Sony Ericsson W380 Review by 3G.co.uk

Sony Ericsson W380 Review by 3G.co.uk

Sony Ericsson has been shipping out Walkman phones left, right and centre in recent months, but it has a been a couple of years since we've seen a clamshell version of the popular music phone range. Available in one of four colours, including the baffling black orange, the W380 is actually a little heavier than it looks, with a degree of thumb pressure needed to flip the phone open. Its shell also feels a little plastic.

Open the phone up to reveal the keypad and a somewhat small screen. All the usual Sony Ericsson controls are found here, including the navigation wheel, back button and cancel button. Under the navigation wheel are three much narrower keys. From left to right they are the internet key, the on/off button and the My shortcuts menu. You need a fairly steady hand to hit these, but the rest of the keys are both large and well spaced out.

Sony Ericsson W380 OLED external screen

While the Sony Ericsson W380 may not be the highest specced of the Walkman range, it does boast some appealing features. Even though it has a slightly plastic shell, we should also mention that on the front of the handset is an OLED screen that switches on and off depending if the handset is in use or not. Underneath the display are three braille-like symbols that are the media player's controls when the clamshell is closed. You can both skip and pause tracks by simply pressing the relevant buttons, which will give a short vibration to acknowledge a response. The OLED screen also displays the time as well as what radio frequency you're listening to.

Full Review With More Photos and Specification Here

Samsung J700 Review by 3G.co.uk

Samsung J700 Review by 3G.co.uk

Once upon a time you used to be able to tell the difference between an entry-level handset and a higher specced gizmo without a second glance. Nowadays it's not so easy. The Samsung J700 is the latest handset to cause confusion to the mobile phone spotter. As a sleek slider, the J700 bares a close resemblance to last year's 3G Phone of the Year, the ever-popular Samsung G600. Granted, the five-megapixel camera might be absent, but the Samsung J700 certainly looks like a cracking device, but what's behind the smart exterior?

Samsung J700 - Removing the back

The Samsung J700 looks the part with its two-inch screen, turn-wheel and smooth contours. Unfortunately, our praise was curtailed when faced with removing the back of the handset to insert the SIM card. Trying to slide it off proved to be a frustrating experience - it was nearly 10 minutes before we could even begin testing the phone's capabilities. After checking the manual to see if we were doing something wrong, we discovered it was simply shoddy craftsmanship. Eventually after much prying and a few chipped fingernails, we managed to dislodge the back, allowing us to slide the SIM card under the battery. It's a major irritant when a handset fails such a basic precursor as removing the battery cover.

Determined not to let this episode cloud our judgement for the rest of the review, we took some deep breaths before persevering. Thankfully, the rest of the phone's craftsmanship is of a high quality. The J700's sliding mechanism is smooth and, unlike some other entry-level sliders, the top half of the handset doesn't feel as though it would break off if it received a knock or two. Underneath the front fascia, found under the two-inch screen are a collection of keys and controls, including the turn- wheel.

Full Review With Specification and Many more Pictures Here

Sharp 880SH Review by 3G.co.uk

Sharp 880SH Review by 3G.co.ukIt has been a while since Japanese manufacturer Sharp produced a mobile phone, so when the Sharp 880SH arrived on our desk we were a little unsure what to expect. Despite being readily available on Vodafone in other European countries, Vodafone UK has so far refused to take the handset. Surveying the spec sheet it looks to be a well-rounded phone and will therefore surely only be a matter of time before the UK operator does snap it up.

A slider phone with a jet-black glossy body with metallic trimming, at first glance, you'd be forgiven for thinking that you were looking at a handset from one of the more renowned manufacturers such as Nokia or Samsung.

The first test with all slider phones is to see how secure it feels. While the sliding mechanism on the 880SH provides a satisfying clunk as you pop it back and forth, we're sad to say that the top half of the handset feels a little flimsy. We bet it wouldn't take too much for the phone to break apart.

