Strange things take place in the kingdom of Sony Ericsson. Having developed a good platform, the company washes everything on its way in search of gold nuggets. If you want to buy an inexpensive, but functional Sony Ericsson of clamshell format, you will inevitably find yourself in the fork of choice – W710i or Z710i? Let’s discuss everything together.

Design
The first thing that the manufacturer has changed, separating device into “music” and “normal” is a color solution. This is perhaps the weakest point of Z710i. Walkman was painted in the standard for the brand colors: gray, white and orange. Version Z tries to look stern, but without wearing expensive “clothes”.
When you look at Sony Ericsson Z710i, you want to compare it with a luxury Korean car, especially for the domestic market. Yes, they are made good, sometimes even cute, but in the background of the Europeans they seem to be a rattle. In other words Z710i was born as a Walkman, and plastic surgery wasn’t very successful. If we consider Z version separately from W, the image becomes less dark, but it is not still colorful to call Z710i a beautiful phone. It is difficult even to say that the model is not to the point: antenna, chrome, blue backlighting of the keyboard, or all together.
The hallmark antenna-arc in Sony Ericsson Z710i looks absolutely ridiculous. Imagine Maybach 62 with spoiler “dream watermelon Baron”, and you will feel the comic structure.
You will get used to design features, but I don’t think that it will be interesting for you to get used to the screaming colors. How I love the orange color, however, it is very eccentric for everyday devices such as mobile phone. But perhaps this is a matter of taste.

Display
Almost all the rest, the model Z and W are similar to each other that will not prevent us through this maze. External displays are identical, both phones have 1.5 inches (128×128 pixels), which look very solid, especially considering the amount of shell – 88×48x24, 5mm.
Small screen and monochrome models are distinguished by the fact that in Z series supports 4 shades of gray, and W has the same, but with an orange backlight.
The internal display does not produce such a favorable impression as the front one; its dimensions are quite standard – 1.9 inch (176×220 pixels). The TFT-display shows up to 262 thousand colors.
Display has ideal contrast and sharp, with excellent viewing angles. The quality of the screen is comparable with the older models of the company, and in their price range if not given something supernatural, then, at least, nothing inferior to the best representatives of the market.

Keyboard
On other side of the external display there are keys to work with MP3-player in the closed position. Actually the huge display is enough to work with the player. The left side is a place for keys which activate the camera (in the closed position it does not work) and paired “rocker” to adjust the volume.
When the phone is closed, the “minus” shows planned for the current affairs events, and if you click the plus sign, then the important information is displayed by phone: profile, your contacts, and battery power in percentage ( convenient and accurate).
On the right end there are keys which are responsible for locking the phone when it is closed.
With characteristic click, opening the phone, we’ll see buttons – big and small. All of them separately or together are already familiar.
Standard handsets there, took their place, two soft keys, an excellent job with their roles. Below there is a key “return” and “C”. The entire keyboard is made in typical Sony Ericsson style. And only navigational key somehow gets out of the context, W710i, definitely looks more organic. Numeric keys are medium in size, but due to the division into three blocks and a clear course to work with text, or simply dial the number comfortably.

MP3-player
With all the similarities and differences, consumers are interested in one thing – music features. Engineers went to indirect ploys that artificially divided the model. So in Z710i there is no profile A2DP, which puts an end to stereo Bluetooth-headsets.
Thus, the player is simplified, but not fatal.
Yes, a little about the FM-radio. With it we understand what praise for the quality of reception and ease of use is.
The main difference will be the headset. In W710i there is a stereo headset HPM-65, while Z710i has only HPM-60. During the test, I stepped on the Headset HPM-70, which fell out from somebody’s pocket, as the number of citizens in a narrow street, I did my best to return it to its rightful owner but I couldn’t. Since both models have a standard connector Fast Port so we tested with the headset of Z710i.
The output will not be comforting for the Walkman, with a good headset Z710i is not inferior to his brother in terms of musical sound and plays a couple of specific functions.

Multimedia
In this regard, telephones Z and W differ only by a lack of the first section of Fitness and all that is associated with it. Otherwise, as you know, there are no changes. Both phones support EDGE, Bluetooth (2.0, EDR, but without A2DP in Z version), Infrared, Java, themes, radio, powerful organizer and other functions of a modern phone. Both devices also have the support of Memory Stick Micro (M2) card.
Here lies the second major difference in W710i it has only 64MB. Hot-swappable memory card is not provided; it is implemented in the “warm” form. When changing the memory card you have to remove the battery cover.
Internal memory is 10 MB. As before, the device provides a convenient work with files of phone card, or simultaneously with all together.
Another distinctive feature of Sony Ericsson phones has become a function of multitasking. Player, games, calculator – all these and many other applications can run together.
Organizer and work with contacts are made on a solid top five.

Camera
Cameras in phones differ only in the presence of the mirror at Z version. All other features are standard for phones of this class. CMOS, 2 megapixel, autofocus and the lack of an acceptable quality of images, 2.5-fold-digital zoom. Maximum resolution of the image is 1600×1200 pixels, the average size photo is about 400 Kb. It has standard settings like white balance, and a few simple effects.

Video can be recorded in high quality and for MMS which means the resolution at 176×144 and 128×96 pixels, respectively.

Conclusion
As you can see, the differences between W710i and Z710i are cosmetic, just for a marketing purpose. Today the difference between a Walkman and Z is about 2000 rubles. For this money you can still easily buy a 512MB memory card and a good headset like HPM-70. This is in case you need something not orange, but the extent of solid music phone. Our sample even though it was an engineering one, worked very steadily.
710i is equipped with a Li-Pol battery with capacity of 900 mAh that’s just supports the work of up to 3 days in the active mode without problems, but if you choose the mode with disabled GPRS-module, then up to 5 days.
As a result, we have two absolutely equivalent apparatus. Choose with eyes, most of the major differences can be easily compensated.

Samsung E790 is designed by two factors: a traditional for Samsung desire to create more flat, easy to carry and use phones, and shell and mirror elementsborrowed from other devices. It should be noted that the hybrid rather blends into the overall concept shell of Samsung.
This phone will surely be in high demand, primarily because of its universality: the middle class and outright unisex appeal will attract buyers from several adjacent segments of the market.

Shell
So, in front of us is a brilliant “shell” of Samsung E790, which hides a black pearl. This phone is available in two colors – neutral silver, which is decorated with bezel top panel and a removable back cover, and black, which accounted for the lower half of the chassis, all interior trim phone, as well as external mirror lining.
The mirror is almost opaque, resulting in use for external display monochrome OLED-matrix without background illumination. To enhance the mirror effect for the panel is used shiny plastic, which, moreover, is not only sufficiently resistant to mechanical damage (let’s say, if you use the phone only for its intended purpose, the scratches and worn spots on the lid will not appear soon), but also easily clean the inevitable fingerprints.
For the lower half of the shell is used dense, gritty, as though slightly rubberized. Thanks to it, holding this phone is not only convenient but also pleasant. From the same material are made, both plugs (headphone / charger and a removable memory card).

