Nokia Asha 501 review: The candy store kid

05 August 2013
A nice little phone that looks fresh both on the inside and outside. That’s what we took from our first encounter with the Nokia Asha 501 and we do hope we managed to get that point across. You know, with phones that go a dime a dozen, you always risk...

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  • ?
  • Anonymous
  • Kg$
  • 07 Aug 2013

AnonD-92238, 07 Aug 2013Sadly you're right dude....here in India my maximum 2G spee... moreYes it's stupid by Nokia to dismiss 3G because they think EDGE is available everywhere. And one other thing, budget buyers in Asia don't usually have home Wi-Fi.

    • D
    • AnonD-41837
    • N9@
    • 07 Aug 2013

    Anonymous, 06 Aug 2013That's what I'm talking about, brand loyalty. You assume th... moreThat's the stupidest comment i've seen this month, everybody recognises nokia for the excellent build quality of their phones, and the funny part is that i'm posting this comment from a perfectly working nokia 6680 that i got for about $5, and this is a smartphone that's more than 8 years old still working like it was made yesterday. So my advice to you is that if you want to make an argument against Nokia, don't try to use build quality or even symbian.

      • D
      • AnonD-92238
      • bEW
      • 07 Aug 2013

      Anonymous, 06 Aug 2013Young people need data connection when they are out also, n... moreSadly you're right dude....here in India my maximum 2G speed is 30kbps and highest 3G in airtel is 1mbps :(

        • D
        • AnonD-172981
        • 8M8
        • 07 Aug 2013

        Absolutely! I would vote Meego as Nokia's main OS, but Asha seems to be going the right path. :)

          • R
          • Rockfella
          • utX
          • 07 Aug 2013

          I have this phone and for a basic user like me this phone is good enough. I am waiting for the software update for this phone so that I can use whatsapp asap. Please update once it is done.

            • ?
            • Anonymous
            • rJ4
            • 07 Aug 2013

            When watsapp will b availble in asha 501..???

              • p
              • paco2x
              • L8x
              • 07 Aug 2013

              AnonD-158376, 07 Aug 2013Nokia must adopt Asha or Meego for their flagship phone's O... moreAh... Nokia did that 2 years ago and they lost a lot of money and market share in the process, adopting the Asha platform it's just impossible considering current Nokia situation, no money to start with...
              M$ is a wealthy partner, in the other hand...

                • h
                • human
                • fxH
                • 07 Aug 2013

                Anonymous, 06 Aug 2013That's what I'm talking about, brand loyalty. You assume th... moreYou are wrong there are many nokia phones that works perfectly

                  • D
                  • AnonD-158376
                  • rx2
                  • 07 Aug 2013

                  Nokia must adopt Asha or Meego for their flagship phone's OS, not Windows Phone which have very limited Permission. Don't you think that Symbian is always better and lighter than Android. Adopt Asha for flagship and you will take your stolen crown back to your hand

                    • ?
                    • Anonymous
                    • K7e
                    • 07 Aug 2013

                    make it symbian os capable

                      • N
                      • Nizam
                      • 7jW
                      • 07 Aug 2013

                      Hello frnds i buy dis phone lst week

                      phn is vry gud
                      but one thing hurting there is no whts apps..

                      Without whts apps phn is waste..


                      Nw frnds plz tel me whn update vl available m eagly waiting for update..

                      Bye

                        • ?
                        • Anonymous
                        • Kg$
                        • 06 Aug 2013

                        Anonymous, 06 Aug 2013You see, people don't buy things with logic or specs, it's ... moreThat's what I'm talking about, brand loyalty. You assume these two old and trusted brands are better and worth paying more for. For Sony Ericsson that used to be true, for Nokia not. Go to eBay and buy a bunch of old phones and you will find that it's almost impossible to find a perfectly working Nokia.

                          • P
                          • Pankaj
                          • 7qI
                          • 06 Aug 2013

                          Heyyyy asha team i requested you plz aarange the whats app for asha 501 fastvdo it guyyyysssss

                            • D
                            • AnonD-172981
                            • LkF
                            • 06 Aug 2013

                            I really hope that this phone proves very successful for Nokia so it brings Meego back to life (or something simillar).
                            I can't get past the idea that Nokia ditched the best OS ever seen for mobile phones...

                              • ?
                              • Anonymous
                              • Tr4
                              • 06 Aug 2013

                              Anonymous, 06 Aug 2013Cant get it, why would anyone get this phone? No 3G in 2013... moreYou see, people don't buy things with logic or specs, it's all about emotions, for me 3G or any other features you mentioned are not important, i don't have a phone right now, so if all i want is a simple phone why not this one? i know there are many other options, but from my experience Nokia is the best for me so why look for anything else? i liked Sony Ericsson in the past but now Sony making smartphones which i don't need or want.

                                • D
                                • AnonD-172981
                                • LkF
                                • 06 Aug 2013

                                I'm not the typical user for these phones but i'm buying one today just to keep around.
                                I'm a big fan of meego and this phone looks like a N9 younger brother. Very nice.

                                  • p
                                  • pp05
                                  • nGU
                                  • 06 Aug 2013

                                  This will be too slow for sophisticated markets used to Android/IOS stable of phones.

                                    • ?
                                    • Anonymous
                                    • Kg$
                                    • 06 Aug 2013

                                    Young people need data connection when they are out also, not only at home. Remember that some countries has virtually non existent EDGE support and GSM data runs on the lowest speed in quite many carrier networks around Asia, but the same networks have HSPA. No problem in Finland i know, the EDGE speeds in the Scandinavian countries are faster than vanilla 3G in many other countries.

                                    At this price HSPA would not have been a problem to implement.

                                      • ?
                                      • Anonymous
                                      • Kg$
                                      • 06 Aug 2013

                                      Cant get it, why would anyone get this phone? No 3G in 2013, wow, and at that price, wow wow.

                                      I recently bought a China 3.5 inch touchscreen dual sim phone for my little sister (not real sister, thats why cheap phone only, more like sister of my ex). It had analog TV, Bluetooth and Wifi, no 3G but the price was below $24, brand new, one year warranty, the brand has their own service centers.

                                      The popularity of this phone again show how many are loyal to the Nokia name, especially in India if im not mistaken? I once said to one of my girfriends like "maybe you like to try the Lumia 520?". She went like "what, isnt that Nokia?? I dont want Nokia!!". Its not that its shameful to have a Nokia here but its absolutely not desirable among the younger generations.

                                        • D
                                        • AnonD-60243
                                        • fsT
                                        • 06 Aug 2013

                                        Thanks for the review gsmarena. nokia should cut the price cos who will buy this when the nokia lumia 610 is in the same price range? better screen,ram,app store,app support,larger screen and you get a smartphone not a smartphone wanna-be!