This time the researchers from ”GadgetStress” lab tested a popular cell phone Nokia 5800 which was put on sale in 2008 and is still in demand. The gadget has a resistive 3,2 inches touchscreen which is framed by a plastic moulding. The moulding is protruded above the display and the buttons. We must notice that browsing the phone by pressing the buttons makes it uncomfortable to use the stylus. This is not a technical advantage of Nokia 5800.

The size of the phone is quite big. It creaks if you squeeze it by your hand. The back cover is properly attached but it creaks if you bend it. The device is made of a high quality plastic. The back side of the Nokia 5800 is mat. The camera is framed by a ring made of aluminium. The dynamics are placed at the left edge of the phone and covered by a metallic net.

Результаты

The delivery set includes a handsfree with a standard mini jack plug and the 2 additional jacks for the headphones. There you can also find a USB-cable, a charger, a mediator, a software CD and the documents.

1. Stress test of the Nokia 5800. Stage 1 – Ability to withstand light shocks

1.1 Drop-down

According to the tradition we start our stress test with dropping the phone down on a carpet with 5mm pile and on tiles. We sequentially dropped the Nokia 5800 onto each face, edge and corner from 1m on the carpet (video 1) and from 30cm on the ceramic tiles (video 2). The phone easily survived the drop-down on the tiles as well as on the carpet. No bad consequences

Video 1: Drop-down on the carpet from 1m

The grade is 30 from 30 possible

Video 2: Drop-down on the tiles from 30cm

The grade is 30 from 30 possible

1.2 Ability to withstand squeezing

The next test for the Nokia 5800 is squeezing. We put the phone onto a flat surface and evenly placed the load of 3kg on it. The device is flat andthis design saved the phone from damage. The gadget passed this test well (pic. 5).

The grade is 24 from 24 possible

1.3 Bend test

In everyday life any cell phone may be exposed to bending. We decided to place the device between the two supports and hitched a rope with a load of 1kg over it. Though the phone have no metallic parts this test did not cause any damage or any bend. You can see it in pic. 6.

The grade is 24 from 24 possible

1.4 Wearout test

We wanted to know how the exterior of the Nokia 5800 could be changed if you kept it in a pocket with other things (eg. keys) for a long time. We tried to simulate such a situation and used a centrifuge. The cylinder of the centrifuge was filled with some plastic balls, keys and coins. The centrifuge rotated the cylinder at the speed of about 500 rounds per minute. The radius of the cylinder was 75mm (video 3).

Video 3. The rotation of the centrifuge

Surprisingly the Nokia 5800 passed this stress test successfully. The back cover was not damaged at all. The luster at the edges was OK. Few scuffs appeared but we could hardly notice it even in the light. The plastic front side suffered most of all. But we must admit that this damage is insignificant (pic. 7, 8, 9)

The grade is 15 from 15 possible

1.5 Quality of the material of which the phone is made

In order to check the quality of the materials which the Nokia 5800 and its touchscreen are made of we pressed it with a nail at the force of 100g. We made a scratch on the display and on the back side (video 4, 5). The back cover is made of a very high quality materials. There was not any scratch made by the nail! According to our experience of making stress tests of different cell phones with resistive touchscreens the touchscreens always pass this test successfully. And the Nokia 5800 was not an exception. The scratch made by the nail could be noticed only in the bright light. See the pictures after the 3rd stage in order to compare all the results of this test.

The display gets 15 from 15 possible

The back side gets 15 from 15 possible

1.6 Hot temperature

We put the Nokia 5800 into a metallic container. A 45Wt lamp was installed inside the container. The distance between the phone and the lamp was 5cm. The time of the test was 3min.

After the test we did not see any difference. Only the phone itself was hot.

The grade is 12 from 12 possible

1.7 Dust resistance test

In the course of time more and more dust penetrates inside the gaps and the slots of the phone. It can cause problems with the cell phone and even break it down. In this stress test we got to know what would happen to the Nokia 5800 if we put it into a container full of domestic dust and shook it for 2 minutes.

There was little dust under the back cover. Most of the dust penetrated inside from the upper part of the Nokia 5800 through the gap between the panel and the back cover. The USB cover did not protect the device from dust. Little dust penetrated under the sim card and under the flash drive. Some dust penetrated also under the protective screen of the display. We also saw some dust in the front camera window and near the light detectors (pic. 10, 11, 12, 13).

