Click image to enlarge! The Nokia N81 mobile phone has a rather chunky appearance and adopts the slider style of unit.  Measuring 102 x 50 x 17.9mm (L x W x D) and weighing 140g, this phone is predominately black with a matt silver band running round the sides.  Supplied with 8GB of internal flash memory, the phone features an active matrix 2.4-inch QVGA 320 x 240 colour display capable of showing up to 16.

According to my Concise Oxford Dictionary, one of the definitions of "prism" relates to "triangular, with refracting surfaces at acute angles with each other".  The reason for this excursion into the realms of lexicography is a new mobile phone from Nokia's fashion brand.  This is the Nokia 7500 Prism which, if nothing else, is certainly a distinctive and eye-catching model.

Although it is not the first Nokia phone to be released with GPS facilities, the 6110 model is the first unit to have bestowed the category of "Navigator" as part of its title.   The Nokia 6110 comes with Route 66 software in conjunction with Assisted GPS (A-GPS) for determining location faster.  I will return to the GPS feature a little later. This black and silver slider phone measures 102 x 49 x 21mm (H x W x D) when in a closed state.

As with all phones now - this is much more than just a device for ordering a pizza. All the usual culprits are here : MP3 player, camera, FM radio, voice recorder and PIM (Personal Information Manager) functions. Even as a messaging device it isn't limited to voice. You also have video calls across 3G (dedicated camera for this), SMS and MMS. You're almost spoilt for choice when it comes to connecting with other devices.

It was a huge event held at Three's UK headquarters with almost all the partners there for the multitude of things that can work with a phone. All the journalists there were offered a three month loan of a phone and when mine arrived this year I put it through it's paces. It's strange how any Nokia phone I get to review comes courtesy of a mobile phone company and not Nokia.

Coming across one of my original mobile phones recently (I had thought all my old models had been dispatched to a charity) helped to re-enforce the strides such devices had made over a relatively short period.  Developed initially as a means of voice communication when on the move, mobile phones are now so feature-rich that you could almost forget about the aspect of making and receiving voice calls.

Mobile phones come in a variety of styles with collections of specific features that are designed to appeal to a particular market sector.  For example the Nokia 5500 model, also known as Sport, is aimed at the more energetic and health conscious members of society by the addition of some exercise based features.  That is not to say that the other types of features associated with mobile phones have been neglected.

When the conversation turns to mobile phones then it isn't long before the name of "Nokia" pops up.  After all the company does have every type of phone you could imagine with regards to style and functionality (and maybe some that are so advanced and futuristic in concept that they have yet to see the light of day).  A quick check of the company's UK website revealed that there are 79 current models available from all good stockists.

While connection speeds were not up to 'broadband' they are rapid and knock GPRS totally for six. The Nokia E61 is a device that looks more like a PDA than a phone but in fairness it's more than both combined. Anyone needing to connect, communicate and be communicated with (Blackberry style) should consider this device. It has a 39 key keyboard that can easily be used by two thumbs and keys that you need such as @ / .

This is a small but solid neat phone that looks businesslike, not having a camera seems a little strange but some companies prefer it as then employees cannot photograph documents, I was amazed when I heard that but I am told it is true. The dimensions are 11x4x1.5cm and it weights around 100grams. The 4x3cm screen is bright and easy to read. This is required as the top 1.

It could be said, and I would not argue with the sentiment, that if you stand still in the current mobile telephony sector then you might as well retire from the industry as advancement come at apace. As a result hardly a day goes by without details emerging of new phones and initiatives from different companies.

O2, in its role as a leading supplier of mobile telephony services to both consumers and businesses, has been particularly busy of late with a raft of announcements regarding new products and accessories on offer. Leading the way is the new O2 Ice which has been designed exclusively for O2 (that's the company and not the device) and is being promoted as an extra-cool, chic handset.