Control
First you may think that Samsung E790 is equipped with a sensory keyboard, but it turns out that all the symbols are located on a single plane (there is no separate buttons) that allows the manufacturer to save a minimum thickness of the shell. For ease of use the keyboard is supplied with four horizontal serifs – under each of row of buttons. In addition, the boundary between the alphanumeric and navigation of the keyboard (they are made from different kinds of plastic, which is very pleasant to touch and has a calm color) is clearly distinguished. Yes, and four-position navigation button is made of a bare metal disk without any switches or at least hints at the sectors.
At the ends of the shell there are volume control and voice recorder buttons. Although the keys are sufficiently tight, the probability of accidental clicks is not excluded.

Displays
External display of E790 has already been mentioned – it is made based on OLED-matrix with resolution 80×64 pixels and 16 gradations of brightness. In standby mode, it is turned off; it shows the number of an incoming call. You can change the settings so that you can have on it standard information on the status of the phone.
Internal display uses familiar TFT-matrix with resolution of 220×176 pixels (262 000 colors). Like previous models, E790 demonstrates low grain and good sharpness, both in static mode, and when displaying dynamic graphics, including videos. To be able to personalize the graphical user interface provides the possibility of using interchangeable skins, but in the firmware of the phone are included only two – contrasting black and white.

Camera
E790 is equipped with a 2 MP camera, which allows it to take pictures with a resolution up to 1600×1200 pixels. The most successful are objects shot at a short distance. But for landscape photographs there is often a noticeable grain.
All camera control rendered on the navigation keys – first finger instinctively tries to incorporate its side button, but there lies a small trick – the key should be kept for three seconds. With the lid closed self-portrait you do not succeed. At least in our test sample, the camera in this mode, showed them on an external display, but could not make a shot. Most likely, the commercial version of the phone will have this opportunity.
But the camera control interface is very convenient, especially the 11-step zoom, allowing very smoothly zoom in / remove objects, but let us not forget that quality lowers when zooming.
Video is recorded in a single resolution – 176×144 pixels about 128 kb / s (15 frames per second).
The memory of the phone can be expanded with the help of microSD cards.

Menu
To the standard for Samsung graphical menu “3×3″ stands out only recently emerged icon “Google”. Yes, instead of the normal section of the browser now the user can be connected directly to the services of the online service provider – search the web, personal mailbox, personal page, etc. As shown by tests, Samsung deals with Google servers fast and stable. In order to use the mobile Internet you can choose the menu “browser”, hidden somewhere deep in the section “Applications”.
Otherwise, there is nothing new in the organization of the menu of E790. As before, Samsung does not allow us to create sound profiles to switch circuits warning in different conditions – just a quick transition to the “silent” mode using the key “#”.

Software
Phonebook can store up to thousands contacts with five phone numbers. You can assign a photo and ringtones. Calendar supports the minimal functionality of the organizer.

E790 is rich in entertainment programs. First, the phone has MP3-player, which is rather good, but, the fact that E790 supports connectivity via Bluetooth wireless stereo headphones, the phone turns into a full-fledged portable player.
80 MB internal memory plus support for removable memory cards (microSD) allows you to carry a virtually unlimited amount of music. The only problem is the battery, which is in active mode, lasts only a day.
In addition to the player in the phone memory are loaded about a dozen games, but, alas, most of them are demo versions, which require payment for a short time.

Conclusion
Of course, Samsung made a good product. Sleek, stylish, and inexpensive device will surely attract the attention though it won’t become a bestseller, it is a very successful one.
This model can be recommended to all those who need a reasonably good functional mobile phone at a reasonable price. This phone is a nice gift for girls, because its exterior very attractive.

Design
With regard to the design of Nokia E61i, then, at a first glance, it has undergone no major changes. Some changes have been made in color palette thanks to which the device began to look more stylish (which is quite important).
But if you take Nokia E61i in hands, it will be felt that the device is thinner than its predecessor. Very little, maybe a couple millimeters, but for such an impressive body size, even such savings (in the first place it has been achieved by reducing the size of the battery) are noticeable – in fact E61i supposed to wear in a jacket pocket, where extra space is not enough.
And that’s the main thing – it would not only fit, but it does not bulge. By the way, the developers replaced at the same time and covered the internal compartment – now it is made of durable metal alloy.

Keyboard
The keyboard has been changed greately; it is interesting that the new owners have to re-type the text as those users who are not familiar with predecessor, Nokia E61i, and the owners of this model.
This is primarily due to the fact that the developers have changed the size of the alphanumeric keys. Previously, they were more flat and wide, in E61i surface of each button has decreased, but its height – on the contrary, was slightly increased.
A couple of days working with Nokia E61i, typing speed went into the familiar rhythm.
Even the navigation keys changed more radically, and these changes are only welcomed. Vanished joystick, which is not only quite distracting from the overall design of the phone, but was not too easy to use, and has been replaced by a more familiar flat four-position key.
In addition to it, as well as two traditional context keys and buttons receive a call, and rebound in the navigation unit has four buttons for quick access to particular functions – a notebook, the main menu of the operating system (that is, of course, Simbian 9.1) and a message center.
The fourth button allows the owner to use it as he/she wants – for example, it may start the organizer, or some frequently used applications.

Display and Camera
E61i screen is positioned horizontally – another feature, designed to facilitate the work with text documents. Specifications of the display remained the same; it is based on a matrix that supports the resolution of QVGA (240×320 pixels) in full color (16 million) mode.
Depending on the application simultaneously on the screen may appear eight lines of text, in most cases this is enough for comfortable work. If you switch to a smaller font (eg, utility for reading books), the eyes begin to be tense. On the other hand, the screen in the traditional spirit of Nokia is made in a bright and high-contrast, it is very tolerant under bright summer sun, and working with it is a real pleasure.
Yes, and look at a video display much more convenient than a phone with a vertical layout. However, E61i has somewhat a different purpose.
The camera, which was completely absent in E61, appeared in E61i. The latter is equipped with a 2-megapixel camera, but its lack in E61 was felt all the time.

Now the problem is solved, and users must remain satisfied, it is worth noting that, despite the dimensions of the shell, the owner can easily take photos.
E61i in size is closer to today’s handheld digital cameras. It has 2 GB memory thanks to microSD cards.
Of course, you need to remove the metal cover, but it’s better than the removal of the battery.
Actually, potential buyers of E61i are interested in its software. First and foremost it is worth emphasizing that the phone supports a wide range of data protocols: here and quad band of GSM-transmitter, and GPRS to WCDMA, and more local Bluetooth (up to 62-65 kb / s), Wi-Fi and infrared.

