Nokia 6210


The Nokia 6210 is a mobile phone made by Nokia. It was introduced at the CeBIT fair in Hanover in February 2000 succeeding Nokia 6110. In addition to calling and SMS messaging, the phone has many other features, such as an alarm clock, a HSCSD modem, a WAP web client, 3 games, a calculator, a 'to-do' list application, a calendar, infrared connectivity, a voice recorder and a stopwatch. In keeping with Nokia's practice of selling phones that the user can customize the physical appearance of, the 6210 is minimally customizable. The plastic detail below the keypad, which Nokia called the 'Personal Badge' is removable. For a time, Nokia would send replacements, screen-printed with text of the customer's choosing. These were free for a promotional period.
The 6210 could have bluetooth functionality added to it, with the use of the Nokia Connectivity Pack, which included a replacement battery which incorporated a Bluetooth adaptor and antenna, and a connectivity card with a PCMCIA adaptor to bring bluetooth to a portable computer. The connectivity batteries were available separately. A software upgrade was needed for existing 6210 owners. For this reason, an upgraded 6210 was the earliest cellular phone with bluetooth connectivity. The upgrade pack was ready several months before the launch of the first cellphone with bluetooth built-in, however, it was not released to market until sometime after the first integrated-bluetooth phone had been launched. It can certainly be considered to be the first phone with a bluetooth option.

Popular culture

Speaking in 2014, the human-rights activist and former punk rock star Bob Geldof said that he still uses a Nokia 6210 14 years after its release and due to its robust nature referred to it as “The AK-47 of mobile phones.”