From Motorola Pebl to Nokia 6131 - A motorola fan takes on the Nokia 6131.

Generally speaking I am a motorola fan. I've had a couple Nokias along the way but most of my phones have been motorolas. I like the clean, crisp sound and the reception has always been average - good. I disliked the crackly noises with my previous Nokia phones (you can see the list in my sig) and sometimes had bouncy signal levels.

Ed note: Full review and pictures by Lush Rimbaugh of Hofo. T-Mobile user, Columbus Ohio.

There was nothing wrong with my Pebl, except how it would shut down on it's own every couple weeks. I just wanted something different, like many of you, I go through phones quickly and want the newest gadget. I took a leap and sold my Pebl on ebay and bought the Nokia 6131 on ebay as well for $278.

Reception
This is the biggest issue for me. I don't care about cameras or EDGE and radio and going online with my phone and all that other crap. I want a phone to work wherever I am. In the elevator, the basement, the garage, fishing, the gym, etc. I am happy to say the 6131 gets very good reception in all of those places. I noticed more "full signal 5 bars" around the house with my Pebl, but now I only get 3 of 4 bars usually with all 4 bars showing occasionally. I can live with this though, thats good enough for me. There is hardly any signal bouncing as with previous nokias either.

I stuck my phone inside my mini-fridge in my room and closed the door just enough to see the screen and it still held 3 bars signal. I just went in the kitchen and stuck the phone in the oven trying to see if the metal enclosure would cause any problems and I still had 2 bars of strength. Even driving around town last night there was never a time when I didnt have full reception. Clearly this phone holds a strong signal and I am very pleased about that.

Call clarity
This IS the clearest sounding Nokia I have ever owned. There is no background hissing, no popping noises, no crackling noises, no wavey noises. It's very very clear. However, I do prefer the sound of the Pebl because I feel it's more "true", as in it has more bass and sounds more natural. Thats not to say the 6131 is bad, it's just not as bassey and natural sounding as the Pebl. I don't get any static on the 6131 as with previous models either. The person on the other end sounds very good, just not as deep and robust as the Pebl.

The ear piece volume is adequate too. I would put that right on par with the Pebl. At full volume people sound good with no distortion. I usually keep the level at 8, but 10 works good for driving around the city or taking calls in a group of people. I was still able to hear the other person fine when I was sitting at a poker table with 8 other people last night.

Battery
Yeah, we all know the deal. It's not that good. I talked 61:25 and sent 5 text messages and my battery was already half dead. This might be because I was still getting used to the phone and making a lot of changes and trying things out. I run everything at a minimum, so Im not using up lots of battery going online, playing games, or taking pictures. Just talking and sending a couple text messages.

Build and form factor
This phone is really much thinner than the pics make it look. It's very nice and slim and feels good in my hand. I liked the feel of the Pebl better though, that soft black feel was awesome. On the Nokia, there's not a lot of space to smear fingerprints so that's a plus. I like the simple black/grey/silver look of this phone, it looks very classy and clean. I got 2 compliments last night on how the phone looked "tight" lol.

The Pebl felt bulky and heavy, much like it's name "pebble." The Nokia is skinny and slender, and fits nicely in my pockets. It's very light too, one of the lightest phones I've ever owned.

Opening the phone feels solid, no creaking noises or strange sounds. It feels very sturdy and rugged. However, when the phone is closed, I can move the top part from side to side just a little bit. I don't think this will be a problem, but it's worth noting. It could stand to be a little tighter, but I wouldn't call this sloppy by any means.

Once you open it
The screen is beautiful, no doubt. Everyone has already said this and I just have to confirm how awesome it looks. Clear, sharp, vibrant, and bold. It really is the best screen I have ever seen.

The keypad is great too. I wasn't a fan of the Pebl's flat keypad, I like having distinction between the numbers. The numbers are seperated nicely with each number having its own button. The keys are nicely lit so you can see them in the dark very easily.

The signal meter only shows 4 possible bars. Call me crazy, but I like to see more bars. The 6230 and the 3220 showed 7 possible bars and I liked that better. But the 4 on the Nokia 6131 show up nicely, and they are seperated which makes it look spaced out. I know people will say "you cant judge a signal by how many bars you have blah, blah, blah...." Too bad, becuase I do. This is just a minor point, but I wish it showed 5 or 7 bars.

The 'push to open' button on the side of the phone is very handy. It feels very solid, when I push it an audible click is heard. This does not feel cheap at all, very rugged in design. I can also open the phone by hand like normal with no problem.

The side buttons are nice and flush too. However, 2 times last night I must have turned the camera on by accident in my pocket because when I would check it the camera would be in Standby mode. I hope there is a way to disable the side button that activates the camera.

All the icons work just fine, including voicemail.

Conclusion
Im pretty happy with this phone overall. I like somethings better on my old Pebl, and I like some things better on this 6131 but they're not deal breakers. The Nokia 6131 is an elegant looking phone that performs just as good as it looks. I think Nokia made a winner with this flip phone, and I am sure it will go over very well once it hits a US retailer.
I would recommend this phone, most definitely!

v 03.50
31-03-06
RM-115

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