Nokia Lumia 710 Review - T-Mobile's Nokia WP7
by Brian Klug on January 5, 2012 12:01 AM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- Nokia
- Mobile
- WP7
- Lumia 710
Lumia 710 - Software Preload
The Lumia 710 we were sampled is headed for T-Mobile, and as a result comes with some software preloads. Among those are T-Mobile TV, T-Mobile My Account, TeleNav GPS Nav, Nokia Drive, and an ESPN app.
Thankfully unlike Android 2.x, you aren’t stuck with these preloads for the life of the device or until you root and remove, as WP7 allows for easy uninstallation of any of these preloaded applications.
Obviously T-Mobile My Account is somewhat useful for managing your account information and checking use, but besides the preloaded Nokia applications, I find almost all preloads annoying. Obviously on a device with just 8 GB of NAND keeping this to a minimum is important.
Nokia’s Apps
The Lumia 710 doesn’t come with all of Nokia’s software portfolio installed out of the box, just Nokia Drive. It’s somewhat puzzling that T-Mobile decided to also include TeleNav GPS Nav since Nokia Drive is free on the Lumia series and provides the same turn-by-turn navigation features, but for whatever reason that’s the way things are.
I talked about the Nokia application portfolio in the Lumia 800 review at some length if you’re interested in more details. Suffice it to say that Nokia Drive does a nice job getting the job done, and has gotten more and more speedy with each update since I first saw it. On first launch, Nokia Drive fetches maps and voices over WiFi, so you’ll have to launch this before setting out for some driving.
The interesting thing about the 710 is that the Marketplace application now has a “Nokia Collection” pivot which is home to all the Nokia applications. Maps, Contacts Transfer, and a few others are all present here. Nokia Music and Drive aren’t included here, though Drive is still updated through the marketplace like on the 800. I wager depending on what carrier you’re getting the 710 on, the combination of preload and Nokia preinstalled applications will change.
Obviously the Nokia 710 comes with WP7.5 Mango, specifically build 7740 (7.19.7740.16) on the device we tested.
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deputc26 - Thursday, January 5, 2012 - link
nexusBrian Klug - Thursday, January 5, 2012 - link
Anand and I are both working on it, and will have it done end of this week :)It shall be epic!
-Brian
bplewis24 - Thursday, January 5, 2012 - link
Thanks, looking forward to it.deputc26 - Thursday, January 5, 2012 - link
Awesome, I don't buy phones 'til I see the AT review. It's amazing to me that no other mobile sites are trying to catch up with the quality of AT reviews.a5cent - Thursday, January 5, 2012 - link
So true. What others call a review rarely goes beyond a verbose version of the spec sheet (particularly when it involves andriod devices). I also appreciate that Brian takes battery life and display quality seriously... the two most important aspects of any smartphone, provided your purchase isn't just about getting a shiny new status symbol.tipoo - Thursday, January 5, 2012 - link
Same. AT seems to catch little bugs more often than any other site too.niva - Friday, January 6, 2012 - link
I'm real glad of this Lumia 710 review, if my original Samsung Galaxy dies this will probably be the phone I get. Ideally I want to wait for the 2nd generation Nokia phones. The 710 seems better rounded and with less compromises than the 800 to me though. The only real benefit to the 800 is the external design from what I can tell, better screen?jjj - Thursday, January 5, 2012 - link
That's so... last year!I want Krait.
TareX - Thursday, January 5, 2012 - link
Thank you. I came here just to remind you about the Galaxy Nexus review. I went ahead and bought one last week anyway. I love it. Insane display. The only things that upset me are:1) The low, low, low volume (both speakers, and voice)
2) The phone lags with most live wallpapers (except for Photo Beam)...
Vepsa - Thursday, January 5, 2012 - link
I want to see you guys give away a nice big pile of Galaxy Nexuses (Nexii?), preferably with one going to me :)