Due to this, the owner of E61i will feel comfortable both in urban spaces, and the corporate information environment. By the way, E61i supports connectivity to gateways and Blackberry.
Communication functions of E61i include the primarily work with e-mail, with the device supporting push email (but it needs support from the server, as well as the need to install the gateway software – but it’s freely downloaded from the Nokia web site). There is a the default mode, the phone itself is drawn to the mail server through POP3 or (more correctly, but, again, depends on the configuration of the server) IMAP at given intervals. Of course, the user can check mail from multiple mailboxes.
Large advantage of Nokia E61i is ease of setup. All parameters are automatically determined immediately after receiving a service message from the operator; e-mail, of course, is not counted, you have to manually configure it, but it takes a few minutes including the procedure for checking server availability and accuracy of a login and password. As a Web browser using the clone Web Core – one of the best mobile solutions to date, the new version which includes a built-in RSS-agent, perhaps it is not as convenient as special programs, but does not require installing any additional software.
Synchronizing with your computer, as usual with Nokia, is using Communication Suite, which disk is attached to the phone. Although the relationship can be established from the infrared port or Bluetooth, a sales kit includes USB-cable.

For business people
In addition to communication applications E61i has already “charged” business applications, first among which is QuickOffice – a package that supports the work with text documents, spreadsheets, and presentations compatible with products from Microsoft Office programs and lets you edit these documents.
To read PDF-files, the phone has a mobile version of Adobe Acrobat Reader. In addition, the device insertion includes such traditional applications as editor and organizer reminders that support data exchange with Microsoft Exchange Server and Microsoft Outlook. To search for files (still a big flash card of their climbs abound) the owner of E61i can use the built-in file manager, but to save space – Archiver ZIP.
In addition to business applications on the phone there is an already installed standard music player, and RealPlayer to view streaming video from the Internet and Flash Player, reproducing animation clips.
Games can not be found in memory of E61i, but given a fair amount of entertainment software for the S60 platform. The owner can download them on network. He/she can also download other useful software (maps of world time, the weather around the world, and a voice recorder, without limitation records of one minu te).

Conclusion
Nokia E61i leaves an impression of a real business device without any “vignettes”, “flowers”, “Amusement Park” in the form of toys, a separate button for the player, a powerful audio player. In return there is a function designed to help, if you’re out of office, without a laptop on your knees, but the presentation must be read, however, like to work with e-mail. And of course, build quality, elegant design and a long battery life.

Design
The phone designed for a business man must meet certain standards of mobile dress code, without pretentiousness and brightness. The device should not attract attention. All these requirements and wishes fully correspond to a new Fly B600 business mobile phone.
The dimensions of this phone are 110×49x14 mm. Weight is also proportional: only 110 grams. The device easily fits in pockets of trousers or a jacket.
The front panel is made of a high-quality plastic. The back part of Fly B600 is made of a soft (it seems rubberized) plastic. Camera protrudes from the shell and has no cover. Thus, you will have to put the phone either on screen or on the lens of the camera – decide which one you need less.
I think that serious buyers can find any drawback in this phone.

Display
Asian manufacturers have accustomed us to the fact that their phones have displays above average. And if you’re skeptical you expect good performance from the screen of B600 but I have to disappoint you. Executed on TFT-technology, the display shows up to 260 thousand colors and has resolution of 240×320 pixels (2.4 inches). As a result, the screen takes up the most space; keypad and the speaker are simply lost in the background.
The first thing that your eye catches is that the display is very, even too bright. But the real shock comes after a short jogging on the settings. Colors are juicy and bright, the image is perceived well, did not catch on for anything. Such a display is perfect for working with text and calendar.
The only thing that upset me are its viewing angles. They are sufficient for comfortable work; however, the image is badly tarnished vertical even when rejecting a couple of degrees.

Keyboard
Dark and light gray buttons harmoniously complement each other.
The screen took so much space that the bottom row of keys, could hardly find a place, and moved gracefully as the fourth column in the right lane. Of course, such a decision is unusual for most users, but it is not so critical that the next day at the level of reflexes fingers themselves find the right path.
Buttons should be sufficient for comfortable work, have an average course and allow you to quickly and carelessly work with any text.
Additional controls are buttons to access the camera on the right end (horizontal shooting mode) and the usual rocker for volume control, on the left side. In addition, one should mention the three connectors (they are all closed strong enough plugs) – expansion slot for memory cards microSD, mini-USB (it also serves to connect the charger) and 2.5-mm headphone input (TV-out).

Menu
The menu of Chinese phone is almost always quiet horror. No eastern colors, all is very succinctly.
The main menu shows 12 icons; with the upper line the system information is available in both the substantive and in any sub-menu. Chapters are arranged quite comfortably and that is important – it is logical. There was only one question. It is unclear why the album is under “Entertainment”, but Video album in “Multimedia”. Agree that it can be called only a minor drawback.
Separately I want to note the high level of localization is another issue of Asian phones. All menu items are transferred without errors, absurd reductions as a result of which it is impossible to understand. Well, the font is very nice; the eyes do not get tired.

Functions
Although we have determined that this phone is suitable for business people. Thus the phone should support applications which business man needs. First, it is an organizer. Menu of Fly B600 consists of a calendar, tasks, alarm and world time. Calendar is comfortable enough, you can assign notes (point of the problem “duplicate this feature, and made, apparently for faster access) to the date and time, while adjusting items such as: light, repetition, timing, number of repetitions. The only drawback of the calendar is the weekly view.
The user provides three independent alarms, each of them can choose the time (including on the day).
Business phone should have a convenient phone book. Again, and this parameter B600 demonstrates enviable results.
Your phone can store up to 1000 contacts together with name and number there are 5 additional fields of information where you can indicate birth date and picture, video clip, tune and add to the user group.
The phone book displays contacts, both from the internal memory, and located on the SIM-card.

As we see, business indicators of the phone are up to date. But there are also additional functions. For example, an MP3 player with good mid-level (headset included, but the 2.5 mm input lets you connect via an adapter and more serious headphones).
There is FM-radio, a simple photo editor, composer, Java (games and programs in Java is not preinstalled), calculator, converter units and currencies.
But what is most interesting is that this phone has some exceptional abilities. First recall the aforementioned TV-out (cable included). Easily connecting your phone to your TV provides great opportunities for both presentations and to view photos in the family.
By connecting the telephone to a computer via miniUSB cable (included, but not with a standard connector), you’ll see a menu of three items: use your phone as a modem, a flash-drive or as Web-camera.

Fans of honor on the road will appreciate the availability of reading “electronic books”. Settings are enough for comfortable reading. Of course, you can find a replacement in the ranks of Java-applications, but the existence of such a function is inherent, whatever one may say, plus.
Finally comes the function that you’ve encountered only in smartphones running Symbian and then as an alternative software. This is the background sound, overlay tube during a call. You can adjust the volume, duration and interval. You can choose from 10 preset or 10 of your (possible record with voice recorder) ringtones.
When you activate this feature you can lay on the couch, honestly say that standing there in traffic and the phone will simulate car horns, noise, uproar, and all that you want. Of course, it’s not fair, but – rather funny.
You can connect your phone with the rest of the world through the miniUSB cable, Bluetooth 1.2 (support SPP, DUN, OPP, FTP, A2DP profiles, and remote control) and GPRS (WAP 2.0, built-in POP / SMTP-client).

