Nokia Asha 501 Quick Review : Five Reasons to Choose It Over Cheap Android Phones, Key Features Explained on Video
Nokia Asha 501 Dual SIM variant is now officially available at all Nokia Stores and authorized retail outlets across the country. The handset sells for only Php 4,490 and is available in five colors, namely, Red, Cyan, Black, Yellow, and White.
Now, I know what you're thinking. There are many affordable Android smartphones out in the market with similar SRP; Why would anyone want to choose Nokia Asha 501 over those? Well, let me give you five reasons why.
1. Extremely long battery life - One of the biggest weaknesses of most Android phones is that they have terribly short uptime. And some of the cheap ones won't even last a whole day on a full charge. Nokia Asha 501 delivers up to a whopping 26 days of standby time, 17 hours of talk time and 56 hours of music playback. This is a handset that you won't have to charge in the middle of the day in your office if you leave home with it having 100% battery.
2. Solid Construction and Innovative Design - Big compromises on design and materials usually make low price possible for entry-level Android phones. With Nokia Asha 501, you get a gorgeous monoblock polycarbonate construction similar to what we see on the high-end Lumia line. The phone also flaunts a swappable back cover, which means that you can change its color depending on your mood or to match your outfit. Oh, and did I mention that its display is protected by scratch-resistant Gorilla Glass for enhanced durability?
3. Easy Swap Port for SIM 2 - Nokia Asha 501, like some affordable Droids, is a Dual SIM Dual Standby device. But what makes it different from all of them is that it features Nokia's patented Easy SIM Swap technology, which lets you put, remove or replace the second SIM without having to turn off the handset or pull out the battery. If you use more than two SIM cards, I'm sure you'll appreciate this innovation.
4. Intuitive User Interface - If you're a big Nokia fan, you should know that Nokia Asha 501's UI is very similar to that of Nokia N9's MeeGo operating system. You'll see a grid showing all app icons and a timeline of everything that you've done on the handset as well as social media updates from your friends. Want a quick demo? Here's a video of Mr. Mike Smith, Nokia Philippines' Product Manager, showing us Nokia Asha 501's hardware and explaining some of the key features of its OS, the Nokia Asha Software Platform 1.0:
5. If You Don't Want to be Like Everyone Else - Let's face it. Android handsets truly dominate the market these days making them the top of mind option for a lot of consumers. Now, if you're the type of budget-conscious user who doesn't like blindly following trends or jumping on bandwagons, then you might want to check out Nokia Asha 501 and own a phone that's as unique and fun as you.
Of course, to be fair, there are also many reasons to choose a cheap Android phone over Nokia Asha 501. For one, you get more applications on the Android platform and there's a bigger community of Android users to help you with your customizations and tweaks. Also, Android phones - even the most affordable ones these days - generally have higher technical specifications versus the innards of even the most expensive Asha phone.
What I'm trying to achieve here is to show you that it's wrong to just casually proclaim that any Android phone is superior to any Asha handset from Nokia in all departments because clearly, the Asha line - especially Nokia Asha 501 - has its own charms and comes replete with a few features that are better than what you'll get on an Android device in the same price echelon.
Now, I know what you're thinking. There are many affordable Android smartphones out in the market with similar SRP; Why would anyone want to choose Nokia Asha 501 over those? Well, let me give you five reasons why.
1. Extremely long battery life - One of the biggest weaknesses of most Android phones is that they have terribly short uptime. And some of the cheap ones won't even last a whole day on a full charge. Nokia Asha 501 delivers up to a whopping 26 days of standby time, 17 hours of talk time and 56 hours of music playback. This is a handset that you won't have to charge in the middle of the day in your office if you leave home with it having 100% battery.
2. Solid Construction and Innovative Design - Big compromises on design and materials usually make low price possible for entry-level Android phones. With Nokia Asha 501, you get a gorgeous monoblock polycarbonate construction similar to what we see on the high-end Lumia line. The phone also flaunts a swappable back cover, which means that you can change its color depending on your mood or to match your outfit. Oh, and did I mention that its display is protected by scratch-resistant Gorilla Glass for enhanced durability?
3. Easy Swap Port for SIM 2 - Nokia Asha 501, like some affordable Droids, is a Dual SIM Dual Standby device. But what makes it different from all of them is that it features Nokia's patented Easy SIM Swap technology, which lets you put, remove or replace the second SIM without having to turn off the handset or pull out the battery. If you use more than two SIM cards, I'm sure you'll appreciate this innovation.
4. Intuitive User Interface - If you're a big Nokia fan, you should know that Nokia Asha 501's UI is very similar to that of Nokia N9's MeeGo operating system. You'll see a grid showing all app icons and a timeline of everything that you've done on the handset as well as social media updates from your friends. Want a quick demo? Here's a video of Mr. Mike Smith, Nokia Philippines' Product Manager, showing us Nokia Asha 501's hardware and explaining some of the key features of its OS, the Nokia Asha Software Platform 1.0:
5. If You Don't Want to be Like Everyone Else - Let's face it. Android handsets truly dominate the market these days making them the top of mind option for a lot of consumers. Now, if you're the type of budget-conscious user who doesn't like blindly following trends or jumping on bandwagons, then you might want to check out Nokia Asha 501 and own a phone that's as unique and fun as you.
Of course, to be fair, there are also many reasons to choose a cheap Android phone over Nokia Asha 501. For one, you get more applications on the Android platform and there's a bigger community of Android users to help you with your customizations and tweaks. Also, Android phones - even the most affordable ones these days - generally have higher technical specifications versus the innards of even the most expensive Asha phone.
What I'm trying to achieve here is to show you that it's wrong to just casually proclaim that any Android phone is superior to any Asha handset from Nokia in all departments because clearly, the Asha line - especially Nokia Asha 501 - has its own charms and comes replete with a few features that are better than what you'll get on an Android device in the same price echelon.
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