Magnet to fingerprints

Now we know this is a common grievance at 3G, but handsets that are a magnet to grubby fingerprints can prove to be a real burden. Unfortunately the Sharp 880SH is one of the worst offenders. Both the screen and bodywork are smudge central and when we tried to wipe it clean we simply made the problem worse.

Full Review With Specification Here

Sony Ericsson W890i Review by 3G.co.uk

Sony Ericsson W890i Review by 3G.co.uk

Having been announced back in November last year, it has been a long time coming, but the Sony Ericsson W890i has finally landed. 3G has eagerly awaited the latest addition to the popular Walkman range, but will the W890i prove to be a cut above the rest, or just another music phone?

With its petite frame and supreme music capabilities, we were big fans of the uber-slim Sony Ericsson W880i and, thankfully the W890i flaunts some exciting new flourishes without sacrificing the original's crowd-pleasing style.

Now with HSDPA, Google Maps, a 3.2-megapixel camera and a bundled 2GB memory card, the W890i packs more features than its predecessor, while keeping its svelte appearance. Available in espresso black, mocha brown or sparkling silver, the metallic casing gives the handset a robust feel, despite only weighing in at 78g.

There's also a really useful battery cover lock, operated by two switches on either side of the handset, which both make it easy to remove the battery cover and adds to the secure and reliable feel of the phone. Flick the switches and the back cover gently pops out. It's a beautifully simple idea that means you won't be chipping your fingernails attempting to dislodge the rear casing, as is the case with so many handsets.

Full Review with More Photos Here

Blackberry Pearl 8110 Review by 3G.co.uk

Blackberry Pearl 8110 Review by 3G.co.uk
The launch of Research In Motion’s (RIM) BlackBerry Pearl range represented a real change in direction for the manufacturer, bringing a neat candybar design along with a clever text entry system called SureType. The third entry into the Pearl stable, the Vodafone-exclusive 8110, also comes with built-in GPS.

BlackBerry Pearl 8110 QWERTY keyboard

When we first came across SureType, we were unsure what to think; however, we’re now on our third such device and have mastered the art, tapping out emails and texts as quick as a flash. The great benefit of this key-sharing system is that the Pearl 8110 is small, which makes it a convenient smartphone to carry around.

BlackBerry Pearl 8110 small screen

The down side is that the 8110’s screen is fairly cramped. If you browse the web regularly then this won’t be the device for you; the small screen just isn’t up to that kind of task. In fact, with no 3G and just tri-band GSM and GPRS, web browsing isn’t as fast as we’d hoped. There’s no Wi-Fi either, so you can’t hop onto a local network when you want ultra-fast browsing.

BlackBerry Pearl 8110 - getting from A to B

Vodafone has teamed up with sat nav provider Telmap to provide one year’s free service with the Pearl 8110. Telmap is an ‘off-board’ system, so the phone requests information from it over the air as needed. This has its advantages as data is always up to date, but try to plan a trip from a location where you don’t have a phone signal and you will find yourself out in the cold.

Full Review Here

Palm Centro Review by 3G.co.uk

Palm Centro Review by 3G.co.uk

Palm seemed to lose its way a couple of years back, producing new models with Windows Mobile as the operating system. These were the Palm Treo 750v and the more recent Palm Treo 500v, which, although excellent smartphones in their own ways, weren’t the real deal for demanding Palm fans.

Now the Palm Centro, the smallest smartphone from Palm to date, run on the Palm operating system. The last phone with a Palm OS was the Treo 680, which was released in October 2006. Although under-powered (no 3G, no Wi-Fi and just a VGA camera), it remains an attractive machine, thanks to an excellent internet browser, simple email program and dense but effective QWERTY keypad making text and email composition a breeze. However, with the increasing number of compact smartphones on offer, it feels slightly on the large side.

Palm Centro size

The Palm Centro’s size is ideal – pocketable, slimmer and sleeker than the Treo 680. The screen is noticeably smaller but, at two inches, it’s just big enough for scrolling a document or a webpage. The screen is also brighter than before.

The QWERTY keypad is compact, with the keys closer together than previous handsets. Fears that it would be hard to use were soon allayed, though. There was a slight adjustment period, but it didn’t last long and soon we were typing with ease.