Camera
A 3.2 megapixel camera with flash and autofocus is already a matter of respect, though photos are not of the best quality.
As we have already mentioned, you shoot in a horizontal position.
The camera cannot turn into a camcorder. The latter is a separate program and is available from the “Multimedia” menu. Rollers can record the entire free memory at resolutions 176×144 and 352×288. Codecs are MPEG4 and H.263. Video has good quality, it is quite enough for viewing on the phone and share with friends. As for the camera, it works very slowly. When shooting with a maximum resolution (2048×1536 pixels) by pressing the capture button to direct the photograph, is about a second or two, during which you are sure to slightly move the phone, and this guarantees blurry picture.
It is noteworthy that when shooting from 1600×1200 and less, you can not notice such things. There is a problem with low productivity of the processor.
You can save your photos or video in 87 MB internal memory and microSD memory card (not included) up to 2GB.

Conclusion
Even though the phone has two stereo speakers, it is virtually inaudible in the city noise.
The situation could partly rescue the vibration, but it is very weakly expressed, as in the pocket of pants, it is hardly felt.
It is very uncomfortable to type SMS-message. For example, standard things such as capital letter after full stop.
You can find a few more minor soft-roughness and irregularities. But let us remember the low price of the novelty above opportunities. Thanks to TV-out all the deficiencies can be forgiven at once.
Despite the huge display, Li-Ion battery (940 mAh) copes with its task. Telephone works up to 4 days at 20 minutes of talking time and use of various functions. But even with such a very decent performance, the manufacturer added the supplied spare battery, just on the safe side.
As a result, Fly B600 is very pleasant and worth much money. If you want a modern, reliable, functional assistant in the cheap price range, Fly B600 definitely can rightly be considered one of the best mobile phones.

Last year Samsung released E900 model of a slider phone. The success of the model depends totally on the price, design and functionality of this mobile phone. These three features are the main characteristics that attract buyers when choosing the phone.
Today we’ll talk about the successor of E900 – J600E primarily designed for women. Modern eye-catching design must come to taste of a every fashionable woman. If we talk about the inner content, it has a solid intermediate level.

Design
Considering Samsung J600E as a whole, while stressing the major pluses, it turns out that the strongest side, of course, is its design. The exterior is certainly designed for women, although to some extent for men too. The four available colors (blue, pink, silver, gray) consider it to be a unisex direction of mobile phones.
Today, ergonomic device can not be expressed in one thing. The dimensions of this mobile phone are quite fashionable: 91×45x18 mm and 99 grams.
As you can see, Samsung J600E is a little bit elongated and narrowed (in the form of rectangle).
In the hand the phone is excellent. The navigation buttons are located above the thumb, so the process of opening this phone should not cause any difficulties.
Returning to the design of Samsung J600E, we’d like to mention the successful combination of slightly shiny metallic colors.
Top, bottom and back of the phone are deprived of any kind of controls, connectors and other things. But on the left side there are slots for charging the battery and headset, shortcut key for the quick access of the camera.
Both slots are closed with plastic plugs which give the impression of a long-playing mechanism. The right side turned on to be “poorer” and can boast only about volume buttons and a memory card slot.

Display
At first sight, the characteristics of the screen J600E look quite decent. Indeed who would have thought that the TFT-matrix with the support of 65 thousand colors and a resolution of 128×160 pixels will disappoint.
The problem lies in the ratio of the diagonal of the display and the resolution. As we can see in J600E, a 1.9-inch screen with 128×160 pixels resolution is very small. Hence there is grainy and generally unpleasant sensation of viewing images.
Many claims about the screen arise when typing and surfing on the menu – the quality of display animations, pictures and photos leave much to be desired. As for the brightness and contrast, there is virtually no claim, moreover taking into account its characteristics they are even good.

Keyboard
Tactile keyboard today does not surprise anybody. However, this feature is still a tasty morsel. In the case of J600E it seems that touch buttons are the only available solutions to the problem of visual excellence.
When the buttons are inactive, they are totally invisible, when the phone is opened or activated by the keyboard, all four sensory start flashing in a pleasant blue color.
Is it convenient to use the touch keypad, or it is just an extravagant whim of the manufacturer? This becomes clear very quickly. The sensitivity of the buttons is high. A light touch is enough. However, during navigation, or when writing messages you can easily press on them, in consequence of which there happens an abolition of the selected operation.
The navigation button has a nice ribbed structure and the relatively slow speed, combined with a strength of character.
Against the background of the touch keypad, the numeric keypad looks a little boring. Standard eleven separate keys are arranged in a nice and clear way.

Other Features
Menu is standard for the latest generation of Samsung phones. It is convenient, comfortable, but without any novelties. First submenus seem somewhat irritating, but soon, the user can really find freedom in controling it.
One of the interesting features is the communication capabilities. USB and Bluetooth 1.2 provide connectivity (up to about 50 KB / s). For the Internet there is WAP, GPRS and EDGE, this is also rather poor. Wired Headset in collaboration with MP3 player and FM-radio will open the doors to the world of music.

In the literal sense there is nothing outstanding (compared with everything we have met before), but the sound quality is very decent. There are five games preinstalled on the device, three of which have already been well introduced in Samsung phones, they are “Miner”, “Tetris” and “Sudoku”.
The phone has about 20 MB of memory available to user. But you can add megabytes with the help of microSD cards (not included in the set, but they are not expensive).
The device without recharging will operate three days, and in the mode of an active use you have to charge it in a day.

Camera
The general concept of J600E is expressed in the camera. Instead of the almost standard 2-megapixel camera, we have only 1,3 megapixels. In reality the phone is not bad, but, remembering the same E900, ot is somehow offensive.
Maximum image resolution is 1280×1024 pixels. As always, there is a certain minimum set of options with which you can influence the final result of the image. In addition, there are modes: multi-shooting, matrix and night mode. I can not get away from the simple effects such as: black and white, negative, sepia, relief, sketch, orange and others. The display in the viewfinder does not even think slowly, and the resulting images are recorded as fast as the phone memory and on the card.

As for the quality of the photos, they are somewhere between good and excellent, of course, in relation to the cameras pf this class.
Video recording formats are MPEG4/H.263 (AMR, 352×288, 15 fps), which is quite enough.

Conclusion
This is a beautiful, high-quality phone and a cheap phone from Samsung, if I may say so.
So, if you want a stylish and prominent model without unnecessary features, then J600E is definitely what you need. The only thing which I’d like to notice once again is the display. It is not bad, but is rather peculiar, so be sure to pay close attention to the screen. Otherwise, the phone is not bad and is worth money.

One year after successfully launching the X830 swivel handset, Samsung upgrades the line of the handsets that mix MP3 player functions with those of a standard GSM mobile phone. The new addition to the lineup has been branded as Samsung SGH-F210. Despite the fact that it kept the same design as its X830 predecessor, F210 has been improved in many ways that have been thought almost impossible for that time. Samsung also managed to keep the device small enough, so it can be used as a dedicated MP3 player with ease. The successful blend between 2 different devices (MP3 and mobile phone) will always be in high demand on the market, so either you like it or not, Samsung’s innovative ideas will still have lots of fans.

