Key features:
- ARM 11 600 MHz processor
- Quad-band GSM support
- 3G with HSDPA
- 12 mm slim
- 2.2" 16M-color QVGA display of excellent sunlight legibility
- 3 megapixel camera, enhanced fixed focus and dual LED flash
- VGA video-call camera
- Symbian OS with S60 3.2 UI
- Stereo FM radio with RDS
- Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g with UPnP technology
- Bluetooth (with A2DP) and microUSB port
- microSD card slot (16 GB supported, 4GB included)
- Standard 3.5mm audio jack
- Dedicated music keys
- N-Gage support
- Ovi Contacts integration
- Contacts bar on the homescreen
- N-Series-like gallery
- Carrying pouch supplied
- Text-to-speech Message reader system application
Main disadvantages:
- Cheap plastic build
- microSD card very hard to eject
- Screen is on the small side for comfortable web browsing or video watching and has inaccurate color reproduction
- Camera has no autofocus and tends to oversharpen images
- Video recording quality is poor and the framerate – low
Nokia are not only keen on populating the XpressMusic grid, they're tailoring and focusing their handsets to cover a wider market. Come to think of it, the XpressMusic portfolio is more like the standard 4-digit models - the "common" phones that are neither top-of-the-line media gadgets nor business tools.
The XpressMusic phones get their edge elsewhere - they're reasonably priced and specialize in music. Throwing Nokia 5630 XpressMusic into the mix, there's a wide range of phones to choose from. Starting with the run-of-the-mill S40 handsets like 5130 or 5310 and going all the way through capable Symbian smartphones to the touch-enabled 5800. The 5630 even has a side-sliding QWERTY counterpart - the Nokia 5730 XpressMusic.
The Nokia 5630 XpressMusic is a great upgrade over the 5320 - faster 3G, Wi-Fi on board, improved camera, a speedy CPU and all in a 12mm slim package. The Contacts bar is a great addition too - all the most common tasks can be carried out in the comfort of the homescreen. Ovi Contacts is a nice feature too, considering that a big part of all communications of a typical high-tech adolescent now goes through some IM network. We'd have liked to see support for more networks though.
The one thing we'll probably never see on an XpressMusic phone however, is a high-resolution camera - with Wi-Fi, GPS and even touchscreens, they'd be too deep into N-Series territory and it's important for Nokia to maintain their brand distinctions.
So, Nokia have taken quite a bite at the music-enabled handsets market with some multi-talented players in Symbian shirts.
If you can live without Wi-Fi support and will settle for a chubby chap with a weaker camera, CPU, and data speeds, the 5630's predecessor - the Nokia 5320 XpressMusic - is the entry level alternative.
If you like the 5630, but want to round off the already impressive package with a QWERTY keyboard and a bigger screen, the side-sliding 5730 XpressMusic is already up for grabs.
Then again, if you want to go up the ladder and have a touch-based UI and GPS, then the 5800 XpressMusic is what you're looking for. It's got a slower CPU but bigger 3.2" screen and VGA@30fps video recording.
What we really like about the Nokia 5630 XpressMusic is that it sits comfortably in the middle of all this without losing sight of its one goal - to be a good portable music player. It has the audio-quality and smartphone chops to pull it off without burning a hole in your pocket. We would have liked a beefier camera, but we guess keeping the market price down has been the main priority with Nokia 5630 XpressMusic.
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