Full Review With Many More Photos Here

Alcatel OT-V770 Review by 3G.co.uk

Alcatel OT-V770 Review by 3G.co.uk

There will always will be a market for entry-level handsets. We don’t all want the latest five-megapixel, HSDPA-enabled, sat nav-boasting super phone. Firstly, you might not be willing to pay through the nose for one or sign up to a long-term contract. Secondly, you may have no desire to use your handset for anything more than taking the odd snap, sending text messages and of course making phone calls.

French-Chinese manufacturer Alcatel has long been at the forefront of producing such handsets. The Alcatel OT-V770 is the newest member of its ‘Flavor’ family, but will it prove to be the big daddy of the clan?

Alcatel OT-V770 mirrored keypad

The OT-V770 is an impressively thin candybar at just 10mm. This is a move away from Alcatel’s more recent delve into the clamshell market (a la the Mandarina Duck) and we’ve got to admit the handset is quite striking. This is in large part due to the mirrored flat keypad that dominates the front fascia. As it catches the light, the keypad gives off a sparkle, with a touch of prestige not often associated with entry-level handsets. It’s available in a glossy white or soft-touch black, although we much prefer the black version, but perhaps that’s just down to our own gothic taste.

The keypad is described as being touch-sensitive, which often sets off alarm bells here at Choice Towers. There’s nothing more infuriating than a handset that launches into a function with the slightest accidental brush of a finger.

Thankfully this is not the case with the OT-V770. The keys require a degree of pressure for a command to be acknowledged. Although there is no definition between the keys − except for the navigation wheel found under the screen − they are large and spaced out enough so there shouldn’t be any problems keying in the correct digits, even for the larger thumbed among us. The navigation wheel, as well as guiding you through the various menu options, also accesses various shortcuts, which can be altered to your preference.

The OT-V770’s screen is not the biggest at 1.9 inches, but this is compensated with a bright display that can showcase up to 256,000 colours. When in the menu interface, the various icons are well spaced out, transforming from a cloudy grey to a colourful display when you move the cursor on to it.

Full Review With Many More Photos Here

Motorola U9 Review by 3G.co.uk

Motorola U9 Review by 3G.co.uk

It’s very easy to underestimate the Motorola U9. This is in no small part because of Motorola’s recent tendency to re-hash old designs with a few new but minor flourishes.

So, when we first saw the U9, we blithely assumed that Motorola had simply dusted off the old Motorola PEBL phone, given it a glossy new finish and some bold colour options, removed the stroke-to-open mechanism and re-packaged it as a music player. However, there’s something far more clever than a stroke-to-open mechanism going on under the Motorola U9’s bonnet. Beneath the curvy fascia, Motorola has ingeniously fitted an OLED (organic light emitting diode) external display.

This OLED display may be a gimmick, but what a gimmick it is. For the uninitiated, OLEDs create light with the application of electricity and experts claim they can provide brighter, crisper displays while using less power than the traditional LED and LCD screens found on many of today’s mobiles and electronic gadgets.

Technology websites like Howstuffworks.com suggest that OLED technology is so clever it could soon enable wondrous technological feats, like, for example, an 80-inch HD TV with a screen that’s so thin and flexible, it could be rolled up when you’re not using it.
Or, in the case of the Motorola U9, the OLED enables you to choose from one of 20 floating screensavers that twinkle mischievously from beneath the U9’s glossy shell.

Motorola U9 music player

Even more impressive is the OLED’s ability to transform into a touch-sensitive music control pad. When the U9 is in music player mode and you flip the clamshell shut, the OLED on the outer display automatically presents you with all the track details and the option to forward, pause or rewind the track using touch-sensitive controls. This is technical wizardry at its finest and elevates the U9 from the ranks of regular clamshells into pioneering territory.

Although it’s no Nseries, Walkman or iPhone, the Motorola U9 has a decent music player and is very easy to use. Music pauses when a call comes in and there’s a dedicated music button on the keypad to the left of the central nav-pad.