Design
Samsung SGH-F210 looks exactly like a chocolate bar. All shiny and very well polished, the device attracts looks only in a minute. If you keep it closed, others can easily take it as a good looking MP3 player, but they’re in for a big surprise. The moment you swivel the small device and put it to your ear, it will suddenly change into a small stylish mobile phone. One handed handling is much easier for right-handers, as the phone swivels to the left. It’s a little bit troubling for left-handers, but I’m sure they’ll get used to it pretty fast. When closed, the candy-bar form factor of the handset stirs one’s imagination. The small screen on the front part of the phone only displays the MP3 plater interface, which can be controlled very easily with the big wheel that you see in the pictures.

Commands like forward, back, stop or pause are only a touch away, as the wheel can be pressed. The Hold button placed on the right side of the phone will help users avoid starting the MP3 player when they aren’t aware. The left side of the phone features only a dual volume key. The bottom of the phone is detachable, so that the headset that comes in the sales package can be attached. The same port can also be used to synchronize the phone with any PC or simply to charge it. There’s no need to detach the whole bottom part of the phone in case you need to charge the phone, you will only need to open the plastic plug-in that covers the port. Obviously, on the back of the phone you’ll find the 2 Megapixel camera, which doesn’t feature any flash capabilities. There’s no external speaker, the music can only be heard through the in-call speaker.

When the MP3/phone is swiveled, it reveals a standard keypad with big enough keys. The difference between the older X830 and F210 model is that the latter has the keypad divided onto 3 rows. The X830 had a 2-row keypad, which was a little bit weird to use. This has been corrected, so you can dial numbers as with any other standard handset. Besides the usual keys, there are 2 more contextual keys, the C key used like a Delete key and a Camera key, which suggests that you cannot use the phone’s camera unless the handset is swiveled. At the base of the keys you’ll notice a small gap where the microphone has been placed. There are definitely big improvements compared with Samsung’s X830 model, but there are also some things that remained the same or worse.
The screen embedded on both devices is the same small display that doesn’t enable users to read the entire menu, not to mention that anyone interested in browsing the Internet will have big issues when trying to read any page displayed. Even if the phone may look a little bit flimsy at a first glance, I have used the phone for almost 3 weeks and the swiveling mechanism didn’t showed any sign of ‘weakness’. Perhaps in time it will ‘collapse’, but I don’t intend to use it more, so I can’t really say for sure. Anyway, its size (87.8 x 31 x 20.5 mm) and weight (72 grams including battery) recommends Samsung F210 both as an MP3 player and a mobile phone.

Display and Camera
Samsung F210 features a TFT display (128 x 220 pixels resolution) supporting 262k colors. The screen is great in terms of quality, but in truth it fails to help the user as it is way too small. Just like its X830 predecessor, Samsung’s F210 display measures around 1.5 inch, which is not enough to display the whole menu, so you’ll be forced to wait for any writing displayed to scroll from left to right to really understand what’s written. The problem is even bigger when you want to play a game, navigate on the Internet or even write a SMS message. If these don’t bother you, then you’ll sure like F210’s display.

The small camera module integrated on the back of the phone is a little bit low on performance. Don’t expect too much from it, and don’t try to use it with the phone closed because you can’t. It will also be difficult to preview anything you’ll want to shoot, because of the small screen. Either you won’t be able to see everything displayed or the preview will simply be too small for you to understand what’s really there. There are some settings that can be used to increase the quality of the snapshots: Effects (Black and White, Negative, Sepia, Emboss, Sketch and Moonlight), White balance (Incandescent, Fluorescent, Cloudy and Daylight), Timer and Frames.

There are also some modes (Single shot, Multi-shot and Mosaic shot) that can be used. The maximum size of the pictures is the usual 1600 x 1200 pixels resolution, while clips can be recorded using 352 x 288 pixels resolutions CIF.

Communications

Samsung F210 is GPRS (Class 10, 32 – 48 kbps) and EDGE (Class 10, 236.8 kbps) compatible, which is more than enough to satisfy any user needs. It is also compatible with Bluetooth 2.0 A2DP and USB 2.0 features for high speed data transfer.
I have to say that everything related to data transfer, Internet surfing is working ‘mildly’, as in ‘mediocre’. It also fully supports SMS, EMS, Email, MMS, but small screen will probably make owners use its messaging capabilities less than normal.
The triband (GSM 900 / GSM 1800 / GSM 1900) network compatible handset has a mediocre GSM signal reception. Instead, the sound is very clear, but medium in terms of loudness (only level 7 volume). I have experienced terrible sound only when the signal reception was weak, but overall it has good GSM capabilities.

MP3 player

Samsung’s swivel has been especially designed as an MP3 player, so we should expect many multimedia ‘goodies’. Unfortunately, I couldn’t understand why Samsung hadn’t put in an external speakerphone, especially since it is said to feature 3D sound.
All the vibes that you hear are coming through the in-call speaker, but even so, the sound is clear and superior to many other music dedicated mobile phones. The headset that comes with the phone aren’t the best, but the sound it delivers is surely above average. Interesting vision from Samsung, it’s like you have two different devices stuck together. When closed, you can use the MP3 player (MP3, WMA, AAC, AAC+ and eAAC+) or the FM radio, when swiveled, you can take advantage of the GSM capabilities.
No functions of either one work at the same time, so you should be aware that you won’t be able to run music in the background and access other application related to the phone. Music player and FM radio are both offering sound above average.

Conclusion
Samsung F210 doesn’t look like any other phone, because it looks like an MP3 player. The moment you swivel the handset, it really reveals its ‘WOW factor’. Anyway, youngsters are the only target that will buy the phone, as you cannot do any business related stuff with it. Looking more like a toy, Samsung F210 offers the innovation much needed when one tries to attract young people.
The best thing I have noticed with F210 is definitely related to its look. More than appealing, the phone doesn’t feel when you put it into your pocket, or carry it with you, just like an MP3 player. It has everything that a young person would want: music, big storage space, radio and camera. Combine all these with an easy to use interface and you have the optimal phone for youngsters.
Even for someone who is not interested too much in using the GSM capabilities of the phone, the small screen could be a big issue. Probably the battery is also a negative point, as it lasts only half of the time offered by these days dedicated music phones. The inability to install any 3rd party applications is also a big downside.

It is well known that the most long-expected novelties are rather expensive and sophisticated smartphones, or as for Sony Ericssonn – these are popular devices of Walkman series. A new clamshell Z555i by Sweden-Japan partnership is not the one of super-expected models and that is why it can stay unnoticed even by those whom it is addressed to. Although girls might like it.

Design

We can see a typical not expensive clamshell, something from a series of “phone for USD 250″.
In order to make its typicalness stay within the limits of allowable, the producers put on some glam to the front panel. Its surface is alike covered with small prisms that are playing in the sun beams falling on them. It looks especially effective in the sun when the phone just flashes out in the lights.
The obvious minuses are weakness of the front panel for showing all the fingerprints and other kinds of contamination, but we do know very well that such behavior is typical for the great quantity of modern phones. That’s ok; we are getting accustomed to that little by little. Except decorations on the front panel we can find a camera lens with a tiny LED (flashing upon certain circumstances), polyphonic loudspeaker and a single-line black-and-white inverse display showing service information.

