Marc Wielaert: My 5 favourite Nokias of all time

Smartphones come and go, but one thing that never seems to wane is people’s passion for Nokia’s philosophy of creating ingenious devices, which make the everyday more exciting, more entertaining and more productive.

One man who embodies this spirit is Marc Wielaert, a journalist from the Netherlands who has been reviewing mobile phones and smartphones for more then 12 years. After first laying his eyes on the Nokia 808 PureView, during the 2012 Mobile World Congress, he fell head over heels in love with it. Not much later, he decided to start the PureViewClub – a community for people fascinated by Nokia’s PureView technology, offering the best you can expect from your smartphone camera. Today he joins us on Nokia Conversations to share his five all time favourite Nokias ever. Over to you, Marc.

Nokia 6150 – Launched 1998

Why did you get it?

I got the Nokia 6150 in 1999 as my reward after I quit smoking for two months: I just knew I kicked that nasty habit and I felt I deserved a reward. The Nokia 6150 was my very first mobile phone and quite soon I noticed I got myself a new addiction.

What did you love about it?

I can’t underestimate how the Nokia 6150 fundamentally changed my life. It opened up a whole new world of mobile communication for me. Now, 15 years later, I can’t imagine where I’d be without it. Later I adored the 6210 and 6310 as well (still have them, they still work too) – but the 6150 will always have a special place in my heart.

Nokia 9210 – Launched 2000

Why did you get it?

It was a giant step to the Nokia 9210, third in the line of Nokia’s gorgeous Communicators. Renewing my contract in 2001 – and spending an irresponsible amount of money – I got the “wireless imaging pack” including the Eye-Q digital camera that would let you send your shots to your Communicator via Bluetooth.

What did you love about it?

With that combination, I made and shared my first digital images. The quality wasn’t great, the experience, however, was overwhelming. When people asked me why I carried around this “refrigerator” I showed them how I not only had the smallest laptop on the planet – I was online everywhere (in 2001!) and I could even make calls with it 🙂 Later, I worked with the beautiful E90 and fantastic E7 as well. I still miss all of those devices: goes to show you never can sell 🙂

Nokia N95 – Launched 2006

Why did you get it?

I could have chosen many other devices from the N-series, but I worked with the Nokia N95 most. This is the “multimedia computer” that really got me hooked on mobile imaging.

What did you love about it?

First, I loved the quality of the 5MP Carl Zeiss camera sensor. I’ve taken over a thousand shots with it – in fact it was the Nokia N95 that made me decide to leave my DSLR at home during holidays. I was completely satisfied by its quality, it was unparalleled at the time! And I just adored the N95’s design, the way how one could slide the upper part up and down to reveal its many different multimedia possibilities – it was very much the time of hardware buttons then, the Nokia N95 perfected that in creative way with epic design. I upgraded to the black 8GB version and later to the very best smartphone camera of the N-series: the N8. My passion for mobile imaging may really have started with the N95, the N8 was the king of mobile imaging until 2012.

Nokia 808 PureView – Launched 2012

Why did you get it?

I didn’t make it at the Nokia press conference of the Mobile World Congress in 2012, so when I read the press release in Barcelona, I immediately made a phonecall to the Dutch press office: I thought there was a typo – no doubt, talking about the camera they must have meant a 14MP sensor? Their reassurance it was in fact 41MP simply knocked me off my feet.

What did you love about it?

I loved the design – its obvious, even shameless camera sensor. This was made for mobile photography and it showed it all the way. There could be no doubt in anyone’s mind what this Nokia was all about! I also loved the results Nokia proudly showed at the Mobile World Congress that year: gigantic posters, realized with what they got from its full resolution results. Amazing! And I loved Rich Recording! Working for radio in everyday life, I was completely blown away by the stereo sound quality of even the loudest recordings! The Nokia booth was the only one I saw every day I attended the MWC that year. I simply couldn’t take my eyes of the Nokia 808 PureView. In fact, I think I made the very first public full-hd video with it, not only curious about the imaging quality, but also its sound recording: the quality of Rich Recording completely blew me away. That video was one of my first posts at the PureViewClub.

Nokia Lumia 1020 – Launched 2013

Why did you get it?

With the Nokia Lumia 1020, Nokia brought its PureView technology with the 41MP sensor and OIS to its Windows Phone platform. Since the recent update to Nokia Black which brought Raw .DNG to its imaging power, the Lumia 1020 now appears to be the new king of mobile imaging.

What do you love about it?

Many of the PureViewClub visitors were eager to show the 808 PureView offered the best imaging capacities no matter what – a competition in which I felt the “war of ecosystems” played a part as well for some. And until the update to Nokia Black, the 808’s JPG output was, indeed, hard to beat. Now, however, with its much improved .JPG compression and Raw output, the Nokia Lumia 1020 will be the next contender until Nokia will think of a new technology that will improve its imaging quality even more. What it will be – Lytro technology, an even bigger sensor? I don’t know, but I’m looking forward to it very much. I know the PureViewClub has proved to many people Nokia’s imaging quality really is the best they can expect from their smartphone. Not being a professional photographer myself, I’m proud of my growing and very passionate community.

Some brilliant choices from Marc, including some of the most iconic devices in smartphone history. Considering his passion for mobile photography, it’s hardly surprising that the two greatest camera smartphones ever created have been included. But would they make your list? Let us know down below.