Nokia Asha 302 review: E-serious

Introduction

The Nokia Asha 302 comes between the Asha 300 and the Asha 303 in Nokia's updated featurephone lineup, but it doesn't quite follow the numerical order. Although obviously not a smartphone, this S40 messenger is almost halfway there. It aims to bring good connectivity and more than reasonable processing power without unnecessarily complicating the interface.

Touchscreen and dual-SIM support are the two extremes in the Asha lineup but the Nokia Asha 302 sticks to the middle, finding balance and confidence in robust functionality and good build quality. It's a value package with plenty to offer to many potential upgraders looking to replace their S30 or S40 phones.

Nokia Asha 302 official picture

The Asha 302 is compatible with any GSM network worldwide and features both 3G and Wi-Fi connectivity. It makes sure your email, Facebook and Twitter accounts are never more than just a click away. That's where the QWERTY keyboard is most welcome too. On the outside, a side-mounted memory card slot and metal accents make the best out of a classic messenger design. Here's what goes on inside.

Key features

• Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE support
• Penta-band 3G with 14Mbps HSDPA and 5.76Mbps HSUPA
• Asha S40 platform
• Four-row hardware QWERTY keyborad
• 2.4" QVGA 256K-color TFT display
• 1GHz processor
• 128MB RAM, 256MB ROM
• 3 megapixel fixed-focus camera
• VGA video recording at 15fps
• Wi-Fi b/g/n
• Stereo FM radio with RDS
• Bluetooth v2.1 (with A2DP)
• Standard microUSB port (charging enabled)
• USB On-The-Go support
• microSD card slot (32 GB supported, 2GB included)
• 3.5mm audio jack

Main disadvantages

• No multitasking
• Fixed-focus camera
• No smart dialing
• No video-call camera
• No document viewer

So, the Nokia Asha 302 is raising the stakes in the low-cost telephony but makes sure it doesn't get into fights it cannot win. Halfway between a Nokia C3 and an E63, it looks on the safe side of the line. We cannot think of a better example to follow than the immensely popular Nokia C3 but it should be aware of the potential pressure of affordable smartphones - Symbian and Android alike.

Nokia Asha 302 live pictures

The Asha 302 is ready for a presentation, and so are we. Proceed to the next page where we begin to discover what the latest of the Ashas is really made of.