The grade is 8 from 12 possible

All in all for the first stage the Nokia 5800 gets 173 points from 177 possible

2. Stress test of the Nokia 5800. Stage 2 – Tougher conditions

2.1 Drop-down

We increased the height of the drop-down on the carpet from 1m to 1,5m and we also dropped it from 50cm on the tiles. The Nokia 5800 survived. The stilus was not removed. The back cover was firmly attached and also was not removed. We found no damage. The gadget operated well.

Video 4. Drop-down on the carpet from 1,5m

The grade is 30 from 30 possible

Video 5. Drop-down on the tiles from 50cm

The grade is 30 from 30 possible

2.2 Ability to withstand squeezing

We thought that the Nokia 5800 would pass this stress test well and we were right. We used the load of 10kg and evenly spread it on the phone. The device did not have any problems.

The grade is 24 from 24 possible

2.3 Bend test

We increased the weight of the load on the rope from 1kg to 5kg. This time the bend was clear. When the screen of the Nokia 5800 was up the deformation was more noticeable than in the experiment when the phone was placed with its screen downward. But when the test was over we saw neither bend nor deformation.

The grade is 16 from 24 possible

2.4 Wearout test

This time we put the Nokia 5800 into the centrifuge for 10 min. After the test some more scuffs appeared at the edges of the phone (pic. 15). Some small specks appeared on the display. We should notice that the back cover was not damaged at all – only some dents appeared in the corners. But we could hardly notice it. The surface of the back cover was the same as before the test.

The grade is 10 from 15 possible

2.5 Quality of the material which the phone is made of

We increased the force of scratching to 300g. The scratch on the back side was not deep but noticeable. The scratch on the display was noticeable and deep enough. It made it a bit uncomfortable to use the stilus.

The display gets 5 from 15 possible

The back cover gets 10 from 15 possible

2.6 Cold temperature

There are rumours that Nokia 5800 stops working in freezing temperatures. We decided to check it. We also tested the batterty of the phone. For this we put it into a freezer (-150 °С) for 2 hours. The phone was in speaking mode (pic. 16).

We examined the phone after this test (video 6). It operated well without any brake. The gadget operated as it did in normal temperatures. But the battery was empty. We should also say that the signal level in the freezer was worse than outside. In such conditions the phone consumed more energy and the battery emptied faster. After this experiment we dried the phone and the battery with a flow of warm air.

Video 6. The Nokia 5800 is working in the cold

The grade is 12 from 18 possible

2.7 High temperature

We increased the time of the test from 3 to 5min. After the test the phone was very hot and we could not even take it. But when it cooled down it operated well.

The grade is 12 from 12 possible

2.8 Water resistance test

No cell phone can be absolutely secured from being dropped into water. It can cause serious problems with its supplementary functions or break it at all. Water can also spoil the design of the phone. In this test we dunked it under water for 1 second. It did not cause any damage (video 7). It functioned well. The ring sound was loud and clear.

Then we took the back cover off and saw no water under it. It was surprising. We found some drops of water only near the slot. There was also no water under the sim card, under the flash drive and in the USB slot. Then we dried the phone and the battery with a flow of warm air for an hour and switched on the phone again – everything was all right.

Video 7. Water resistance test

The grade is 30 from 30 possible

2.9 Dust resistance test

We increased the time of this stress test from 2 to 5 min. The results of this test did not differ much from the results in the first stage. It was only harder to take the stilus off because it was all in dust (pic. 17).

As in the previous stage we could easily clean all the dust. We could not only get rid of the dust that penetrated under the screen of the front camera and the dust near the light detectors. It order to clean it we had to take the Nokia 5800 apart. So we decided not do it.

The grade is 8 from 12 possible

All in all for the second stage the Nokia 5800 gets 187 points from 225 possible

3. Stress test of the Nokia 5800. Stage 3 – The toughest conditions

3.1 Drop-down

We increased the height of the drop-down on the carpet from 1,5m to 2m and we also dropped it from 1m on the tiles (video 8. 9).

Video 8. Drop-down on the carpet from 2m

Video 9. Drop-down on the tiles from 1m

When we dropped the phone on the carpet nothing bad happened. When we dropped it on the tiles once the battery cover fell off but the battery was not removed (it is hard to take the battery out of the slot evem by hands). The stilus was attached properly. It did not fell off at all. After the drop-down on the tiles some small dents appaeared (pic.18. 19). But the Nokia 5800 functioned well.

