The new Nokia 6650, which is exclusive to T-Mobile, is one of those handsets that could easily slip under the radar. But, if you want a well-specced, mid-range phone that doesn’t break the budget it is worth a look.

The device has a functional appearance, but it feels great in the hand, thanks to a slim profile and brushed metal styling. Personally, we think the 6650 would look a million dollars if the brushed metal was black rather than silver and the camera lens on the fascia was less conspicuous.

It is a compact, slim clamshell phone, with a dual fascia and a subtle touch-screen function on the outer display. Other sleek features include an etched keypad with no movable keys, a high-resolution display and a half-decent feature set for a mid-range device, including GPS for satellite-assisted navigation and HSDPA connectivity for speedy web browsing.

Nokia 6650 - T-Mobile services

This handset is a T-Mobile exclusive, so you get the operator’s skin over the top of the familiar Symbian S60 user interface, providing direct access to T-Mobile favourites, such as Web’n’Walk and Mobile Jukebox.

T-Mobile’s Web’n’Walk now gives you unlimited access to any website from the Web’n’Walk homepage for £1 per day, £2.50 for five days, or £5 per month.

Although the screen isn’t the largest you’ll find, it is sharp,

bright and clear with many of the top sites rendered to fit the 6650’s screen.

Nokia 6650 - music on the 6650

We downloaded a couple of albums using Mobile Jukebox, which was easy enough, although, once we had bought the album, we had to then download one song at a time to the phone rather than the whole album, so there was

a lot of accepting of terms and conditions. However, HSDPA enables fast download speeds, so it does not take long.

There is only 30MB of internal memory on board, but you get a 1GB memory card in the box and, although there is no 3.5mm port, there is a separate charging port, so you can re-charge your handset while listening to music or having a handsfree conversation.

The 6650 comes with a set of Nokia stereo headphones; but the maximum volume – whether listening to music or making voice calls – is simply too low. This is a real problem if using the phone outside or in a noisy environment.

The second display on the phone’s fascia is a nice touch because it lets you view and control the phone’s music player via three touch-screen controls. Unfortunately, the touch-sensitive controls are highly sensitive and if you attempt to retrieve the phone from a bag or pocket while music is playing, it is all too easy to pause or change tracks.

Nokia 6650 - TV and sat nav

As well as music, there is an application that gives you one-click menu access to T-Mobile’s mobile TV service on t-zones, which is a selection of news, gossip and sports clips; entertainment outtakes and made-for-mobile videos. There is also a smattering of user-generated video content.

It is a form of mobile TV over 3G though not as compelling as the BBC iPlayer function, now available on the Nokia N96.

That said, the 6650 is a lot faster than the N96 and a lot less inclined to crash. You get a decent navigation experience, with GPS and Nokia Maps on board. It is also quite likely that T-Mobile will choose to bundle in its own navigation software (at a price) as Nokia Maps does not offer voice-assisted guidance as standard.

Nokia 6650 - the verdict

Although we are inclined to think that clamshells are a little dated, the Nokia 6650 is a smart, solid handset that’s nicely put together. The feature set is good for a mid-range phone, but the two-megapixel camera is fairly basic.

Our only real criticism is the low handset volume, both for calls and music, which is still a pretty glaring flaw. However, all in all, the 6650 is a decent exclusive for T-Mobile.