Nokia launched its Asha series in December 2011. Nokia Asha 300 is one of the phones in this series which is a touch and type phone. It is an entry level phone from Nokia for the people who want a feature packed phone which is lighter on their pockets.
Look and Feel
The phone is really compact and very comfortable to hold. The build quality is something which is a downer though because phones from Nokia are always known for its solid and sturdy built. Nokia Asha 300 on the other hand felt a bit delicate as in when you hold the phone firmly in your hand.
It is a candy bar phone with round edges. The front has a numerical keypad with a 2.4inch resistive touch screen which is very responsive. And on the back you have a 5 MegaPixels Camera and the speaker at the bottom. On the right side you have a volume rocker and a key guard cum screen lock button. You have to put extra effort while using them since they are really hard. The top of the phone houses the mini USB slot, 3.5 mm jack and the charger slot. The phone also has a micro SD card slot on the left side hidden under the battery cover.
Performance
For connectivity we have Bluetooth, 3G HSPA, FM radio but no WiFi. We used the phone on 3.5G or HSDPA and it worked seamlessly be it watching YouTube videos or streaming Live TV with the built in ZengaTV app. You can also download apps, games from the Nokia Store to enhance your experience with the phone.
The audio output from the speakers and via the headset was pretty decent. We tried playing songs from different genre and also via the FM Radio, the output was good but if you are a die-hard music lover then this phone might disappoint you a bit.
The phone houses a 1Ghz processor which is something you don’t get in a phone at this price point.This makes the applications to run smoothly without any problem. Though the phone does not support multitasking so you always have to exit an application in order to access another but you can play music in the background without a hassle.
The UI of the phone is really very easy and it just takes a couple of minutes to get used to it. The home screen can be customised with four widgets which includes favourite contacts, twitter, Facebook, date & time etc.
The phone comes with a 5 Megapixel camera which produces great images in good lighting conditions. And you have some basic photo editing features as well such as cropping, contrast and brightness adjustment, rotating. You can also add text to the photos, try adding different frames on them. The photos can be shared via Bluetooth, email and can be uploaded online on social networking sites such as Facebook and twitter.
Price In India
Nokia Asha 300 Touch and Type phone costs Rs.6,279.
Final Verdict
Nokia Asha 300 is a feature packed with a very interesting price point. So if you are looking for a nice looking, compact feature packed phone then Nokia Asha 300 is a must buy.