Drop-down on the carpet from 2m. The grade is 30 from 30 possible

Drop-down on the tiles from 1m. The grade is 20 from 30 possible

3.2 Ability to withstand squeezing

This time we increased the weight of the load from 10kg to 20kg. The phone is flat. It has not got any protruding parts. This design helped the phone survive. In our opinion the Nokia 5800 can carry 2 or 3 times heavier load.

The grade is 30 from 30 possible

3.3 Bend test

The load of 10kg could be fatal for the phone because the device is made of plastic. But the Nokia 5800 survived although the bend was significant especially when the display was up (video 10). After the test we examined the gadget and found no cracks. The phone operated well.

Video 10. The bend of the Nokia 5800

The grade is 24 from 24 possible

3.4 Wearout test

At this stage we put the Nokia 5800 into the centrifuge for 20 min. After the test the scuffs on the display were quite noticeable (pic. 20) especially at the edges of the display. The aluminium ring which framed the camera was also a bit damaged. But look at the battery cover. Even after such a tough test it was like new! Only in the corners we could see some small speckles (pic. 22). The gloss on the edges was more damaged. But if you do not look carefully you won’t notice it (pic. 23).

The grade is 10 from 15 possible

3.5 Quality of the material of which the phone is made

This time we pressed the display and the back side of the phone with the nail at the force of 600g (video 11, 12). The scratch on the display was quite deep. It was noticeable and spoiled the picture on the display and made it absolutely uncomfortable to work with the stilus (pic.24). The scratch on the back side of the phone was not very noticeable. We could even say that it was not deep (pic.25).

Video 11. Scratching the display

Video 12. Scratching the back side

5 point (from 15 possible) for the display

10 points (from 15 possible) for the back side of the phone

3.6 Water resistance test

At stage 3 we increased the time of immersion in water to 20 sec (video 13). When we took the Nokia 5800 out of the water it recognized the handsfree – probably because some water penetrated through the Jack-slot and touched the board. This time we saw the drops of water:

- under the back cover (everywhere) (pic.26);
- on the board and under the battery (pic.27);
- under the cover of the USB slot (pic.28);
- under the sim card and the flash drive (pic.29);

But the phone operated well and all the buttons worked. Then we dried the gadget by a blow of warm air for an hour. After that we saw a condensate under the screen glass (pic.30) which disappeared only a few hours later. Probably this condensate appeared because water penetrated under the screen glass through the gaps between the buttons. In spite of this the phone worked well.

Video 13. Immersion in water for 20sec

The grade is 20 from 30 possible

3.7 Immersion in beer

Water is not the only liquid that can damage a cell phone. Sometimes the owners of cell phones can spill some drink on their gadgets which can cause more damage than water. We took the most popular drink as an example. We dunked the phone under beer for 10 seconds (video 14). Air bubbles went out of the phone very fast. It meant that beer penetrated inside the gadget much faster than water. When we took the Nokia 5800 out the two buttons on the front side failed to operate when we pressed the keyboard. There was too much beer under the back cover and inside the phone (pic. 31). A lot of beer penetrated also under the sim card and the flash drive (pic. 32).

So we decided to wash the device and then took it apart in order to make it absolutely dry and find out the reason why the two buttons failed to operate (see “The test of the keyboard”). We dried the Nokia 5800 with a blow of warm air for an hour. Then we put all the parts together and switched on the phone. We saw that the lighting of the “call reset” button did not switch off. It was clear that the beer damaged the board. We took some spirit and washed the parts of the board which are marked on pic.33 – the button started to work well again. There remained some film on the display because it needed more time to get dried (some days or even weeks). We continued our test.

Video 14. Immersion in beer

The grade is 3 from 9 possible

3.8 Dust resistance test

We increased the time of this stress test to 10min. This time much dust penetrated under the battery cover. Mostly it penetrated through the gaps near the slot and the gap for the string bracing (pic. 34). We must say that the foam laying protected the camera quite well (pic. 35). But there was a lot of dust in the USB slot because the rubber cover did not protect it (pic. 36). There was also much dust inside the loudspeaker slot (pic. 37). And even when we cleaned all the dust the back side of the the loudspeaker slot was grey.

The grade is 2 from 8 possible

3.9 High temperature

The consequences of 10 min heating are showed in video 15. The display darkened but soon it cooled down to normal room temperature. The touchscreen continued working though it was deformed. The lower part of the display (near the buttons) became a bit protruding (pic. 38). The buttons melted a bit. When the phone cooled down the sensor caved in to the screen and when the lighting of the display was switched off we could see the trace of the sensor which touched the screen (pic. 39). It would not happen if the Nokia 5800 had the other type of the sensor – the sensor with a glass basis. However the usage of such a sensor requires the harder type of the jar or thick metallic frame which would make the gadget heavier and more expensive.

