Nokia 6131 Review

I am having the same issues with the battery life of my 6131. I charge it and about a day and a half later, the battery indicator is below 50%. I know the phone is a battery hog because I am using my original 6101 battery. When the battery was in the 6101, I wouldn't have to charge it for up to a week.

I've even switched out the battery for the original one that came with the 6131 and it does the same thing. This tells me that the batteries are not the problem, but the power consumption of the phone is.

Depsite all this, I still love this phone anyway.

 

Actually, I would say it is a design problem. The phone should've been made a bit thinner to accomodate a larger mAh battery, or simply enlarge the battery bay area to accomodate a larger battery. Or a more flexible solution would be to design Nokia batteries with built-in battery doors so as to be able to accomodate any type of battery capacity you want. The current design does not allow to use higher capacity batteries which is kind of retarded IMO. Motorola phones battery compartment is designed so that you can place any mAh battery you want. You just have to find the appropriate battery cover.

There is some disagreement on whether the BLC-4 battery (used in the 6131) is either 720mAh or 820mAh. Even on Nokia's site in some pages it shows one thing and in others it shows another and then you go to a user manual and find inconsistent information about the battery as well. But whatever it is, a regular flip phone that uses up a lot of battery should never have a battery less than 1000mAh.

 

Day 10 report.

Well, I really love this phone. I've had a few issues, some good experiences. The first to strike, the VMI no-show has been kind of addressed by Chinook. They have their system send me a text message each time I get a voice mail. Not optimal, as I get multiple text message to deal with, and can confuse between receiving a text and a voice mail message, as I don't get advantage of the separate icon for the VMI. But it has the advantage of letting me know who has left voice mail messages before I call in to listen to them. Further allowing me to screen messages. Sometimes i just hate the guilt factor of listening to VM messages and avoiding doing something. Anyone else ever feel that way? Voice mail as to-do list? Chinook is working on the 6131 VMI issue. Don't know if I'll ever really hear anything back, nor care to. I'm happy with the text notification.

Next issue up is that the outside screen quit displaying what it was supposed to. It would just light up blank. So I rebooted the phone, and it started acting normal. Go figure.

Battery time as all have noted is marginal, but it is far greater than my Kyocera SoHo, which had all of 80 minutes talk time, and even if I plugged it in while talking, it would shut down on me eventually. No more excuses for hanging up on my ex because of battery-low beeps. Used to be so convenient. Maybe I just need to find the right alert tone, and hit it when I need to get off of the phone... "oops, running out of battery, gotta run..." Battery easily gets me through a day, which is all I ask of it, and it would probably do two. I'll plug it in every night. The SoHo had to be plugged in all time I wasn't using it. I'm well trained.

I built my first theme, which was way cool. I found an OS X Tiger theme, and found a set of Litho icon replacements for the standard OS X Tiger icons (thank you iconfactory!), and chopped up a Tiger desktop pattern (the actual Tiger fur one) to replace the Mac default desktop, and combined the two. It looks real cool, and it is all mine! My 15 year old daughter thinks I'm a totally insane computer, now cell phone geek. But then she asked me if she could do it for her RAZR v3i, so whaddya know... . And then she heard my ringtone, which was from a cd from my band. Too much, she said. Found that my perceived oddness with themes and profiles is that when you change themes, the ringtones and alerts get replaced with the default ones you have chosen in your profiles. So then you have to go back and re-pick the ones you want. And if you incorporate a custom tone with your theme, it doesn't show up in the Gallery, it is embedded in the theme. So when the first time I poked around with this, and saw a certain ringtone in the theme, but couldn't find it in the Gallery, I was like, where is it. I don't like not being able to preview embeded theme ringtones in the Gallery alongside other ringtones. Don't quite know how Nokia would work around this, when the real bonus is being able to embed the ringtone in the theme in the first place, and offer a single package to download. Also, I might be missing something, or getting a bit confused. Need to play with it more and pin down interactions between themes and profiles.

FM radio works well. Good reception, and clear stereo reproduction with included ear buds. Clicker on buds switches stations and tells you which station you're listening to on the external screen. Volume control on clicker works well. Getting used to the buttons and figuring out how to initially set the stations was tough, as figuring out which button you had selected wasn't easy. Sound output through loudspeaker is clear and loud, for a cell, with the usual limitations. Couldn't get the equaliser or stereo widener to affect the radio. Too bad. Music player is fairly simple and straight forward. Equaliser is 5 band, and works fine. Stereo widening works as expected if you like that kind of thing. Supposedly with PhoneDirector (see below) I can drag playlists from iTunes to the transflash in the file manager window, and it will copy it over. Haven't tried that yet, but sounds good. Not an iPod, but I like having Music Player. Think I'll put some soothing meditation music on it for stressful times at work. Listen to it between support calls. Sort of like Muzak in reverse . [update: just tried the dragging and dropping a playlist from iTunes into the Gallery window of PhoneDirector--worked great. Moved my playlist to the folder of my choice on the transflash, though a little slow with bluetooth. I haven't sprung for a usb cable yet]

