Nokia 6500 classic mobile phone review

Full Review

Nokia has two kinds of handsets, classically designed no fuss models and crazy bonkers break the boundaries stuff. The Nokia 6500 classic as the name might suggest is the former, but does that mean it should be ignored? We get phoning to find out.

Like the company's 6300, the Nokia 6500 classic is a simple but effective design for those looking for a phone and nothing more.

Tall, long and thin (109.8 x 45 x 9.5mm), the handset has a large colour screen, uncomplicated keypad layout and uses the simple Symbian S40 user interface.

Coming in matt black, the majority of the phone, apart from the battery case, is made from anodized aluminium giving it a stylish polished look.

Continuing this theme, the buttons have been kept to a minimum, there is no dedicated camera button and no volume controls on the side, in fact even the usual array of buttons found on most Nokia's like quick access menu buttons aren't here either. Instead you get a simple design. Full stop.

Turn the phone on and there isn't much to shout about either, you get a 2 megapixel camera with 8x digital zoom, and dual LED flash, 1GB of internal memory to keep multimedia fans happy, 3G connectivity although no second camera on the front for video calling, and a micro USB charging slot so you can charge it via your PC rather than having to rely on a dedicated Nokia charger.

Verdict

With so many phones offering you megapixels this and music players that, the 6500 classic is a great handset for those who don't want to be fussed with all the extras.

That isn't to say that this phone is lacking though, the inclusion of 3G will please those who want to double this up as a modem for their computer and the 1GB of on board storage means you'll have plenty of room for storing music, images, video and more.

A good simple handset that is likely to appeal to many.

• Comment on this story for your chance to win a TomTom XL Live IQ Routes Europe