoom available on the camera. There is also 30 megabytes of storage available on the phone for those nice photos you'll be taking. This is another huge improvement over the 6103.

Another improvement is in the PC interface. The Pop-Port is gone! The microUSB plug has replaced it. This allows for fast data transfer. Also, the parts of the interface that endure physical wear have moved to the relatively inexpensive cable allowing the phone portion of the connection to last for thousands of connections.

This phone can be used as a modem. It's a quadband phone so it can be used a modem worldwide. Once 3G is rolled out it will be a rather quick modem. So you'll be able to hookup your laptop via the microUSB cable any place you are able to make a phone call and check your stock prices, your airline arrangements or how the Red Sox are doing. The fast speeds will be limited to where T-Mobile has its AWS bands implemented.

It uses the BL-5C battery. This has 25% more juice than the BL-4C that was in the 6103. This gives you 10 days of standby and three hours of straight yakking.

The LCD is the same resolution and color depth as the Nokia 6086. That is it is 1.8 inches and 262,144 colors. This is the weakest part of the phone. The text and graphics look clunky and dated. It is the same as the 6103. It is like a time warp to open this sleek device, turn it on and see the screen.

The keypad is another story. It is a delight to use. Excellent feedback from the keys makes entering a phone number or texting easy. The keys are quick, dark grey chicklets set into a silver bezel making them easy to see in all conditions. Although not as pronounced this has the keypad-LCD interference issue that beset the 6103.

The HS-40 wired handsfree headset that comes with phone plugs in near the hinge on the right side of the phone. The power plug in at the bottom of the phone on the same side. The microUSB port, which is not covered, is at the lower left side of the phone. I would have prefered to see the headset wire on the left side and the USB wire on the right to facilitate handsfree use while driving assuming the phone is in a phone holder in the center console. This works but it is not ideal. Keep it in your left trouser pocket and it will work perfectly.

The exterior of the phone is interesting. When open, the exterior hinge is hidden, making the device appear to be one long continuous unit. It is a narrow phone and this appearance is accentuated by the narrow chrome bands that separate and highlight the black center piece of the exterior. These are also the high wear points of the device and de-chrome quickly leaving the device somewhat shabby appearing in short order. You'll want to put the helicopter blade stuff on the outside of this one simply to keep it looking nice.

To sum it all up, this phone has function, style, it's light weight and because it is a Nokia it works well. For the price it is going to be hard to beat