A few days ago, I was sent a Nokia 6280, and since then I have been using it as my full-time handset - setting aside my N90 for a while. The best thing I could say about this device is that I have mixed emotions. Read my mini-review after the jump.

Let me clarify that statement by splitting the handset into two areas: the phone itself, and the firmware it is running. The phone I like, the firmware is another story.

The phone itself is something that I am very happy with. The Nokia 6280 has a feeling to it that I like. It is weighted perfectly, making it easy to hold in one hand both open and closed. The body part of the device (the part with the keypad, not the screen) is covered in a rubber-feeling texture, which aids in grip and just plain feels nice. This material can also be found on the Motorola PEBL.

The keypad, though a little small, is one of the best I have ever used - it has great tactile response, and has the same rubber finish as the body of the handset. I could be a little biased about the size of the keypad, coming from using an N90 for the last couple of months, which is positively huge, though overall I love it.

The Nokia 6280’s screen is not the best in its class, but is clear and bright. Unlike many TFT LCD screens, it is quite readable in sunlight. Its QVGA resolution makes text crisp, but I was a little disappointed with the color reproduction - especially since it is capable of showing 262,000 colors.

This brings me to the software. The Nokia 6280 is one of the first handsets from the Finnish giant to run the S40 version 3 operating system, and after a few days use it is obvious to me that the new version needs quite a lot of work. I have found numerous major bugs in the software - it is inconceivable to me how this was ever released at all.

Two major bugs that are making the handset almost impossible for me to use are both related to lock-ups. My 6280 is completely incapable of viewing pages using the built-in WAP browser. The browser launches, but as soon as one enters an address to navigate to, the handset shows a plain white screen and restarts. The second bug occurs when the user receives an SMS text message while talking on the phone, something that happens to me quite regularly - the call drops, the phone locks up, and all that can be heard is a loud buzzing from the earpiece.

My 6280 is running the latest unbranded firmware version (3.60), and it simply seems to me that this handset was not tested before release - simply unacceptable. I have verified that these, and other bugs that my handset does not exhibit, exist in other handsets running both the 3.40 ‘3′ branded firmware, and the 3.60 Vodafone version.

Were it not for the firmware, this is a handset I could love. I will keep my eyes peeled for a new version and have my 6280 flashed as soon as it becomes available, but for now I must caution interested consumers to hold off on a purchase until the bugs have been worked out of the firmware.