While I love all the different functions of the Sony Ericsson P800, I just couldn't carry it around with me. It didn't fit in my pocket, it didn't fit in my suit jacket, it was just plain awkward. I tried really hard to ignore it in the beginning because it was so new and cool, but at the end of about a month, I just couldn't take it any more. I had to trade it in.

At this point, I already knew that I would eventually buy the Nokia 7250. With the price continuing to fall, it was really only a matter of time before I got one. So after I sold off the P800, I bought the 7250.

The 7250 is almost identical in many ways to the 7210. In terms of form and function, I would say that there is reason why they are both part of the 72XX series. The 7250 is clearly just an "older brother".

Form

The 7250 is only marginally bigger than the 7210 which is extremely surprising considering the 7250 incorporates one big new feature - the camera. This has to be the biggest and most appealing aspect of the 7250 - being really small. Nokia is still one of the best in terms of size. Packed in a small form, the 7250 does not really have a special new design, but there is still something to be said for Nokia phones as they don't have massive antennas sticking out anywhere, weigh a ton, or are too fat to fit into a pocket without being too obtrusive.

The design of the 7250 is also really nice. I still like the way that you can change the outer shelling of many Nokia phones and make it to be whatever color you want. The color choices for the 7250 do stand out. While I initially had to buy a grey version, I bought the blue replacement cover because it looks pretty amazing and really stands out.

The buttons are much better laid out than the 7210 and much bigger. The 7210 tended to have buttons which where really tiny and because of the layout, it took some time to get used to, especially when using SMS. This isn't an issue with the 7250.

The 7250 has the same size screen as the 7210. While the color is brilliant and sharp (considering its only 4096 colors), it is still too small. Compared with the GD88 or the P800, there's just no comparison. This is one of the big downsides of the newer Nokia color phones - the screens need to be bigger. Receiving pictures are no fun when you can't make out what the picture is supposed to be. Of course this is probably a dilemma because if you made the screen bigger, the phone would of course get bigger. Still, I think Nokia could have done better with the design and instead of just re-running the same production facilities to churn out the same size phones, made one with a slightly larger screen. I guess we'll have to wait for later models.

Function

For the most part, the 7250 functions almost exactly as the 7210. In terms of phone calls, menus, radio function, speakerphone etc. it's identical. For a recap, see my review of the 7210)

The big standout feature of the 7250 is that it incorporates a camera. So we'll focus our review on that. A built-in camera on a phone is certainly a fun feature. I really like it and I'm one of those people that actually use it. Still, from my experience given that this is the fourth phone I've had with a camera we still have a way to go. With the exception of the Panasonic GD88, I have so far had a very mixed experience with built-in cameras. My main issue is picture quality.

While the 7250 maintains a really small form, this comes at the expense of a good camera. It doesn't make much sense to me. The lens is about the same size as the DSC-U20 digital camera I have, but the quality is completely different. Of course I realize the circuitry and electronics are very different, but it would have been nice if Nokia can take some time to improve the quality of the camera. This is where the Japanese and even the Korean handset vendors have the big advantage.

In essence, sending an MMS to another Nokia phone is relatively fine. But sending an e-mail to a web address from the Nokia phone is nearly pointless. The picture is so small and more often than not blurry - it just takes the fun out of it. Try sending an MMS to a GD88/P800 and you'll see what I mean about the size and quality. In contrast, sending an e-mail from either the GD88 or the P800 was reasonably acceptable. The only positive I can think of is that the screens on Nokia phones are so small, the quality of the images don't really matter as much because you can't make out that much detail. So if you have to send an MMS to another Nokia user, it isn't too bad. But as phones move to better technologies, this is going to be a factor.

Again, as with many Nokia's, the battery life is outstanding. I guess this is part of the trade-off of having a small screen, but I will admit the P800 was draining battery life a little too fast for my liking. There must be a better balance somewhere between these two extremes.

Factor

The 7250 is a good mobile phone, especially for its phone functions and size. But the added benefit of the camera is somewhat wasted and I'm hesitant to say that you should rush out and get this phone. If you are looking for a color, tri-band GSM handset, you'll do just as well with the 7210 or the 6100 which are now much cheaper. The 7250 has that extra appeal as it's new and has a camera, but if that camera takes poor images, I don't really see the point.

Overall, if you are like me and like trying the newest mobile handsets, then you might want to try the 7250 if you haven't gone to a Nokia color handset of late. It is still really small and light and nobody beats the ease of the Nokia menus and functions. On the other hand, if you don't have an immediate need for a new handset, you are probably better off with an older model or waiting for other new models. If you've got MONEY TO BURN, then go ahead and get a 7250. If not, just hang in there because there are lots of new models on the way.