One of the first Nokias I ever used was a brand new Nokia 6110. At the time it was a pretty cool device, small, light and curvy. Since it was a Nokia I also knew it was built to last and boy did I test that. I threw it around, dropped it onto concrete and into water, got sand into it, broke it’s antenna and still the phone refused to die. The same was true for most Nokias I used for years to come including the indestructible 6310. You see back then Nokia had a reputation for quality both in terms of software and hardware. They were the easiest phones to use and the longest lasting too. They were “phones for life” (or at least 3-5 years) back in a time when few models were released every year and getting a new device every 12-18 months wasn’t really an option.

Somewhere along the lines things changed. As phones got smaller and cheaper the old cornerstones of build quality and reliability started to take a back seat. It started with advent of quick-swap covers which inherently led to a more flimsy device. It then progressed into Nokias low-end handsets and Fashion range each of which felt like you could crush it in the palm of your hand. Cheap plastic covers snapped easily and painted covers would wear out in a matter of months. Nokia had bought into the economies of perceived obsolescence, as most technology companies have. It was clear that since consumers were encouraged to upgrade their devices every year it was no longer necessary to make them “phones for life”. Unfortunately they didn’t realise they were taking away from the overall experience.

More recently this type of poor quality has started to find its way into the most high-end of Nokias devices too. Phones which cost many hundreds of Dollars would be mostly made out of plastic and creaked when they were used. I found myself more and more disappointed with every Nokia device I used in term of build quality, be it a S40 feature-phone or a top-of-the-line N-Series device. The old Nokia Experience I remembered from years ago just didn’t exist anymore.

Fortunately it seems that not everyone at Nokia had turned a blind eye to this. Most of Nokias E-Series devices, aimed at business users, were still pretty solid. Most importantly though, at the end of 2006, the Nokia 6300 hit stores around the world. While on the face of things this was just another standard S40 feature-phone from Nokia it really was the first device in a long time that tried to bring back the roots of that old Nokia Experience. It was a classic S40 candybar with simple yet elegant design. It was small, light and the UI was simple to use. But most importantly it was solidly built and felt like it could survive the knocks and drops a device goes through in daily life. In fact a few months later my brother came home with one having sold the LG Prada he got as an upgrade to his contract. His reason for picking it? “It’s just like the phones I used to use, simple, strong and looks good.” And clearly he wasn’t the only one to notice as the Nokia 6300 turned into one of the most popular devices in 2007 (est. 20 million+ sold).

The signs were there that this wasn’t going to be a one off. News went round of two new Nokia devices, the 6500 Classic and 6500 Slide, which both looked to be built in the same vein as the 6300. There was also a 6301 on the cards which had the latest version of S40 (DP5) and threw in WiFi and UMA technology. So you can imagine my delight when, at Nokia World, I found that all these devices were part of a new range from Nokia. What was the range called: The Nokia Experience Range. How apt!

The Experience booth had the two 6500 versions and the new 6301 and I have to say they really don’t disappoint. The 6500 Classic was probably the pick of the bunch even though the Slider version has it beat on features. It’s another classic Nokia candybar that’s well built and great to use. It’s body is cast from a single piece of aluminum and it’s finished to perfection. The latest version of S40 looks wonderful with a great home screen and lightening-quick menu. This is the 6110 of the 21st Century, a real “phone for life” and the same can be said of the rest of the range.

As the Experience Range starts to see some success I hope that Nokia begin realise that build quality is vital and bring back the principles of their original phones to future devices, especially N-Series. One comment I remember clearly from the AllAboutSymbian podcast session was “Sort out the build quality of N-Series. These phones cost hundreds of Euros and they fell like fucking toys”. The same could be said of device across their range and it’s time they did something about it.

UPDATE: I kicked myself on the drive to work this morning for not remembering to talk about the 8800 and 8600 during this post. That whole range has always been about quality and it’s clear those principles have been continued in the Experience Range, just without relying on expensive materials. Stefan has also commented on build quality and has linked to an interview with one of the 6500 series designers (I seem to remeber that it was Stefan who made the comment on the N-Series build quality I quoted above).