Full Review with More Photos and Specification Here

Onyx Liscio Review by 3G.co.uk

Onyx Liscio Review by 3G.co.uk

When we first heard that a new UK mobile manufacturer was set to enter the fray, we were curious. After all, the mobile world is a tough place in which to make an impression unless you have a huge marketing budget or an iPhone-like launch up your sleeve.

Mild curiosity quickly became intrigue when we were sent the first press shots for the new Onyx Liscio mobile together with a brief overview. Sold as a SIM-free handset and available direct from Onyx for £129.99, the evidence suggested that here was a stylishly compact handset with a very appealing price tag and no contract tie-ins. Could this be the surprise budget hit of the winter?

Unfortunately, now that we’ve been able to get to grips with the Liscio first hand, we’re sorry to say that we’re rather more sceptical about its chances.

As a manufacturer with no pedigree, it’s always going to be a struggle when you’re pitted against brands with huge global kudos. As a result, the phone needs to make a huge first impression, which is not something that the Liscio comes close to achieving, even considering its value for money.

Look and feel

For a start, the phone is so light it feels insubstantial. Put it this way, if Toys ‘R’ Us created a fake mobile designed to distract toddlers from their parents’ new Nokia or Samsung, we’d imagine it would feel a lot like the Liscio.

This would be fine if the Liscio was candy floss pink and targeted Westlife-loving teens. But the Liscio’s chrome and graphite effect finish would suggest a target market that’s a little bit older and a little bit savvier. And these days there are loads of cheap mobiles out there from the top five manufacturers that also offer a low-end feature set, but offer a much better finish than the Liscio.

The other major issue with the phone is its display size. While the Liscio is by no means slim, its footprint is very small indeed. It’s about the size of a thick sponge finger and, as a result, the screen is tiny. But, as well as being small, the screen is also low-res, meaning that the menu options are hard to see, especially in broad daylight, when there’s a reflection against the shiny plastic display.

Full Review with More Photos Here

O2 Xda Orbit II Review by 3G.co.uk

O2 Xda Orbit II Review by 3G.co.uk

We’ve said it before but GPS looks set to be the must-have accessory for smartphones in 2008. The O2 Xda Orbit II is the latest device to house sat nav, with ALK’s CoPilot Live 7 built-in.

O2 Xda Orbit II touch-screen

Effectively O2’s own-branded HTC Touch Cruise, the Orbit II is relatively small, particularly when you take into account the vast amount of features the Orbit houses. There’s no QWERTY keyboard, so you’ll have to get to grips with the large 2.8-inch touch-screen. But, thankfully, the handset comes with a stylus that neatly packs away in the bottom right-hand corner. We say thankfully as some of the menu icons are rather small and trying to press these with our fingers and thumbs proved tricky. So using the stylus will be your best bet.

Under the screen is a navigation wheel that rotates 360 degrees as you move through the various menu icons available. Find your chosen option and simply press the button in the middle of the wheel.

The Orbit II runs the Windows Mobile 6 operating system and offers Word Mobile, PowerPoint Mobile and Excel Mobile, so you can read and send various documents while out of the office. Once again, the lack of QWERTY keyboard means you won’t be doing anything more than making the odd change to copy or writing a two or three-line email.

Full Review with Many More Photos Here

LG KF600 Review by 3G.co.uk

LG KF600 Review by 3G.co.uk

With an avalanche of new touch-sensitive phones set to descend upon us in 2008, LG is fast becoming the most prolific of all touch-sensitive phone manufacturers. This is a bold move, because, although many of the touch-screen phones are usually lovely to look at, they can also be an absolute pig to use.

With the launch of the KF600, LG has managed to push both the envelope and hedge its bets at the same time. Like the HTC Touch Dual, for example, the LG KF600 offers the obvious multimedia and visual benefits of a full-blown touch-screen, while still providing the traditionalists (3G included) with a mechanised slide-out keypad for inputting phone numbers and texts.

However, even accounting for the mechanised keypad, this is still very much a touch-sensitive phone at heart. For example, there are no mechanised soft keys, so if you want to do anything other than make a phone call, you’ll have to use the touch-screen interface, so LG is under real pressure to ensure the user experience is a good one.

