We've been living with the Nokia Lumia 710 for well over a week now, and have found it to be a highly capable phone with a superb operating system. Indeed, Windows Phone is such an attention grabber that it's easy to overlook how brilliantly built the handset itself is. We thought we'd address that with a dedicated build quality review.
Nokia Lumia 710 hardware review
As you no doubt realise by now, the Nokia Lumia 710 is a mid-range Windows Phone handset in name and price only. With a sharp 3.7-inch LCD screen and a 1.4GHz processor (the same as the Nokia Lumia 800), there are no performance issues or compromises to speak of here. Then there's the Windows Phone OS, which is arguably the most advanced mobile operating system around.
But back to matters relating to hardware - and in particular build quality. We've already hinted at the Nokia Lumia 710's well-put-together nature in our initial hardware review, but let's take a closer look.
While the Nokia Lumia 710 can't hope to match the Nokia Lumia 800 for sheer design chutzpah, it does manage to match it for that sense of durability and solidity you get when you hold it. The overall sense is that the Lumia 710 will survive a droppage or two intact - though Nokia UK can rest assured that we haven't put this to the test!
Those who have owned a Nokia Symbian phone over the past year or two will be familiar with this fact, but others will wonder at the fact that the Nokia Lumia 710 feels like a single piece of high quality plastic, despite being made up of two parts - the main body and the rear battery cover. There's no sign of flex whatsoever, and by providing a contrasting colour alternative cover Nokia has smartly made a feature of the join.
The way in which you remove a phone's battery cover is a really tricky thing to get right - you want it to provide enough resistance so as not to feel flimsy, but you don't want to rip a finger nail out in the process. The Nokia Lumia 710's is one of the finest - and most obvious - we've used. There's a clear nook mid-way up its left hand side in which you place your thumbnail. Pushing it in with a little force will easy the cover away surprisingly easily (at least after a few goes), proving easy access to the battery and Micro SIM.
As hinted at in our earlier review, the Nokia Lumia 710's hardware buttons are similarly well crafted. Rather than three distinct buttons, Nokia has gone with a unified strip approach for the Back, Home and Search keys. There's no play on this strip either - it offers digital precision with a pleasant click.
The side-mounted controls for volume and the camera shutter have an unusual angled shape, with extra notches on the former that result in a fairly sharp contact point. This harsh feel is good for feeling out the volume keys quickly, but the shutter button isn't quite as fit for purpose as the flat Lumia 800 equivalent.
On top you have a slightly awkwardly placed power button (which can make unlocking the phone a little awkward), a centrally-mounted 3.5mm headphone slot and an exposed Micro USB slot for charging and synchronising. There are none of the Nokia Lumia 800's idiosyncratic doors or flaps on show, which provides easier access and less potential for accidental snappages.
One small hardware feature that the Nokia Lumia 800 lacks can be found on the Nokia Lumia 710's bottom end - a little lanyard slot in case you want to carry your phone around your neck, fasten it to your wrist or attach a jingling toy of some kind.
Smartphones don't come much more robust than the Nokia Lumia 710. If you're after a phone that prioritises function over form - but doesn't look like a child's toy or a piece of military-grade kit in the process - then this could be the perfect solution.
Nokia Lumia 710 owners - what do you think of the handset's build quality? Let us know below.