I purchased a copy of PhoneDirector from MacMedia (located in the Slovak Republic, no less!) for $30, and while v1.2.0 doesn't specify support for the 6131, an email to the developer got a quick reply that it indeed does, and he is right. It includes a great graphic theme editor, complete with drag and drop elements, color pickers, graphic editors, auto icon and image resizing, sound support, etc. Has both bluetooth and usb support. Only took me 3 hours to figure out how, and to build my first theme. Far better than Theme Studio. The software also includes modules to manage files on the phone memory and transflash. Create folders, ad and delete files. It can download contacts, edit them, merge phone and transflash contacts either way, save the files, and then upload them. Send SMS from computer and will download and archive all message folders. Wap and java utilities. Work with Organiser events. Basically allows me to manage and backup all the files on the 6131. I can't compare it to PC Studio, as I haven't been able to get it to support bluetooth via the Parallels or CrossOver PC compatability environments on OS X (maybe after they get out of beta...). But it is a great addition to the cell, and makes it perfectly customizable and manageable with backup. I'm sure there's more to the software, as I haven't really got into its sound capabilities yet, and a few other nooks and crannies. Add this to iSync (with necessary mod), for sync'ing iCal and AddressBook on my MacBook, and i'm one happy camper. No more forgetting appointments and calls to make--but do I really want to take another leap in organization? Takes the urgency out of needing to move to a smartphone. Didn't want to go there--now I don't have to! Time will tell if and/or how I keep on using these enhancements.

I guess that's enough for now. Enjoy!

Jim

 

Have fun on your vacation Charlyee!

 

Odd that it is $400 USD, when Hi-Mobile can sell one to me dropped shipped out of Hong Kong for $222. Somebody locally is making a lot of money. Have a great trip, and send some 6131 photos in, like one of the 6131's in a local shop for sale, ifn you can.

 

Ha!! Charlyee - I knew that you wouldn't really leave us . Nice to hear you got to HK. Give us another update when you can. We are all envious.

 

yeah we are,

 

Spoke to a T-Mobile store manager in Boston on Fri (15th). She seemed more knowledgeable about a range of things than most store staff. She said that T-Mo will be releasing the 6133, but not on Mon Sept 18, as some Phonescoop posters have it. When I mentioned early Oct, like some on HoFo have said, she agreed that this was possible. I guess tomorrow we will know if she was at least partly right.

 

Paris,

hi all. I can certainly agree with Charlyee that the 6131 has been a great performer in Paris. I get looks of 'wow' at the camera's photos and screen.

Driving around Paris, the multiple billboards are up advertising the Nokia 6131.

The camera has been great. A good replacement for my 7mP camea, when I just need a small size and some photos.

I'll upload some later, but need to change and rush out for a 'black -tie' dinner.

see you all.

vf

P.S. Charlyee, I just forgot about any cases, and keep it in my shirt pocket. I've also found that the recessed main screen does not get very dirty (ie, grease) as much as the V551,Razr or 6230.

 

Charging my phone up once a day, I have found the phone pretty workable so far. Earlier this week, I took about 15 photos and used the phone with no problem.

I notice that the 720 or 820 mAh used is very similiar to other flip phones. The Razr has a 680 and the V557 an 820 mAh battery. True the 6131 screen and other features may use more power than these phones, but it seems to be working out for me.

Going to a 1000mAh battery is only a 20% or so increase. The batteries are pretty slim; it might make more sense to carry an second battery and keep the phone slim, and have a 100% replacement on hand, if your a heavy user that day.

I had those old Nokia 52xx and 62xx phones where the bigger battery packs could replace the slimmer one. But in truth, I found the extra bulk and size a pain...I found that I much rather carry two slim batteries, than one bigger one. That way the phone still fit in my pocket well.

So far, I'm really enjoying this phone. It was a good upgrade from the 6230.

 

Paris

Hey Charlyee. 'Hope your having a good vacation. It has been work for me, but quite fun actually, with great weather here.

I'm running down to the phone store today and picking up a USB/pop port adapter cable so I can upload some images...BT and IrDA still not functional on my laptop. I've only seen ads here for the 6131.

This phone is beautiful, and the pictures on the display really eye popping. I just charge my phone up nightly or in the morning out of habit.

The audio quality is much better than my 6230. Calls from overseas sound like a landline.

Have a good trip, I return Sunday.