In standby mode it is “hidden” under the glossy panel and reminds of itself while there is an incoming call, incoming SMS and if you press a volume control wheel. Everything is typical and accurate. Oh, almost forgot that even if it is rather hard to open the cover with one hand, still it is possible, nevertheless, you should not try to do that while walking, in other way you can badly drop the phone. The back side, to be more exact the cover of the battery, is fulfilled with a rather thin rough plastic; the same is used for the W910i model.
In fact, we do not have a “hot” change of a memory card, but a “warm” one, because we still have to take off the battery cover for that purpose. On the upper side of the phone there is an “ear” for the thong, on the left – a jack, on the right – a volume control wheel. Everything is traditional. No patterns, flowers, ornaments and other decorations of modern phones, oriented first of all to women’s attention.
The interior of Sony Ericsson Z555i is more modest, than stylish.

Keyboard and display

The disposition and the form of keys are rather typical, but frankly there is one novelty about this. For example, the key responsible for turning off/on the phone is placed right in the middle of the front panel, “clutched” in between the browser key and the key of quick menu launch.
Such arrangement does not make problems in working, because you get used to that for 1-2 hours and besides, short pressing this sacred key does not lead to turning off the phone. In spite of this you can see the profile list on the screen. On the picture we see a slightly curved shape of typesetting keys that plays a good part practically as well as aesthetically – it is pleasant to look at it, and fingers are not making accidental pressing.

The size of the keys is optimal, and as for me I liked the short response. Its clear that the digital block is not ideal, but we have what we have. It is pleasant that black keys have light inserts, but it cannot be considered a super-stylish decision, it looks satisfactory, nothing more. The navigation is not very comfortable, mostly because of the flat 4-position key at the same level with other keys. It’s just hard to feel the keys bounds with a finger and you have to be careful. The micro-lights depend on the light sensor which is working very correctly – the battery economy is never something extra.

The main display is very common – TFT matrix with a resolution of 176╤Е220 pixels. I remember that such display characteristics were the same as people-music-youth device of 2005 – Motorola E398. We should frankly tell that Sony Ericsson Z555 matrix is better of course, the lights are richer, the image angles are enough to write SMS when you are elbowing in the transport. The image quality is not bad, the grains are almost not seen, and the brightness resource is good. One thing is bad – a small physical size and that is why you can feel that the producer did not spend much for display.

Menu, Control

A typical menu presented with a usual set of 12 icons is quite common for SE devices that is why it will hardly surprise anyone or call admiration. It is comfortable to move around the icons because the device is slightly vibrating, showing every movement like that.
There are functions list, and you wont be accompanied with vibration moving around there. And yes, as always there are several themes in this device (to be more exact – four of them).
They are cute, one of them is even nice (with flowers), and that is definitely for girls.
Shortcut menu consists of 4 marks. One of them shows information about events, the second shows the applications you are using right now, the third – quick access to the functions you are choosing yourself, the fourth – web URLs.
Besides that, you can program the directions of the 4-position key for quick launch of these or those functions.
Its a pity that you cant change a web browser launch key, because surfing the net at using a small display is not so pleasant.

Useful trifles

Unlike Nokia devices, Z555i has five alarms versions, activated on certain days of the week and you can choose any MP3 melody as alarm ring tone.
I liked a simple reminder function; for writing down a new event (meeting/call) I needed not more than 20 seconds. The notebook is of the same style, just without a remind function.

The calendar has a rather good functionality, but the month table looks a bit small there. I am serious; you have to look intently to see what date will be on next Saturday. If the letters were bolder and the table was bigger there won’t be such problems.

There are common things like timer and stopwatch with nine intermediate results.
The memo book is of the same kind like the previous models have and has very comfortable horizontal keys too.
You can write down five numbers for one contact, e-mail and web address, choose a personal ringtone and a picture, and fill in the personal data like mailing address, company name, place of work, birth date.
On one hand – not so much, on the other hand – quite enough for the majority of users. As usual, the phonebook of the device itself and a SIM card are not shown as a single list, but you can choose showing the SIM card contact list by default.

Camera

Sony Ericsson Z555i is the type of the phones that you are not expecting anything unusual about them. That is why, frankly speaking, I was not even surprised when I saw a 1,3 megapixel camera. Of course it would be more pleasant to see a 2 megapixel camera, but…

There are not so many adjustments. The user can chose the size of the picture (1,3 Mp or VGA), a single frame or a series of 4 pictures, two types of the image quality, night mode, balance of white, several color effects, 4 sounds for confirmation of the shutter actuation, timer.

In other words, everything is more than usual. Not the whole display is used for the viewfinder purposes (we can see that on the pictures); the upper part is given to the series of icons, which, in fact, you don’t need, the lower part – for the signatures of the context keys. It is quite easy to use this simple camera; the picture is taken when you press the left context key or the central key. The camera is working really rapidly, the image recording to the phone or a card memory lasts for no longer than 1,5 seconds. The quality of the pictures is expectedly not high; in fact, you can see it on your own.

Player/radio and games

MP3 player (to be more exact – its interface) is also familiar due to the previous models. A rather strict, imperceptible design, several preinstalled equalizers, working in a background mode. There is also a function of sorting by an artist, track, and you can make your own playlists.

The quality of sound of our test example was not bad, we were especially surprised with a high volume (the music was heard quite well in the other end of the room – 12 m), but as for the bass function – it is not so good if you wear the earphones from the set as well as inlay earphones by Philips and Koss. I guess that the commercial examples of the player will be better.

The FM receiver sensitivity is not bad. Five of the stations make noises, the rest of the twenty were quite fine (the sound is clear with minimal noises).
There is also a mode of automatic tuning working quite correctly and finding out the radio stations even with a weak signal. The RDS system is working quite well.
As well as a player, a radio can turn into tray releasing display for other things. The most comfortable way to activate it is to choose it among the mentioned list of the applications.

Games are: logic Jewel Quest II and photo hunting FotoQuestFish. Both games are good, but I liked the one with fish most.
The sense of the game is that you are a diver and for the limited time you have to make good pictures of different kinds of fishes (no need to go to Egypt). In this game you get the points by the following way – the more fish you get into the frame of your photo camera, the more points you get. The game is quite pleasant and the time you spend going for work glides.

On-line

The data transfer speed between the phone and PC via Bluetooth is 32-38 Kb/second. Besides that, Sony Ericsson Z555i had no problems working with different BT accessories including stereophonic. There are no claims on the connection quality, everything corresponds to the expected level, and there were no connection breaches, the people you are talking to can be heard quite clearly. The battery charge was enough for three days without turning off the phone for the night (as for me – I practice that sometimes), talking for 10-15 minutes a days, long-time searching around menu, about half an hour of listening the music, rare Bluetooth sessions.

Outcome

Sony Ericsson Z555i cannot be called a stylish, glamorous and a kind of attractive device. If it is a Dusted Rose color – you can call this a device for girls, but if it is black it’s not clear who should be the user. A girl will hardly choose something like that – she is willing to choose something more elegant, a man will just pass it through. So, it means the device is something in the middle, which is quite offensive.

