The Nokia 5310-XpressMusic is a mid-high end phone designed specifically for people who like to listen to music on the go – without having to carry around a phone and a portable music player (like an iPod). The newer Nokia 5320-XpressMusic will soon replace its aging design, though this is still an excellent device for those interested in this particular market segment.

Announced in August 2007, the Nokia 5310-XpressMusic is a GSM phone with specific versions for the Americas and for Europe/Asia. The American phone supports both of the American GSM frequencies as well as one European/Asian frequency while the European/Asian phone supports both of the European/Asian frequencies as well as one for American roaming. Neither version, however, supports 3G high-speed data transfer. They can only access data via the much slower GPRS/EDGE network.

Measuring in at approximately four inches by two inches by a half of an inch, the Nokia 5310-XpressMusic is a very small phone for having as many features as it does. It also weighs an almost unheard of 70 grams, making it one of the lightest phones on the market.

Battery life on the Nokia 5310-XpressMusic is not too bad. Expect to get about four and a half hours of talk time or 300 hours of standby time on a single charge. Furthermore, the battery can last through around 18 hours of music playback when fully charged.

The Nokia 5310-XpressMusic’s screen is something to behold. Measuring in at two inches, it features a resolution of 240 by 320 pixels and a color depth of 16 million colors.

Also included in the Nokia 5310-XpressMusic is a 2.0 megapixel digital camera. The camera can also record video and features a four times digital zoom.

Multimedia is this phone’s specialty, and it shows. The video player offers support for a huge number of different formats, as does the music player. Practically every popular audio and video format is supported by the Nokia 5310-XpressMusic. The Nokia 5310-XpressMusic also includes FM radio and visual radio features as well. The built in 30 MB of memory can be expanded via microSD cards.

Other features include Bluetooth 2.0 support, the Opera Internet browser, a large phone book, an alarm, a calendar, a notepad, a to-do list, a unit and currency converter, a calculator, a number of voice commands, a voice recorder, a speakerphone, push to talk functions, and email support.

Pros

* Tons of features

* Stylish, hip design

* Decent battery life

Cons

* No 3G support

Overall

If you’re a music or video fan and you like to take your files with you on the go, the Nokia 5310-XpressMusic was a great phone for you. However, with the newer, better Nokia 5320-XpressMusic looming on the horizon, you may want to hold off on purchasing this device for a few more weeks. The newer phone will be costly, though, so if you’re looking to save money and you want most of the features of the Nokia 5320-XpressMusic that is coming out soon, the Nokia 5310-XpressMusic is still a great buy.