 

I have to charge my V635 pretty much every night or else it won't make it to the end of the next day. For most days it works out fine for me, but there are days when I have lots of calls and by 5 PM the same day the phone is already complaining "Low Battery". That's when a little extra juice comes in handy because I am not a fan of carrying a second battery. I know I am going to forget to bring it with me the day I need it. However, in addition to my home charger, I have a USB charger at work all the time and also another charger in my car for those special occasions. I guess for the 6131 I will have to do the same. To me, even that is better than hanging around with a second battery because I don't have to physically carry the chargers with me.

The V635, like most recent GSM Motorolas come with a 780mAh battery. However, I have a Motorola 1100mAh battery that I got from a Nextel phone but it works perfectly well on the V635 because the pin design is the same. Even though 1100mAh turns out to be about 40% more charge, the V635 runs an amazing 4 days with that battery with heavy use! So it is actually well over 200% improvement. I spent a lot of time playing with MediaNet, making phone calls all day and by the middle of the 4th day, the phone gave up. With the original 780mAh battery, that kind of heavy usage would kill the battery before the end of the first day.

The only problem with that 1100mAh battery is that there is no door you can buy designed to cover it so you can close the phone, plus it is very (I mean VERY) bulky. It's about twice the thickness of the original 780mAh battery. I don't know why Motorola can't do like Sony Ericsson that can make a battery for its z520a that is 900mAh which is quite smaller than Motorola's 780mAh. Having said that, the 1100mAh doesn't have to be that bulky. So I would conclude that given some minor effort by the manufacturer, if they do things right, going from 720mAh to a 1000mAh could make a huge difference in battery life while making the phone just a few mm thicker which is a tradeoff I would live with.

When you compare how long the battery life is on some Sony Ericsson phones to other manufacturers phones, I can't help thinking that some manufacturers just don't go the extra mile like Sony Ericsson does.

 

fellow 6131 users:

The 6131 model on display in a french phone store was slightly different than mine. I wonder what yours looks like.

It was one of those nonfunctional display models: in the past those models even have keys that don't work, ie. don't depress. The keys on this one did, but the display was fake. Now, a phone like this gets lots of abuse and handling. So I wonder if it's a look into the future for my phone.

However, I noticed that even though the back of the phone and battery cover where still rubbery, it was slightly harder in feel, and definitely shiny and somewhat glossy. My UK 6131 has a very matte finish,and of course soft.

What do your phones look like? I ask, because I wondered how old this demo model was, and if some things I found broken or damaged from use on it were fixed in new versions.

What I found:

1. The quick release button for the flip was broken. The button was still there, but it didn't release the flip. The flip hinge itself was stiff too.

2. The black trim around the inside main display had mostly worn off. I've read of one user on HoFo that had a flaking problem, but I didn't understand where it was. What I saw was pretty bad, about 40% of the black was gone, revealing the chrome like surface beneath it. It was as if someone painted bright chrome, without preparing the surface first. This phone shop is on the Champs-Elyees, so it gets lots of visitors!

Two areas to worry about, unless newer models addressed these problems. However, for the hinge button, I'm always going to assume that this could be an issue in the future. It is mechanical afterall, and bound to break.

Now this demo phone take alot of abuse...more than I give my phones. Also, like I said, sometimes the demo phones seem even cheaper than the real ones. I know that I never liked the demo 6340 GAIT phone keyboard, but the real one was much better.

(For comparison sake, other brand (non-nokia) phone models on display were broken in some way.)

So what does the black back of your phones appear like? matte/glossy or full matte?

Bobolitio: I'm not the same power user like you...this may not be the work phone for you, unless you what to use it for other times (beauty of SIM card ). You probably will be disappointed with battery life from what you have. But the rest of the phone is great.

P.S. the Moto 3G phone that I had in Japan, was a lot worst than the 6131. I hope that is not a glimpse to the future either. That 3G phone could barely go a day even with very light use. BTW, the FM radio is outstanding compared to the one in the 6230. I think it is mostly the audio section of this phone that has improved all of this.

 

Here's some photos from the 6131 (transfered with USB cable). Photobucket.com only allows uploading 1078 x 728 images for free; the 6131 shot them in 1280 x1024, 16 million colors.

Note the 6131 ad from the Paris Metro (subway) station: Probably the first time I travelled to Europe and I actually had the lastest phone!!

Can't wait to get home and try the phone with my printer via the PICTBridge connection it has and print these up!

 

Update on the 'flaking' black paint around the inside main display (my post above).

I went back to that store to have a second look. With my fingernail, and using no pressure, I could scratch off more black extremely easily. This implies to me a manufacturing issue (and probably one batch or from one country) as opposed to a design problem. No engineer would let it out the door like that.