Video 15. The consequences of overheating

The grade is 8 from 12 possible

3.10 Test for the keyboard

The idea of placing the buttons on the front side of a cell phone Nokia 5800 XpressMusic was not very bright. It is not comfortable to press the buttons. They are very protruding and not very firm and can be accidentally pressed by a finger. After the “Menu” and the “Call reset” buttons failed to work we took the Nokia 5800 apart to repair these buttons. The carrier of the buttons turned out to be badly attached to the board. We knew that the beer and the water had penetrated under the carrier but we found no corrosion due to the graphitic spattering under the carrier of the keyboard (pic.40). When we dried the phone and the “Menu” and the “Call reset” buttons started to work again.

The “NOKIA” engineers paid much attention to the safety and performance of the keyboard. Instead of mechanically pressed buttons they installed touch-sensitive buttons in the cell phones like Nokia 5800. So the buttons are not protruding any more. The keyboard is easy to operate. “Sound” and “Camera” buttons are at the board itself. These buttons have spesial frames for installation in the front edge of the board. It protects them from any mechanical damage. This type of buttons is not susceptible to being damaged by liquid. The lever which blocks the keyboard is placed far from the electronic switch. That’s why the liquid did not penetrate into the board.

The grade is 10 from 30 possible

3.11 Electric overloads

At first we tested the charger. We made a short circuit by closing the power supply terminals for a second when the charger was in operating mode (Video 16). The battery was still being charged. The result: full survival.

Video 16: Short circuit of the charger

The grade is 15 from 15 possible

In order to check the level of battery protection you should close the power supply terminals for a second (“+” and “-”). This protection is developed in order to prevent the battery from overheating in the moment when it comsumes a lot of energy (eg. when the phone is broken down). If the battery would be charged for a long time the phone could explode.

The short circuit did not damaged or emptied the charger. We switched on the Nokia 5800 after this test and it worked (Video 17).

Video 17. Short circuit of the battery

The grade is 15 from 15 possible

In order to check the state of the phone when the voltage supply is exceeded we plugged the cable of the charger in the EPU. Then we gradually increased the power supply from 4 volts (the nominal voltage supply) to 7 volts (Video 18).

Unfortunately the Nokia 5800 failed to resist such an excess of power supply. When the power supply was about 7 volts the display went out. After that when we pressed the “Switch on” button and the phone only vibrated and we could not switch it on. Usually overvoltage damages a power supply controller. But our Nokia 5800 was immersed in water and in beer and it was dropped down many times and there could be another reason of this failure. It was impossible to tell exactly. So we decided to stop this stress test and not to repair the Nokia 5800.

Video 18. Power supply excess

The grade is 0 from 15 possible

The testing of minimal power supply was not carried out because the phone was broken.

The grade for minimal power supply is 0 from 15 possible

3.12 Disassembling, the quality of the assembly

In order to check the quality of the assembly we took the Nokia 5800 apart. This test was carried after the phone was taken out of beer and dried. At the pic. 41 you can see the traces of liquid on the display. But the most important parts of the board were not damaged – only the edges of the board got wet. Usually all the cell phones have metallic frames under their displays. But the frame of Nokia 5800 is thin and it can be bended.

The board as in all nokias is very big. All the elements are rightly placed on the board. There is no blank space. There are a lot of protective screens which make the board rigid.

In general the interior structure of Nokia 5800 have nothing special in comparison with other nokia cell phones.

The grade is 20 from 30 possible

All in all for the third stage the Nokia 5800 gets 214 points from 336 possible

Conclusion:

The stress test of a very popular cell phone Nokia 5800 is over (pic.44, 45). Geneally speaking the resuls are not very good: the battery discharges quickly in the cold, the phone have problems in high temperatures, it can be damagrd by liquids (eg. water or beer), dents will definitely appear if you drop it on a hard surface. Among the posotive things we can underline a good quality of a back cover and that’s all. The disadvantages of Nokia 5800 outnumber its advantages.

However if you are willing to keep this cell phone in a special cover and treat it with a lot of care the diversity of functions of Nokia 5800 will obviously make you happy.

All in all the Nokia 5800 gets 574 points from possible 738

According to 100-mark grading system the Nokia 5800 gets 77 points

Stress test of a cell phone Nokia 5800 XpressMusic, 9.5 out of 10 based on 4 ratings