The InteractPad

The KF600’s touch-screen is split into two parts and only the bottom half is touch sensitive. This part of the display is called the InteractPad and actually controls the top half of the display. This is unusual as most touch-screen phones require the user to touch the part of the screen they wish to use, open or manipulate, be it a menu option, a photograph or a web page.

However, the touch-sensitive part of the KF600 works in exactly the same way as a navi-pad and soft keys on a regular mobile would, which does make you wonder why they bothered.

Surely, one of the main benefits of removing soft keys is it means you have a much larger display space so that websites, videos, photos and other multimedia render much larger. However, with the InteractPad dominating a good third of the available space, the display that’s left is no larger than on an average phone.

Full Review with more photos and final verdict here

Samsung Armani Review by 3G.co.uk

Samsung Armani Review by 3G.co.uk

There's no escaping that we live in a fashion conscious world. Be it the tightness of your jeans, hairstyle or even your postcode, our fashion credentials are scrutinised daily. With the mobile phone industry having cottoned on to this fact, we're seeing an influx of designer mobile phones. Samsung has teamed up with Italian fashion giants Giorgio Armani to produce what they say will be the first of many collaborations together.

Samsung Armani fashion credentials

The handset itself is the size of a credit card and it's fair to say that you'll need your limit to afford this phone (although it is available free on contract) - yet as with all things Armani this is partly the point, a means of announcing that you are part of the well-to-do club. At a mere 85 grams, the Samsung Armani fits snugly in the palm of your hand and with its glossy black fascia, 2.6-inch TFT screen and copper back, Samsung has achieved its main aim, a truly gorgeous handset. Think a scaled down more attractive LG Viewty - no ugly duckling itself.

The centrepiece of the Samsung Armani is its touchscreen that takes up the near entirety of the phones front. The only buttons are the call and call end buttons found just below the screen, the volume key on the left hand side and the quick camera key and hold button (hold this to lock and unlock the phone) found on the right of the handset. Thankfully Samsung has included haptic response, first seen on the LG Viewty. This means that when you press a key on the screen you will feel a slight vibration under your fingertip to acknowledge your command.

Samsung Armani touchscreen

The release of the Apple iPhone changed the way in which we judge touchscreen interfaces for good. To the detriment of the other manufacturers it is effectively what all touchscreen devices are now compared to. The Samsung Armani is one of those that suffer. Response time is fairly swift and the sliding of your thumb at the bottom of the screen to shift between the clock and calendar works well enough. Pre-iPhone we would no doubt be singing its praises, but it just doesn't measure up to Apple's offering.

At the top of the screen are three shortcut keys. To make silent, press and hold down the speaker key, while the same process can be used to exit silent mode. In the top right hand corner is the icon that will open up the numeric keypad, while next to that is the icon that will open up the full menu interface. The numeric keypad itself, while the number buttons are spaced out well enough, some care is still needed to tap in the right digits, due to the lack of actual keys. When making a call, the handset cleverly locks itself to avoid any accidental button brushes. End the call and the phone reverts to being unlocked.

Full Review With Many More Photos Here

Nokia 8800 Arte Review by 3G.co.uk

Nokia 8800 Arte Review by 3G.co.uk

With a SIM-free price tag of almost £700, the Nokia 8800 Arte really needs to pull out all the stops, and quite rightly, everything in the handset’s package screams class, from the included accessories to the packaging.

Unfortunately, you do get a lot of box for your phone, so Nokia loses environmental points for its freight-induced carbon footprint. However, considering the phone’s price tag, you may hang on to the box so that it can be stored, cosseted and safe, while not in use.

In fact, the Nokia 8800 Arte also comes with a neat leather protective pouch which fits like a glove. It’s such a tight fit that the pouch includes a black ribbon to help you extract your phone from its home when you need it. Another freebie with the 8800 Arte is the Nokia BH-803 Bluetooth headset, which is a work of art in itself and complements the phone beautifully.
Let's face it, if you spend £670 on a phone, you'll want to show it off. Thankfully, the 8800 Arte also comes with a shiny, yet solid, black charger cradle which both charges the phone and presents it like the expensive business toy that it is. The base also flashes subtly to indicate the phone's charging status, which is quite a nice touch.

