Nokia N73 is a Symbian 3G smartphone with a 3.2 MP autofocus camera, Carl Zeiss optics and a 2.4-inch display. It has stereo speakers, an FM radio, removable miniSD storage and Bluetooth, infrared and USB connectivity.
All About Symbian and GSMArena praise the detailed still photographs and large screen. GSMArena likes the browser, organiser and synchronisation, but finds video choppy, the numeric keypad awkward and the camera cover loose. All About Symbian’s first reviewer also criticises the keypad and creaking body; its long-term second opinion finds the keys easy to use and its sample better built. They disagree on music volume: GSMArena finds plenty, while All About Symbian finds it too quiet. Early firmware memory leaks, accidental gallery activation and the missing Wi-Fi also draw criticism.
2.4-inch QVGA TFT with 240 × 320 pixels and up to 262,144 colours. Ambient-light sensor adjusts illumination; original maker consumer specifications. Native refresh and brightness in nits not published.
Performance
Storage
42 MB
Memory
Up to 42 MB dynamic shared internal storage, original maker consumer and Forum Nokia tables. Installed applications share this space. Independent reviews report different free storage and operational RAM; neither free RAM nor an unlimited application heap establishes installed physical RAM, so no RAM capacity inferred.
Storage type
Hot-swappable miniSD card, up to 1 GB in the original consumer specification; not RS-MMC or full-size SD. Original Danish sales package does not list an included card. The later shared Music Edition guide covers different software/bundles explicitly.
Cameras
Main camera
3.2 MP
Ultra wide camera
None
Telephoto camera
None
Optical zoom
None
Front camera
0.3 MP
Main camera
3.2 MP CMOS rear camera, 2048 × 1536 pixels, autofocus Carl Zeiss Tessar optics with 5.6 mm physical focal length. Focus from 10 cm to infinity, macro at 10 cm; mechanical shutter 1/1000–2 seconds. Sliding protective cover and two-stage camera key. Built-in flash up to 1 m, maker consumer specifications.
Front camera
VGA 640 × 480-pixel secondary camera with up to 2× digital zoom for video calls and portrait-mode capture. Headline 0.3 MP rounds the maker pixel count. Exact N73-1/RM-133 guide distinguishes main landscape and secondary portrait operation.
Zoom
Up to 20× digital zoom for rear still photographs; no optical zoom. Rear video digital zoom up to 4× in CIF or 8× in QCIF, maker consumer table.
Video recording
MPEG-4 CIF 352 × 288 at up to 15 fps with AAC stereo audio and video stabilisation, maker consumer specifications and Forum Nokia. Maker claims up to 1.5 hours per clip, subject to storage. Shared guide High mode uses MP4; Sharing uses QCIF 3GP with a 300 kB limit, about 20 seconds. Playback codecs are separate from camera recording.
Camera features
Auto/user/macro/portrait/landscape/sport/night scenes, white balance, colour effects, exposure and sensitivity adjustments, self-timer and sequence mode. Image/video editing, slideshows and PictBridge USB or Bluetooth printing. Network photo sharing depends on compatible services; retired Flickr/Lifeblog services are not promised to work today.
Battery and charging
Battery
1,100 mAh
Wireless charging
None
Battery life detail
Removable BP-6M battery, 1100 mAh. Original maker ECTEL claims up to 226 minutes WCDMA or 246 minutes GSM talk, 370/350 hours standby respectively, 150 minutes video calling, 366 minutes CIF video playback and 12.6 hours offline music. Conditions and network affect runtime.
Wired charging
Dedicated small Nokia charger connector; AC-4 charger and CA-44 adapter supplied in the original Danish package. Pop-Port USB is a data connection, not USB charging; exact independent GSMArena test. Charging watts not published.
Design
Type
Standard
Weight
116 g
Thickness
19 mm
Height × width
110 × 49 mm
Colours
Original launch finishes: silver grey/deep plum, frost white/metallic red and frost white/mocha brown, 24 July 2006 maker shipping release. Regional Danish consumer package lists the first two only. Music Edition is explicitly distinguished in the later shared operating guide; its software/bundle is not silently applied to the original.
Buttons
Five-way joystick, numeric and soft keys, dedicated multimedia/review/camera controls and side zoom/volume rocker. Original edition multimedia key opens configurable shortcuts; later Music Edition guide explicitly distinguishes that key behaviour.
Speakers
Integrated stereo loudspeakers with maker 3D-sound claim; stereo FM/Visual Radio uses a compatible wired headset as its antenna. Original HS-23 headset connects through Pop-Port; no built-in standard 3.5 mm headphone socket.
Software
Operating system
Symbian
Software at launch
Symbian OS 9.1 and Nokia S60 3rd Edition, exact maker consumer/developer tables. Native 2nd Edition applications need compatible 3rd Edition versions; Java MIDP 2.0/CLDC 1.1 also supported.
Software features
Contacts, calendar/tasks/notes, email with attachments, web browser, music, Visual Radio, document viewers and PC Suite synchronisation. Quickoffice components and Adobe PDF viewer are readers, not unrestricted document editors. Historical third-party services and firmware observations retain their original context.
Release detail
Announced 25 April 2006. Maker says shipments have begun on 24 July 2006; the August full retail test confirms market presence but does not prove the worldwide first retail month. Year precision retained. Original N73-1/RM-133; no unsupported direct predecessor link or no-front-camera regional hardware inferred.
In the box
Original Danish package lists BP-6M battery, AC-4 charger, CA-44 adapter, HS-23 stereo headset, CA-53 data cable, wrist strap, lens cloth, software CD and documentation. Region/operator and Music Edition bundles may differ.
Connectivity
Mobile network
GSM/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900 MHz and WCDMA 2100 MHz, original maker consumer and developer tables. Consumer overview gives WCDMA 128/384 kbps upload/download while its packet-data section lists 384/384; conflict retained without assigning an unsupported upload speed. Actual service/network determines throughput.
Wi-Fi
No Wi-Fi, independently tested in the contemporary All About Symbian and GSMArena full reviews.
Bluetooth
Bluetooth Specification 2.0, exact N73-1/RM-133 English guide and consumer specifications. Profiles include printing, dial-up networking, headset/hands-free, object/file transfer, imaging, SIM access, synchronisation and HID; compatibility depends on both devices.
USB
Pop-Port USB 2.0 full-speed, maker consumer specification; supplied CA-53 cable. Supports USB Mass Storage and PC Suite; no high-speed transfer inferred. Infrared and Bluetooth also support local transfers and synchronisation.
Storage options
Storage
42 MB
Pros and cons
Pros
+3.2 MP autofocus camera with mechanical shutter
+Stereo speakers and FM radio
+Removable miniSD storage
Cons
−No Wi-Fi
−No standard headphone socket
−S60 2nd Edition applications need compatible 3rd Edition versions
