Nokia MD-1 Music Stand Review

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Nokia MD-1 Review - I recently bought a Nokia MD-1 music stand for my new Nokia 6234. I live in Dublin, Ireland so please bear this in mind for the review; MD-1 was purchased at my local O2 shop, phone is currently on Vodaphone.

Full review and pictures by Freezer_Burn of HowardForums.

The Contents

Very simple packaging. Included in the box:

MD-1 Music Stand
Instruction Booklet
ACP-12 Charger

The Nokia MD-1 Stand

...looks like half of a donut. The stand is in a concave shape with the grilled speakers at each end. The phone itself requires a pop-port connection.

The stand itself dips on the top and is rubberized, designed to hold your phone into place. Not a bad idea, but the design of the stand doesn't allow large phones the be used in this way. I found that even with my small 6234, it had to be correctly balanced to stay on.

The stand is very well sized. There is some girth to it, but not overly large; it's only a few centimeters wider than a PSP.

Nokia MD-1 General Usage

The stand is designed to play all sounds that would normally be played through the phone. This includes phone ringing, alerts, MP3, Radio, sounds from video, and also any external device that can connect to the stand through a 3.5mm aux in (cable not included). Another major feature of the phone is to be used as a hands free for voice calls. Sound quality during calls was actually quite good, though the usual "you sound like you're far away" was reported, though generally, quality was quite good.

Back inputs are: power-radio anntena-aux in

Nokia MD-1 Controls

Not surprisingly, 90% of the controling is done through the phone itself. That being said, volume, call answer/reject/hangup and radio station/mp3 track change can be controlled on the stand itself using the builtin controls. On the controls as well is a green light indicating that the stand is receieving power.

Nokia MD-1 Sound Quality

The sound quality, for a unit of this size, is exceptional. Radio was incredibly clear and MP3 playback was just as good. Volume is controlled both on the stand and the phone, so if phone volume is at 1 and stand volume is at max, the volume will be low, but at high volumes on both units, sound isn't distored and is quite loud. The sound fills a room beautifully without any distorting and in a quiet apartment (like mine) it can easily travel between rooms. As with all speakers, the quality of the sound depends on the source. All MP3's and radio stations were played with crystal clear sound, and the radio quality of the stand exceeds the quality of my clock radio which sit right next to each other.

Conclusion

I'm very tempted to give the Nokia MD-1 a 10/10. Controls are easy, sound quality is fantastic, aux-in is an added bonus since the quality of the speakers is so good. Had I been in charge of product design, I may have added some sort of display showing track/station info or even a something as simple as the time as I am starting to use this as a replacement for my alarm clock. Price all depends on where you can get it (I paid €85) for mine, though I'm sure prices are cheaper online. Overall, one of my more sound and confident purchases. I like the unique shape and easy controls. Only thing I would like to see from Nokia would be a portable solution similar to Sony Ericsson's offerings. Other than those minor thoughts, a perfect choice for both home and office in terms of the units music playback and hands-free capabilities.