Great functions in a stylish package: Nokia 6290 vs. Samsung U600 (Which one?)

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aj_ryan10

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So I need a new mobile. It has to be small/smallish (I'd keep it inside my pocket and take it with me to nightclubs), stylish and higher-end. Basically I'd use it to call people and SMS so things like 3g aren't absolutely necessary. A good camera would be nice but again it isn't everything.

I've spend some time trying to figure out what mobile to get and ended up with two options: Nokia 6290 and Samsung U600. The former is great mobile with a great price. The functions are solid, the UI is fast and the call/reception quality is excellent. Moreover, the ergonomics are fantastic (6290 feels great in your hand and the keypad is nice). However, this mobile has a very mediocre camera (2MP), it's not ultra cool-looking and it's a bit thick.

The latter is super thin which is (also) a good thing since when I go clubbing it doesn't make my pocket bulge. It's also very cool-looking and has a great camera (3MP). In fact, I think these Samsungs are the coolest looking mobiles right now (yep, not even the Motorolas or LG Prada can touch them). However, there are negative points as well. The ergonomics of this mobile (I've not got a change to try it out) are questionable (especially the keypad) and the fact that it is super thin might just make me always be conscious about me carrying an expensive mobile which could bend. Also, I hear Samsung loses in spades to Nokia concerning call/reception quality.

Could you give me your opinion? Which one would you choose? I know the basic answer to this is that I should just go to a mobile store and compare them but unfortunately in my country of Finland U600 will not be availba (live) for a long time so I'm forced to order the mobile online. Because of this, demoing these mobiles is pretty much impossible.
 
Get the Nokia, fast S60 thanks to a fast processor. Plus you know you will get better reception with the Nokia. Sure it is thicker, but the phone is better. Plus S60 is the UI I would choose in that contest.
 
So I've decided what mobile I'm going to buy... and it's not either of these mobiles. I'm going to buy Nokia 6300. Why? Frankly, there are no good options out there if you want a well-functioning ergonomic higher-end fashion mobile (and you don't want to pay over 500 euros). 6290 is simply too conservative, bulky and thick for me. It's seems to be a very good mobile otherwise, though. Samsung U600 is slim and looks cool, but now that official reviews are starting to appear (and you combine them with the user reviews) it's pretty much clear that its design has some serious weaknesses which affect the ergonomics. The other options -- LG Shine, LG Prada, Motorola KRZR K3 & ROKR Z6, Nokia 7390, Samsung U700 -- are all either too expensive (honestly, I would seriously stress over a 815 dollar LG Prada everytime with it in my pocket I'd go clubbing), have too "different" design or are not as well-functioning as 6290 and U600 (I mean I'm sure LG Shine has its strong points but it's pretty clear that it can't compete with Nokia and Samsung when it comes to usability).

So why Nokia 6300? Well first of all I think it looks pretty good. It has that metallic structure and it's slim (which is here only a good thing which is not the case with U600). It looks like your candybar mobile but I think you can call it a fashion mobile as its design is so pure and modern. It's very ergonomic and it has got some nice functions for a mobile at its price range. Sure, the camera is a bit on the weak side but then again in my opinion a mobile phone can never replace an ultracompact digital camera.

My thinking here is that I buy Nokia 6300 now and get a very stylish, very durable and very well-functioning mobile at a relatively low price and then after 9-18 months I buy a better 3G fashion clamshell or slider leaving 6300 as my trustworhty backup mobile. I'm sure by that time Samsung and Nokia have managed to cough up a fashion mobile that is at the same time cool, slim, ergonomic and well-functioning.
 
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