So I went to another store. Same fake screen 6131. This one was in good conditon, and with my finger nail, I could not remove any black paint, even with more pressure (hey,what the heck, I'm leaving the country tomorrow .

Anyone want to try fingernailing the finish on their phone? not me, but it appears to be a fluke with the first store's phone. Perhaps a wider batch was effected. Don't know.

vf

 

Thanks for the great photos. I tried to fingernail the finish on the glossy plastic surrounding the inside screen, and it doesn't seem to be painted. I think it is black plastic. Put a little scratch in it with a knife, and no paint flakes. The back of the battery door is matte, not glossy. But I have a little flake on the front matte from rolling around in my pocket. But it smoothed down. Looks fine. The hinge button is fine. One problem with button is if you accidently depress the button in your pocket, you can't close the phone and latch it until you take it out of your pocket, open it all the way and close it. It's sort of like, it needs to be "____ed." Would be really annoying if it broke, and the phone kept a spring tension on it keeping it open. Phone is from Hong Kong.

Jim

 

Hi all,

I've recently purchased an unlocked 6131 for use with my Cingular sim in the Northern Cal. Bay Area. I've downloaded the Web/MM settings from Nokia (though couldn't figure out the advanced settings), and everything seems work ok, except that I can't send MMS messages. I try to send photos to an email account, and no matter what size they are, sending fails. I know I have this ability as I did it on my former phone (Razr V3) but I don't have any information as to why I can't do it on the Nokia. Does anyone have any experience with this issue and any clues on how I can solve it?

Thanks!

 

Welcome to WA forums! I assume that you can send a MMS photo to another phone OK? MMS videos are a known problem.

I've never thought to send an MMS photo to an email account. I will try later to see if I can do this.

Later,

 

Thanks to you and Charlyee for the info on your phones. I noticed that my photos scroll vertical with Netscape and horizontal with IE explorer. There should be 5 photo there...may have to use the horizontal scroll bar to see them.

 

Yery nice pictures. Haven't been to Paris in years and they really made me nostalgic.

They are vertically aligned in Firefox, although they are quite big (102x819). You may want to enclose them as an attachment next time. vBulletin will make the image icons for you, and the images pop up in a separate window.

 

Hi there and thanks for the reply!

I cannot send any MMS at all on my 6131 to either another phone or to email (I'm just trying to email my photos to Flickr, mainly.) My sim was formerly in a Razr V3 and did not have this problem before. I don't use video much and haven't tried sending a video MMS, just images.

Let me know what you find out. Thanks!

 

I think that first you should get sending MMS photos to another phone to work, before going further. Read through this forum for help, and perhaps Howardforums.com too.

On the other part, I can go to email, write an email, and add an attachment. That takes me directly to the photo gallery ( as the Nokia manual explains). But when I try to send the email, it has a write error and doesn't go. Without the attachment it is fine. I'm thinking there may be a size limit, but i'm not sure.

I'll have to think more about that.

 

I tried looking through the forums here and at HoFo before I posted but found nothing that specifically addressed this issue, unfortunately.

I tried sending an MMS to another phone just now, and as I expected, it failed. It seems likely I have some settings wrong somewhere, but I don't know what or where.

I thought maybe it was an image size issue as well, but it doesn't matter if I select 640x480 or 160x140 (or whatever that smaller size is...) (and I wish I could choose other sizes) - it fails regardless.

Also, and possibly related, I can send SMS messages with no errors, but they take a very long time for the recipient to get them. However, I do receive SMS messages very quickly after they are sent to me.

Would Cingular help me with my settings if I called them even though I have a phone not officially released by them?

Thanks!

 

Did you go to the nokiausa site for help? Go here http://www.nokiausa.com/support/setup/1,7878,,00.html#Get Settings

and this should give you the right settings for MMS. Chose 6131 and Cingular for the right settings.

AFterwards, you should have CingularMMS in the configuration settings: Menu/Messaging/Message Settings/Multimedia messages/Configuration settings

 

Great news! I had started this whole thing when I got the phone last week by going to the Nokia site and having it send me the config for Web/MMS - but since I once was an ATT customer, I had chosen Cingular/Former ATT. I had tried doing this at least three times, with no luck.

After reading your message, I tried it once more, but this time I just chose Cingular. After receiving the settings and saving them, I checked my config settings, and sure enough, I had Cingular MMS. I tried sending MMS messages to another phone and to Flickr - and they both worked! Awesome!

The only issue I'm still seeing is that it is taking FOREVER for my text messages to get to their recipients. Is there anything I can do about that?

Thank you so much for the help and for pointing me in the right direction. I had a feeling I just had to figure out the right configuration!