Nokia 8800 Arte design verdict

Like the charger cradle, the 8800 Arte is satisfyingly solid and heavy and is constructed from the finest smoked glass and composite metals. With the slider shut, the 8800 is minimalist chic – an expensive-looking blend of black metal and glass with a simple chrome metal trim which acts as a protective buffer for the slider as it opens and shuts with a loud, satisfying clack.
As for the buttons, you get a simple joypad and two soft keys (which light up when the phone is activated), which is perfectly adequate. The rear of the phone is just as sparse, but with a matt finish and the solitary camera lens. It’s simply gorgeous.

Full Review with more photos and specification here

HTC Touch Cruise Review by 3G.co.uk

HTC Touch Cruise Review by 3G.co.uk

The HTC Touch Cruise is a bit of an enigma. It’s feature heavy, and with a distinctive design, but here at Mobile Choice we just don’t think it has the ‘wow’ factor to really sit at the top of our list of ‘most desirable’ Windows Mobile smartphones.

Touch Cruise Touch-screen

The Touch Cruise’s 240x320-pixel screen is sharp, bright and clear, and is flush to its surroundings. This is unusual for Windows Mobile devices, which more usually have recessed screens.

Visually, the flush screen is stunning, but, as we find so often with this design, it doesn’t respond as well as we would like when tapping the screen. It isn’t a huge issue, but you do need to take extra care, especially if you use a fingertip rather than the more accurate stylus. You may also find that the screen is prone to scratching. A screen protector may be in order, which rather mars the good looks of the flush design.

Navigating the Touch Cruise

We are, however, big fans of the fabulous navigation button. As
well as its usual up, down, left and right options, you can rotate the button under a finger. This scrolls you through the contents of the screen, highlighting options, and when you get to what you want, you press the central button to select.

Built-in GPS smartphone

It seems that built-in GPS is becoming a pretty common feature in smartphones. You can use the Touch Dual in wide-screen format for navigation, which helps it resemble stand-alone navigation systems.

There is Wi-Fi and HSDPA on-board the device, so your data communications should be fast and furious. And a front-facing camera is in a prime position for video calling.

Meanwhile, the main camera shoots stills at halfway decent three megapixels. HTC has come up with a user interface that makes it really easy to get around the various settings. You can even flick straight into the camera album at the tap of an on-screen button.

Full review with many more photos here

BlackBerry Curve 8320 Review by 3G.co.uk

BlackBerry Curve 8320 Review by 3G.co.uk

Upon first glance, you may think you’ve seen the BlackBerry Curve 8320 somewhere before, and you’d be right. It’s remarkably similar looking to the Curve 8300 – the first of the trim and tidy Curve range. The 8320, however, is small enough to fit into a pocket yet big enough to incorporate a usable QWERTY keyboard, which results in an ideal mobile email device.

Small and clever

Smartphones in the BlackBerry Curve series are the smallest and lightest smartphones with a full QWERTY keyboard, and its 111g makes it something of a featherweight in the pocket. It is hard to believe that a full 320x240-pixel screen and a keyboard are crammed into its tiny frame.

The keyboard is particularly noteworthy. Given the small individual key size we were surprised at just how easy it is to use. We found ourselves able to type at a decent speed, which is precisely what you want from a mobile email device.

BlackBerry Curve 8320 multimedia

Research in Motion, manufacturer of the BlackBerry, knows that it faces stiff competition from multimedia-rich smartphones that can play music, stream video and take superb photos. So the company is trying to make its business-focused smartphones attractive to multimedia-conscious consumers. The Curve 8320 gets part way there, housing a decent two-megapixel camera, and allowing you to play videos through the media application. This same application lets you play tunes, but the controls aren’t as sophisticated as they are on some smartphones. You can’t create playlists, for example, though you can on your PC through the Roxio media manager software that comes with the device. We do have to credit the inclusion of a 3.5mm headset jack, but wish it were on the top edge of the casing rather than the left side just for the sake of pocket-ergonomics.