Among the products of Samsung the DUOS series is very successful, so the developers from time to time introduce new models of the device (with 2 SIM-cards). Because of the world financial crisis, the idea to release a low-cost model is to the point. So, meet the budget DUOS – C5212 Model.

Design

Monoblock as monoblock, nothing special. The device fits in any pocket. The thickness of the phone is 14.3 mm, but for low-cost handset it is quite acceptable.

Build quality of Samsung S5212 does not cause complaints, but the glossy plastic spoils everything. The manufacturer could make the back cover from rough material, as it is too glossy and can easily slip out from hands. In addition, the back cover’s plastic rapidly scratches and they are clearly visible on the shell. So, keep C5212 away from keys and other “evil” items.

If we again return to the evaluation of design, then one thing is clear – Samsung C5212 just can not look as solid as the first DUOS (D880), but it certainly looks better than many budget handsets.

Keyboard and display

The control is also not original. But some people like simple buttons that are easy and comfortable to control. They think that the fewer frills, the better. As a result, we have a convenient set of buttons with short stroke and white backlight.

The 4-side navigation button is raised above the surface. It is not highlighted, so it cannot be seen in the dark.

The rest of the keyboard is comfortable, of course, the plastic is cheap, but that’s another conversation.

The display, of course, is not the best the resolution is 176 x 200, 2.2 inch, TFT-Matrix. The picture quality is not bad.

Of course, the screen with a modest resolution is not suitable for viewing videos or photos, and even reading e-books is not convenient. Under direct sunlight the picture decently “burns out”, but the menu and icons are readable. As a result display can get the “quiz”, taking into account its low cost.

Menu

It has a standard menu, like most Samsung devices produced in 2007-2008, so those who are familiar with the Korean phone manufacturer in the whole will easily deal with such menu.

Familiar large icons, well distinguishable font (you can change the size), three nice themes.

Everything is convenient and logical; control will not cause problems even for beginners. For those who do not like to wander through the menu, there is a custom menu, consisting of five items, which are selected by the user from 24 functions.

Two SIM cards

As other devices from DUOS series, C5212 has a manager of SIM-cards. Here you can turn on one or another SIM-card, select the card as primary, giving them names, assign icons (seven pieces), in one word – control.

Finally you can choose a melody (vibration) for SMS for each SIM card.

As before, you can choose ringtones and signals for other events individually for each card. I’d like to mention that the main ringtone of Samsung phones has changed a little bit. It sounds more glamorous.

The device holds four calls (two on each card), switching between them takes place smoothly. During the data transmission (using phone as a modem, or just while surfing on WAP-sites) the number from which you have switched to the network becomes unavailable, while the second SIM-card can receive calls.

Calling and sending messages takes place in a standard for Duos way – dial the necessary number or text and select one of two SIM-cards. Everything is very easy.

Entertainment

Samsung C5212 can not boast about advanced multimedia, but it has a camera, MP3-player and FM-radio.

The camera takes pictures with a resolution up to 1.3 megapixels.
Camera settings are standard. The quality of images is not so bad.

MP3-player is already well known from earlier models. It has Simple and nice interface.

FM-radio works properly, the sensitivity is above average, and most of the stations with strong signals were received without interference. Automatic search works well, finding more than 60% of stations.

You can make records from air and keep audio content in the memory of the phone.

Applications

There are five independent alarms with the detailed configuration.

Lingvo Dictionary is also useful, which is convenient to use because of ease of implementation of the application.

Calendar, world time, calculator, notes, etc. are placed in the folder “organizer”, everything is standard. Recorder saves the content on the memory card or in the phone.

File Manager is convenient; it shows all the folders, etc.

The own memory of the phone is 30 MB. This is not much, so it is desirable to purchase microSD-card for 1 GB.

Conclusion

With two SIM-cards on board, in the mode of 15-20 minutes of calls a day, an hour listening to music and the use of other functions, C5212 battery lasts about three days. This is a good result for the budget DUOS, because many of the expensive smart phones work much less.

Anyway, I liked the phone, just as an affordable solution for those who urgently need a phone with two SIM-cards.

At the edges of the shell many interesting things can be seen, and it is not only a key power top, having fitted to one side of the central 3.5-mm input for headphones. If you have to charge the device or connect it to your PC, you will need to look at the left edgee, where microUSB-socket is fitted with an LED charging indicator, and in the corners was found some place for two polyphonic speakers. In addition, in the center you can find a convenient slider lock, which has no alternatives. On the right side of the shell there is everything you need for casual work with the camera, and not only. This is a big comfortable shutter release button with a soft touch for focusing. In addition, there is a comfortable swing for regulating volume, which is easy and pleasant to use.

And now it is better to look at the back surface. Under the “curtain” you can find a 5-megapixel camera with CMOS-matrix and autofocus optics. In addition, there are two LEDs, which are called flash.
The battery cover has matt surface. It has 1500 mAh Li-Pol battery, and a memory card slot, microSDHC, next to the camera unit.
The battery is the same as in the old Nokia E71. The majority of owners discharge the battery only after 2-3 days of use. A wonderful result for the device with 3.5-inch screen, though the same Apple iPhone is not worse.
Under the battery there is nothing interesting, as in 5800, but the slot for SIM-card is available without removing the battery, as the card is placed in a steel tray and stuffed somewhere inside the cell.

Communications
In general in this flagship there are many tech devices from Nokia, and the first thing I should say that in the device there is Bluetooth 2.0 with support for all necessary and unnecessary profiles. We’ll also note the possibility of comfortable listening to music via wireless Nokia headsets.
In Nokia N97 there is also a Wi-Fi module, the index specified by IEEE 802.11b / g, which characterizes the solid performance with different types of WLAN-access points at up to 2.3 Mbps, as well as the opportunity of working in wireless networks, UPnP.

Music
Taking into account the modest capabilities of watching movies that still need somehow to be converted into the appropriate format with the MP4 extension, the main way to fill the space in the memory of Nokia N97 is music. Here you can add many MP3, AAC, WMA music. It is commendable that the library can seek out the appropriate albums / artists and so on without any slowdown, and the album covers can be changed.
And while enjoying the music these covers occupy half of the screen, leaving only a little space under the battery icon and the network receiving, and you can use the half of the screen for easy and convenient navigation.

With regard to the sound, everything is alright, and such a conclusion can be drawn not only when compared with all sorts of musical devices from different manufacturers, but after comparison with MP3-players. The device plays music in various genres. It copes especially well with electronic and heavy rock; there is Metal and other similar directions, suggesting many nuances in the midrange.
Radio in Nokia N97 can only be compared with brand new 5530. The same 20 memory to store stations in the FM-range 87.5-108 MHz, smooth animation of inscriptions in the background, and the quality of play will not disappoint.

