Phone for the e-mail junkie

Nokia's E75 is a functional tool for road warrior who wants to stay connected

BUSINESS phones are no longer just for the busy executive.

With an overcrowded handphone market offering all sorts of mobile devices catering to every personality type, choosing a phone really boils down to what tickles the fancy of individual consumers.

So, getting a piece of the market has become intense competition.

Feeling the heat, Nokia upped the ante with the latest addition to its E-series - the new E75 offers both a numeric keypad and a Qwerty keyboard.

That is arguably the phone's main attraction.

You can choose to type with the numeric keypad for a short SMS or slide out the Qwerty keyboard if you need to type a longer e-mail or edit a document on the go.

The novelty of having the best of both worlds is great - until you find it can be a tad difficult working on the Qwerty because the keys are flat to keep the phone compact.

It takes some getting used to, especially if you aren't already used to a Qwerty.

The numeric keypad is also flat and the keys on the bottom row are smaller than the rest, making it a little more difficult to hit them.

Even so, I found it much easier to use the numeric keypad.

Chic

In the looks department, the E75 has maintained the chic factor of the other E-series phones.

The stainless steel back cover characteristic of the E-series remains, and the glossy plastic front gives it a stylish yet less serious look compared to the E71.

At 139g and measuring 11cm by 5cm and 1.4cm thick, the E75 feels sturdy in the hand, which is great for someone clumsy like myself.

The phone's home screen interface can be customised and allows users to have different settings.

For example, you can personalise a 'business mode' and place your favourite work-related icons, such as e-mail and calendar, on the home screen for easy access, complete with a professional wallpaper picture.

After hours, just press on the 'switch mode' icon and it changes the home screen to 'personal mode' settings.

When switching between modes, though, and when opening up applications, there is a noticeable lag.

Best feature

Nevertheless, one of the best features of the E75 is the e-mail function. It's fast and easy to set up and access is just one button away.

It gives the busy executive who just can't keep away from e-mails an easy fix. You can access multiple e-mails accounts from the phone - Gmail, Hotmail and Yahoo. Even most corporate e-mail accounts can be easily set up for access on the go.

It took me all of one minute (or less) to set up my Gmail account on the phone. All that is required is your user ID and password.

Other features like the 3.2-megapixel camera is standard and the 2.4-inch display screen isn't as large as other smart phones, but I found it acceptable.

All in, the E75 doesn't come cheap at $768, but it is nonetheless a nifty functional phone to have.