Just bought US warrantied Nokia N73 from the Chicago Nokia Store

Danielle(:

New member
I just picked up a U.S. warranted Nokia N73 from the Chicago Nokia Store. It?s silver and plum, the only color they carry right now. According to the sales person, it?s highly unlikely they?ll be carrying any other color anytime soon. Anyway, I was getting tired of the red and white look of my current N73 and wanted to switch to the more professional look of the silver and plum, plus I wanted the U.S. warranty and in-store support for this phone.

Here?s the scoop on the N73?s Nokia has stocked at the Chicago store: Sorry Angel Wing, they don?t carry made in Finland N73s. They also don?t carry made by Nokia. None of the stickers on the box said made by Nokia. The sticker on the box said made in China licensed by Nokia. Now here?s why you shouldn?t care that it was not made in Finland. This made in China N73 is the most solid feeling N73 I?ve felt. It has absolutely no creaks even when applying pressure to the battery cover. The camera cover is tight with almost no back and forth play whatsoever. The seams of the phone are tight and the joystick feels better and tighter than my current N73. Compared to my white/red N73, which creaks and groans like an old lady in a nursing home, it is built like a Panzer tank.

Here?s another added bonus. All of the N73s came with a Clairvue screen protector already applied, and it was perfectly applied with no gaps along the edges or dust under the protector. That saves you some money of having to buy one yourself and the aggravation of trying to get them on perfectly. Also, there is a 30 day return policy for a full refund of your money, no questions asked, as long as the phone works and hasn?t been damaged.

The price for the phone is $499.99 plus tax, or about $544.00. That?s well worth the price for U.S. support, in-store tech service and piece of mind. This phone is pretty complicated and probably has a higher than average probability of something going wrong. At least you?re not left out in the cold like you are when buying a gray market N73. Also the build quality is better than those phones. My red/white N73 is up on ebay right now.
 
V 3.0649.0.0.1_rm132
30-11-2006
RM-132

Yes, it's the emasculated North American version, no video call option or push to talk whatsoever, not that you need it here. The front camera is useless. It works, but it has no capability for video calls. When you select network, it only gives you the option of Automatic or manual. My red N73 has the options of Dual mode, UMTS and GSM. It's also missing call barring options. I will tell you though, this firmware is faster than my red N73 - V 3.0638.0.0.1. Scrolling through contacts and various applications is considerably quicker.

Now, what if you went to Europe and you were on a network that supports UMTS and video calls. With this firmware, does that mean it still wouldn't work?
 
That's what I thought. Thanks for confirming. About this firmware being fast: The camera takes under 3 seconds to start up from the time you open the cover. My red N73 took 6 seconds. Oops, strike what I just said about the camera being faster. After repeated try with both cameras, they're the same. One thing that stinks though, you can't press and hold the # key to quickly get the phone in silent mode.
 
I still think I'd rather save the $100+ dollars and buy from a retailer online. I've wanted to buy a phone from the flagship store, but the prices keep shooing me away. The sales tax is murder when you're spending several hundred dollars.

That's really nice that it has a Clarivue screen protector already applied though.
 
If that firmware flash is possible, then I would buy an N73 US version. But if they took out the UMTS hardware, then I wouldn't think it was possible.
 
I don't think they went to such great extents as to TAKE OUT the hardware. I'm sure a quick flash using NSU would bring back UMTS functionality.
 
But why is nokia be disabling all these options on the US f/w?
U end up paying a higher price for lesser functionality?

Sell the same phone u sell worldwide!
 
Let's not start griping that they're charging for features we cant use. I'm just happy their selling them on our soil! The rest will come!
 
Hmm. importGSM has it for $420, plus $22 ship for total of $442
Nokia sells it for $499 + tax for a total of $540

what's the diff??? they both have a warranty (1 year), they're both brand new.
 
The major difference is that through Nokia you get their (official) warranty. ImportGSM has thier own warranty services, acting as a sort of intermediary between you and Nokia (since the versions that IGSM are using don't have an official Nokia USA warranty).

The other difference as mentioned above, is that you get the Euro version from ImportGSM whereas you get the official US verison from Nokia... which in this case means the US version is rather crippled for international travel.

-olly
 
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