Motorola’s Dext mobile phone still compares favourably with the others in the range. Released last year and the first Motorola to incorporate Android technology, it still stands out as an excellent touch-screen phone. One of only a few touch-screen phones to include a physical keyboard, when compared with the T-Mobile G1 it comes off better.
Motorola have really come through for the social networkers with the Motoblur system that the Dext pioneered. This allows for users to simply integrate all of their favourite network sites like Facebook, Twitter and MySpace into the phone’s system and receive instant updates and messages.
Security is a great part of the Dext and lost phones can be tracked and remotely wiped if they are stolen or irretrievably lost. Having a physical QWERTY keyboard does make the phone a little heavy and its poor back lighting means using it in dim light can be difficult.
The Motorola Dext comes complete with a 5-megapixel camera, a good quality all round video/audio player and 3.5 mm jack. It has a decent level of connectivity and supports USB, GPS, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi.
Like many smart touch-screen phones that run updateable apps, the battery life is a little limited and needs to be watched when away from a socket. The Motorola claim is that it has a 6 hour talk life and up to 135 hours when left on standby.
For those who prefer a physical keyboard, the Dext is probably still the best Motorola on the market and its vast array of downloadable apps and appealing contract mobile phone offers make it a very viable choice.
The Sony Ericsson X10 is the first phone to be released by the company which runs Android, Google’s powerful mobile phone operating system. As a result, the X10 is signalling its intent to compete with the best and latest mobile phones in the market today.
The Sony Ericsson X10’s most striking feature is its large, 4-inch touch screen which is brilliantly responsive while still holding great clarity in all lighting conditions. Equally impressive is the handset’s 8.1-megapixel camera, which also boasts a digital zoom, focus and white balance.
The Sony Ericsson X10 also comes with two handy applications called Mediascape and Timescape, where different pieces of information are accumulated and presented to the user in one bundle. In Mediascape, a user’s videos, photos and audio are all presented in one neat place, while Timescape collects updates from various social networking sites and presents them in one application.
Where the Sony Ericsson X10 does fall down, though, is in its functionality as an actual phone. The call quality on the X10 leaves much to be desired, while the awkward touch screen keyboard and cumbersome predictive text make writing messages a painful process. The battery life and charging times are also disappointing.
Many users are also upset with Sony Ericsson’s interpretation of Android. The company tried deliberately to alter their version of Android and make it look unique; however the end result is not on par with other Android versions on similar new mobile phones.
The HTC Magic has been around for a little while now; although not the most up to date as technology and styles change so fast these days, it is still an elegant and easy to use touch-screen phone. Contract and sim free mobile phone deals are likely to mean considerable discounts over when it arrived on the scene last year.
The Magic is a great phone to use and with lots of home page and set up variations, personalising it will give hours of entertainment. Its navigation ball means you can quickly and surely find your way around the screen and the one touch menu tab allows you to straightforwardly monitor all your apps.
It comes with a versatile audio player and 3.2mp camera but it does not have a flash or the much valued 3.5 mm headphone point. It has good connectivity and its 512MB internal memory can be extended with a microSD card. When comparing it with other mobile phones the nearest is probably the T-Mobile G1 – their features pretty much match up but the Magic is lighter and has a longer battery life and more memory space.
If you put aside its shortcomings and realise this is not an iPhone then the HTC Magic is a decent looking mobile to have. Many of the problems that it has have been resolved in the later models but for price and usability it will not let you down for either style or phone quality.
Pitched to buyers as a phone built on a robot’s brain, designed to do your bidding and nothing more, the Google Nexus One by HTC is an exciting addition to Google’s mobile phone offerings. Through careful marketing, Google has created a positive image for a phone that they promise to be excellent. At £400, buyers have high expectations and even higher hopes, and for good reason. Numerous mobile phone reviews are available but does the Google Nexus One live up to the hype, or is it just incremental update?
Feature wise, the Nexus One boasts an impressive 3.7 inch display, measures just 11.5 mm thick, and runs an ultra-powerful Snapdragon Chipset. Partnered with HTC, the Nexus One’s display not only is large, but manages to keep looking bright and sharp for hours of constant use. The responsiveness of the touch screen leaves little to complain about, offering pinpoint accuracy when necessary, and avoiding unnecessary sensitivity when scrolling through menus. Running Android 2.1, there’s already a wealth of applications and software available, continuing to deliver what users have come to expect from this product line.
All in all, while the price may be high, and the battery life leaves something to be desired, the Nexus One manages to outperform on all other fronts. This is a fantastic mobile phone with the power to do just about whatever it’s asked to, much like how it was marketed. The Nexus One is simply a very capable mobile, and should be near the top of any mobile enthusiast’s wish list for the latest mobile phones.
