Nokia Asha 311 Review, Features and Price

Nokia has been left picking up the pieces in the smartphone market after being comprehensively beaten and left miles behind by the likes of Apple and Samsung. Its Microsoft powered Lumias also have been thus far not yielded the desired results and response. But, Nokia has virtually taken control over the whole smartphone market, as little or no competition remains. The Asha line particularly has proved to be one of the best consumer choice phones. Now, Nokia should consider slowly open up the smartphone market, at least at the entry level for now. For now here is what the best featured member of Asha series goes.

Nokia Asha 311 Design

Measuring at 106*52*12.9 mm, Nokia Asha 311 is just a bit smaller than its predecessor 305, but the tiny difference can be safely ignored. It weighs in at just 95g., thus leaving almost no feeling in your pockets.

Except the layout of the buttons, almost the total design is similar to its predecessors. but, its looks aren’t on the impressive front, after you have seen the smartphones. The space around the screen has not been judiciously used as in the former’s case. The glossy back finish looks kind of cheapish too. Over the display, are the logo and the earpiece, as well as the proximity sensor and the light sensor.

Below there is the mouthpiece. And on the right side, one can spot the lock key and the volume rocker. All the three ports of USB, charging and 3.5 mm audio jack are located on the top. On the back, there is the 3.2 MP camera, but without any flash. It is joined on the backside by the loudspeaker, located at the bottom. The compartment for the Sim and the memory card slot is located just under the battery.

Performance

The handset is powered by one 1110 mAh battery of Li-Ion class, which packs quite a satisfactory performance, rated at 696 h in 2G stand-by and 768 h of 3G in idle mode. During talktime, the above performance stands at 14h in 2G and 6h in 3G. The 3G connectivity provides some beautiful download speeds, but even then lasts for 2 full days. In addition, Nokia Asha 311 also supports continuous music play over 40 hrs.

Display

Nokia Asha 311 has a standard 3” WQVGA LCD, with a capacitive screen. Other upgrades include the polarization filter and the protective Godzilla glass. But, the screen below is the sore point in all the display with low brightness and resolution.

Features

Nokia Asha 311 supports 2G & 3G over the HSPDA 850/900/1700/1900/2100. The screen size is 3” with a resolution of 240*400 pixels. The various sound alerts available are polyphonic, MP3 Ringtones, and the vibration mode. It has the loudspeaker functionality, along with an audio jack of 3.5mm, which can be used for calling too.

It supports microSD cards with the maximum supported storage at 32 GB. In addition has internal memory of 140 MB, with a 256 MB ROM and 128 MB RAM. On the data connectivity front, it supports Edge & GPRS, along with a WLAN of Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n. It can reach speeds of 5.76 Mbps on HSUPA and 14.4 Mbps on HSPDA. The connectivity options include the Bluetooth and USB 2.0.

Other features include the stereo FM radio, Games, Proximity & Accelerometer sensors, HTML and WAP 2.0 based browser, Java support, and a CPU of 1 GHz., but sadly there is no GPS. The music formats supported are MP3, AAC, WMA and WAV. The video formats supported are MP4, WMV, H.263/4. This phone is available in the colors of Rose Red, White, Brown, Dark Grey, Blue.

Price & Availability

It is available since July 2012 in the markets at a price of Rs. 6430.

Pros & Cons

The main drawbacks of this model are its low screen resolution, the camera with fixed-focus, and the price is as much as some of the entry level smartphones. Its touch interface is definitely not in the league of smartphones, but a simple interface provides for superior performance on its humble hardware.

Nokia Asha 311 definitely does not manufactured for acing the benchmarks or challenge the entry level smartphones, but the sheer hard work put behind its simplicity pays off in providing the users with a fluid experience on the phone and makes sure the users appreciate it for its convenience & simplicity.

Verdict

A good buy for those not into smartphone either due to choice or finance, this latest model in the Asha range makes sure that its users do not feel underwhelmed by its simplicity, rather it uses this as its focal point in attracting users and makes them enjoy the experience thoroughly.

So what are your views on Nokia Asha 311? Are you going to buy this phone from year? Let us know if you have any questions regarding Nokia Asha 311.