Nokia 2705 Shade is available in U.S. via Verizon Wireless

Thursday, November 12, 2009, 5:31
Cell Phones
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The new Nokia Shade 2705 is the latest handset from the manufacturer, which has entered the U.S. market. The Nokia Shade is available for $29.99 with service contract from Verizon Wireless. The Shade doesn’t offer any exciting features other than the basic features that you will find on any other phone. The same is true for the design of the handset, which is relatively simple with just a little bit of style, which is the trademark of Nokia handsets.

Like its sibling, the Mirage 2605, the Shade has clean curve profile, which is not seen on any other flip phone. Like the Mirage, the Shade doesn’t have any protruding hinge, which gives it an aquiline shape. The Shade is available in various color shades -black with a sliver trim, blue, red, and green. But you will have to pay additional $19.99 for covers.

Measuring 3.32x1.70x0.64 inches, the Shade is a compact device and weighs just 2.6 ounces. However, the build quality is not as impressive as would expect from a Nokia handset. The Shade feels like a plastic toy and it might not be able to withstand rough handling.

The external display is very small but it is capable of displaying the photo caller ID and it also works as viewfinder for the camera, which is located above the screen beside a speaker. The external display supports (262,144 color hues and has resolution of 160x128 pixels. The volume rocker is located on the left edge, while the right edge sports the voice dialing button, headset jack (not the standard one but 2.5mm jack), and a Micro-USB port.

The interior display is a bit disappointing as it is not the brightest and the vibrant. The display measures 2 inches, has resolution of 220x176 pixels and supports 262,144 colors hues. The navigation array consists of standard keys, which include four way toggle with central OK button, camera key, two soft keys, and a speakerphone key. As usual, the toggle doubles as shortcut for four user defined functions.

The primary features on Nokia Shade include a large 1,000-contact phone book, text messaging, multimedia messaging, vibrate mode, note pad, calculator, stopwatch, alarm clock, world clock, a calendar, voice commands, voice dialing, voice recorder, Verizon chat, VZ Navigator, Bluetooth, USB cable support, Web-based POP3 e-mail, 1.3-megapixel camera without recording capabilities.

The Nokia Shade provides 5 hours of talk time and 15 days of standby time.