My Nokia is now a junk mobile

My mobile is on the blink. The problem started at the end of December last year when I noticed that the touchscreen on the Nokia C6 was becoming less sensitive. It would take me two or three taps before the next window would appear on the screen.

At first, I thought nothing of it. Just some minor hiccup that I could live with. Then by the end of January, the problem became more serious. I found that not only was the sensitivity getting bad, its accuracy was also now getting affected. I had to tap on a part of the screen some five to 10 millimetres away before I could continue to the next window.

I tried to do a screen realignment but it did not work. A friend suggested that I perform a hard reset on the mobile - but please remember to make a back-up first, he warned me - so I did, but that didn't change anything either.

Since last month, I had to resort to using the keypad instead of the touchscreen. For a moment, I was relieved because it allowed me to continue using the mobile. But I knew that this solution could not really be permanent. Sooner or later, I would have to take my mobile to the nearest Nokia service centre for their technician to take a look at it. (This would be the second time. About nine months ago, I had to pay about RM150 to get the service centre to change the touchscreen after I had exerted some pressure on the mobile and the screen had cracked. A virtual crack on a touchscreen.)

The first opportunity I had was after my return from Singapore last week. On Monday, I went back to the service centre. The customer service guy looked at my mobile and shook his head ever so slightly. From across the table, I noticed. I knew it wasn't going to be good news. He checked into his system, added some figures together and told me that it would cost me RM311 just to get everything repaired.

I looked at him. He looked at me. RM311, I asked him. RM311, he echoed back. Well, I might as well get a new mobile. Yes, he shrugged his shoulders and answered, there's no point paying so much to get my old Nokia repaired. Just top up a few hundred ringgit and a new mobile is yours, he said.

Really, that's it. It is time to junk this old mobile. It's not working anymore and it's not worth repairing. Not worth spending almost RM460 in total just to repair a RM600 mobile. Now, the real question begins: what should I get as a replacement? For sure, I may not wish to buy another Nokia. This C6 model has not been to my satisfaction. Would other Nokia mobiles be the same too?

So what have I been using in the meantime? Why, my wife's old Samsung phone. An old clam shell mobile that has been superseded by many new generations of Samsung phones. Surprisingly, her trusty old mobile still works although I am bereft of my 3G connection. It looks cute on me, my friends at The Old Frees' Association told me wickedly two days ago. So unlike you, they said. What to do but live with their sniggers for the next few weeks while I decide on what to buy?