Sporting style in spades, Nokia's latest handset isn't all about looks as it includes 3G capabilities, 1GB of internal memory and a 2-megapixel camera. Part of Nokia's "style and design range", the 6500 Classic features a case crafted from anodised aluminium, making it one of the most stylish handsets to hit the market.
At just 9.5mm thin, the 6500 Classic is a joy to hold in your hand. Available in black or bronze finishes, the aluminium casing feels strong and well built. The etched silver display and keypad surrounds adds a touch of class. Our only real complaint with the design is the keypad and controls -- they are quite small and feel somewhat squashed, making messaging and general use a little frustrating at times.
Call quality is adequate and volume levels are loud enough at their highest setting, so holding conversations with some background noise isn't an issue. The handsfree speakerphone also works well.
The 6500 Classic comes equipped with a 2-megapixel camera with 8x digital zoom and a dual-LED flash, but we were a bit surprised that there is no front mounted VGA camera for video calls. The camera takes respectable, but far from outstanding, photos and despite the presence of a flash, night-time photography is a hit and miss affair. The camera doubles as a video recorder, with a resolution of up to 176x144 pixels.
A music player featuring a new look is included, but most features are the same. The interface is easy to use though and settings include shuffle and repeat play modes, stereo widening, preset and adjustable equaliser settings and the ability to "skin" the player with various themes. Sadly, the lack of a 3.5mm headphone jack is a real let down, though the inclusion of A2DP Stereo Bluetooth is a handy alternative to the included headphones.
Although the 1GB of internal memory is generous and should be enough for the average user, the lack of a memory card slot is the 6500 Classic's biggest issue. With a decent camera, music player and video recorder, excess multimedia use will quickly fill up the devices memory. Another annoyance is the unified microUSB port -- although it's great to see Nokia aiming for a standard port across its range, one port for charging, listening to music and synchronisation means users aren't able to listen to music and charge the phone at the same time, as an example.
Other features include a voice recorder and Java games, as well as the standard suite of PIM functions consisting of alarm, calendar, to-do list, notes, calculator, stopwatch and a countdown timer.
According to Nokia figures, battery life is rated at up to 3.5 hours of talk time and up to nine days of standby time on a 3G network. These figures rise to 5.5 hours talk time and 12.5 days standby time on a standard GSM network.
