The Nokia Store

So! Much! Shiny! Stuff!
My stupid N97 was having some issues, and I gave it one last shot before putting it up on ebay by bringing it in to the Nokia store to see if they could do anything about the 34 840 287 obnoxious little problems it was having. Upon entering the store, I was blinded by the chrome finish and £1500 diamond-​encrusted handsets, and honestly didn’t hold much hope that there was anything they could do for me. I’d really had it with this phone. I’ve already talked the ears off the guys at the Phones 4 U store (tech-​speak induced shudder) where I’d gotten the phone, and was convinced that it was a lost cause.
I selected the most competent-​looking of the young, attractive shop clerks to implore with my one last plea for help. He immediately sprang into action, backing up my photos and contacts and restoring the factory settings. This did nothing to solve any of the problems, so he hit up his colleagues to see if anyone had any alternative suggestions. They took turns trying all of their crafty little Nokia tricks, but to no avail. Finally someone asked me if I was on Orange, and when I confirmed that I was indeed an Orange customer, he told me that a lot of the Orange-​issued N97s came with big chunks of the software removed and they’d be happy to send it in for servicing. Wow, a mobile phone store where the employees actually want to help!!! That’s a new one!!! Huzzah!!!
I was sent upstairs to the equally-​cool-​and-​shiny but completely unused upstairs area and was seated at a desk with another of the store’s employees. He took a full 30 minutes of asking me questions, taking careful notes of my problems, and filling out the necessary paperwork to get my phone repaired. I can’t remember the last time a shop clerk had 30 minutes to help me with a problem, let alone when they weren’t even making any money from it! After he’d finished, we looked over the list of issues he’d created to make sure we’d covered everything, and I handed over the phone. I was delighted with the time and attention I was given, and left reassured that it would all be ok.
My phone was actually ready for pick-​up a whole day before the estimated pick-​up day (I was expecting it to be with them for 3 days, but they texted and emailed on the second day to say it was ready) and it is upstairs with my husband now, having all of its updates installed. I haven’t gotten to find out yet whether all of the problems have been fixed, but the gentlemen at the store assured me that if it was still faulty, I could have a replacement sent out, free of charge.
Bravo, Nokia store!!!

This store is all fur coat and no knickers.
Glossy, shiny, techie, the Nokia Store is staffed by a complete bunch of numpties. They’re all young and flash, with their pants worn down around their ass cheeks and undoubtedly spend their weekends at Tiger Tiger, or whatever teenagers do these days. They’ll shout back and forth across the shop to each other, bop along to the music — but good luck getting some knowledgeable service. Basically they’ve been hired to make the phones look cooler.
I reckon they’d love to start a street war with the clean cut, genius bar Mac heads across the road.
I went in there when my N79 packed it in. They plugged it in, it started (of course) and said, ‘yeah err your charger must be broken, innit’. And then said to come back again if it still wasn’t working. They really didn’t want to hear the symptoms or the problems I’d been having with it. Just looking for a quick fix.
They do however let me come in and charge up my phone whenever I want, which is dead handy — because it is a crap Nokia, with a crappier battery.

When the battery on my old Nokia phone started holding charge as well as the holes in an MP’s excuses for dubious expenses claim, I went back to Orange where I purchased the phone. They didn’t have the battery but sent me to the Nokia store.
This is a lovely shiny store on Regent Street where they purvey all things Nokia. The staff are able to show you and demonstrate their products which the normal mobile phone shops can’t do.
Needless to say, they had the right battery for my phone. Can’t comment on the price but it seemed reasonable.
You can also get contracts for your Nokia phone here.
The staff can also tell you about impending releases before you make up your mind on your next mobile.

Purely a means of showcasing the super-​essential product we like to call the mobile phone, the Nokia store in Oxford Circus offers anyone with ears a plethora of well designed mobiles. Each and every model in the Nokia stable is available to test out and extra reading material and information about the phone you are testing can be found all around you. Perhaps the only thing missing is a ‘how well your phone will work after you drop it’ booth, but who knows, there are probably people like me everywhere who hope this might be in the works.
If you like to live your life pushing every button you see, this Nokia store will provide you a veritable Aladdin’s Den of buttons, sounds and little screens needing your attention. Most Nokia phone accessories are also on offer in the form of pouches, headphones, data cables and more. Right at the back of the store, just for those of us who may be driving a Hummer limousine, is a section containing very expensive, gold and platinum plated Nokias, with the price of the most expensive one rocketing to £16 000.