Camera
In Nokia N97, which we will not call a computer, there is an ordinary 5-megapixel camera with two LEDs instead of a normal flash and auto focus optics with a good opportunity to take close-up with 10 cm.
Working with the camera is easy and convenient; because all control rests on the right thumb or on the left index finger if you want to create a large panel of settings and adjustments. There are settings where you can select the resolution of the image. In addition, you can record good videos in 640 x 480, when strained to 30 fps. Video is not so interesting for us, because quality is identical to records from 5800, despite a decent difference in price.

Conclusion
The device is strictly for connoisseurs of all the details of the prorated interface S60 from Nokia, but at the same time seeking the world’s only bunch of QWERTY-keyboard and 32 GB of internal memory. In terms of multimedia and iron power the device lags behind the market for exactly one year, but this Nokia flagship has not lost a huge reservoir of loyal fans of brand, among which may be you, confirming it by buying N97. Others are advised not to rush buying Nokia N97 because it will obtain more attractive design only in December.

Nokia N97 Unlocked Phone, Touchscreen, 3G, 5 MP Camera, A-GPS, 32 GB, MicroSD Slot, and Integrated Ovi Applications–U.S. Version with Warranty (Black)

In 2006 Motorola began releasing a new line of MOTORIZR image sliders. The first was the model Z3, which is the first GSM-slider of the company. Great attention was paid to materials, as well as on internal functional filling which couldn’t make this mobile phone a bestseller. In early 2007, an updated model Z6 was launched. Now the phone is positioned as a musical image slider. And again – beautiful, functional, but unpopular. Till the end of 2007 an updated Z8 model released. In addition to black-and-green color it has Symbian UIQ platform and many other advantages.

Finally, there comes RIZR Z10 – an updated model of Z8 which has a more rigorous design. So let’s have a look at this novelty.

Design

With all of its non-standard (in a good sense of the word) design, Z8 had a very cool reception. Young people, to whom the acidic insert might come to taste, started criticizing the price of the device.

Speaking about its design, we can not accept the harsh brutality of the Staff. This feature is peculiar to many phones from Motorola. On the contrary, in an era when everything is “Slim, soft and low”, to have a heavy device in the hand during conversation is not very convenient.

Unfortunately, here come some disappointments. First of all the metallic color. The phone is entirely made of plastic.

The original arrangement of this new Z8 slider has not been modified. Moreover, the numbers did not differ from each other with designing elements, with the exception of the back side, which is caused by a more serious camera in RIZR Z10.

As in the previous model, the opening of the upper half is lifted under a small angle. This is definitely an interesting solution.

With regard to the process of opening / closing, despite the complex mechanism, to perform this operation you can either injure your finger in a special rubber stress below the display, or in the upper halves of the rib.

As for the remaining designing solutions they are acceptable, such as bolts on the rear lid. The size of the phone and the weight fit into the overall image due to the fact that the phone is large in order to work with it comfortably. In general, even in the pockets of jeans or trousers Z10 isn’t comfortable to carry. However, if once again we draw a parallel with the predecessor, the Z8 is 1.5 mm thinner and 5 grams lighter.

Display

Z10 is only a continuation of Z8 (in fact – an Update). Like Z8, it has a 2.2-inch TFT-display with QVGA-resolution (320 x 240 pixels) and supporting 16 million colors.

As in previous models, the screen does not have impressive specifications, but generally looks modern. Getting ahead, I will say that Z10, with its entire functions is a simple device poorly suited for multimedia.

Keyboard

Describing this phone’s keypad, we traditionally divide it into three units – nautical, digital, and additional keys. In the case of Z10 the navigation block is executed in classical style for this line. There is a 4-position button in the middle, two soft keys, two additional buttons (Menu / list of tasks and “back”), as well as standard “phone”.

The buttons are made of rubber, so pressing them is hard enough. That is, any action requires serious effort.

The second stage of our conversation will be about additional buttons. At the left end of the monoblock there are three buttons.

Two are responsible for the volume, and the third – for quick access to multimedia gallery. This is more than a controversial decision. You can easily get to the gallery through the menu and, yes, and you need it less frequently. Below there is a slot for memory cards. Suitable card format is microSD, up to 32 GB.

Right end is equipped with one button, which is responsible for the rapid launch of built-in camera. Here is the miniUSB connector, serves to connect the peripherals and the charging / docking to a PC.

All connectors are covered with plastic plugs, so the aerodynamics of the shell did not violate anything.

The digital keyboard brings controversial feelings. In principle, it has not changed since Z8.

All the keys are highlighted with pale green light, which is not very suitable for this device. Milky and white would be fine.

Features

As we have already noticed, the phone is built on Symbian 9.2 (Motorola Symbian UIQ 3.2). In fact it is a capricious platform which has little in common with the classic S60 from Nokia, and with UIQ from Sony Ericsson. As a result, all the charm of the smartphone as a multimedia device is reduced to 0.

First, it requires a very long download time. In order to switch the language from English into Russian (search for the notebook, or enter the address in the browser), you must enter the corresponding menu, select language, press “save”, then “use”, and only then get the desired result.

Almost every operation is perceived as a personal affront to the phone and requires a minimum double confirmation. For example, setting the alarm clock: you choose the time, say 9:00, press “save” and come out of the directory. In the morning, you get at 11:00, remembering that you have not clicked “use”.
However, the heavy menu is the only serious shortcoming of the phone. It is not just difficult to control; it is not suitable for everyday use.

From the additional features we can mention a list of supported formats, such as: AAC, AAC +, WAV, AMR NB, MP4, MP3, MIDI, WMA, MPEG4 (30 fps), H.263, H.264. Thus, the device is more than suitable for listening to music, and even for viewing videos. The player is quite suitable.

Regarding the possibility of connecting to other devices, you can use USB-cable or Bluetooth 2.0 (A2DP, AVRCP, DUN-GW, FTP, GAP, GAVDP, Headset-AG, HFP 1.5 AG, OPP-Client, OPP).

Camera

The camera is good. Basically the camera is the main difference of Z8 from the Z10. Thus, the latest has a 3.2-MP CMOS-matrix with autofocus and flash, and the opportunity to make up to three images per second.

The camera works in a horizontal mode, like Sony Ericsson. For the convenience of shooting the camera has a pre regime: “normal”, “indoor”, “street”, “Sport”, etc. There is not a very powerful LED flash (there is a regime of “red eye”). It has the following functions: color effects, white balance, sharpness, you can select the image quality and size. As you can see, it has a solid set of features.

Z10 has a 3,2 MP camera. The photos in good lighting are bright, juicy, but not ideal.
You can save the images in the internal memory (45 MB) and a memory card, moreover, the phone has a built in Photo Editor, so you can process the received pictures.

The modern phone should have a powerful battery. Battery 1130 mA • h (Li-Ion) is able to provide vital energy for needs of the phone up to 3 days.

Outcome

In a competitive market Z10 is largely inferior to the alternative proposals to price / capabilities and status of the device. If you want to stand out, then it is for you. The phone did not become popular and is quite rare. However, once again reiterate that this does not make Z10 a bad phone, it just has its own specifics.

Get Motorola RIZR Z3 Rose Phone (T-Mobile) from Amazon