Full Review with many more pictures and full specification here

Samsung Solid Review by 3G.co.uk

Samsung Solid Review by 3G.co.uk

Just like buses, you wait ages for a burly, robust handset and then two come along at once. The Samsung M110, better known as the Samsung Solid, was originally billed as the ‘World's Toughest Phone.' We think someone might have forgotten to tell Samsung about Sonim's JCB Toughphone, a phone we were openly encouraged to try our best to destroy. Samsung, it seems, was no longer quite as confident, asking if we could refrain from driving over it, throwing it out of a window or drowning it in water. Bah humbug! In Samsung's defence, it has since changed their stance arguing that the Solid is built to withstand the odd bump and fall, rather than be indestructible a la the JCB Toughphone.

Samsung Solid rubber casing

The Samsung Solid certainly feels sturdy enough. It's actually lighter than the JCB Toughphone, and feels impressively so for a solid candybar. The Solid is actually encased in a thick rubber body that feels more part of the handset than the Toughphone whose rubber body feels as though it was more of an afterthought. But could this body armour withstand an ‘accidental' fall from our desk? Yes it could, without so much as a scratch on it. Perhaps due to the rubber cushioning, the phone made little noise when it hit our wooden floor. However, unlike the JCB Toughphone, we cannot definitively say that it will survive a fall from a second floor window, but we can confirm that it can withstand the odd knock or fall.

Samsung Solid keypad

Billed as a phone ideal for tradesmen, it would be fair to assume that a number of these trades might involve wearing gloves. As with the JCB Toughphone, we gave the Samsung Solid the glove test, seeing how easy it is to locate and press the keys on the handset. While the keys themselves are slightly bigger than the Toughphone's their close proximity means it is not easy to identify them individually. Indeed one of the Solid's unique selling points is the embedded flashlight found at the back of the handset. The light itself is surprisingly powerful, especially as the source is slightly smaller than a pea. However, the on/off button is adjoining to the power button and while switching the flashlight on and off we accidentally turned off the handset on numerous occasions.

Full Review with More Photos and Specification Here

Alcatel Mandarin Duck Review by 3G.co.uk

Alcatel Mandarin Duck Review by 3G.co.uk

Fashion is a peculiar thing. One man’s pinnacle of good taste is another’s baffling out-there statement. So the phone produced by the collaboration of French phone maker Alcatel and fashion company Mandarina Duck won’t be to everyone’s taste.It’s available in three colours – lilac, cherry red and the brightest of lime green shades, displaying the cute duck emblem on the back of the phone. Each has a glossy inside surface while the casing has a half glossy, half rubbery-matt finish, and is a darker shade. There are two discreet side flaps covering the USB/power socket on one side and the memory card slot on the other.

This phone is clearly aimed at women, not because fashion isn’t for men, but because it comes with a little rubber ball (colour-coded to the phone, naturally) on a string to attach to the handset. Then there’s a matching handbag clip which means you can connect the ball to the clip safe in the knowledge that the phone will always be easily to hand at the top of the bag.

This is a good idea and works well, as it means no more frantic searching for your phone. There’s a one-line blue screen down the centre of the lid, which tells you the time, battery, and signal strength when you press one of the buttons.

Troublesome buttons

Things only begin to unravel when you start to use the handset. Firstly, the glossy inside has smooth, flat keys, which almost blend into one another, and the direction and OK keys in the centre are particularly hard to separate, so working your way through the menu isn’t always easy.

Full Review with Specification and More Photos Here

Sony Ericsson W580i Review by 3G.co.uk

Sony Ericsson W580i Review by 3G.co.uk

Sony Ericsson’s Walkman music phone range is no stranger to soundtracking punters’ exercise regimes. Back in 2006 it launched the W710i, an active phone complete with a built-in pedometer to monitor fitness levels. The W580i is a follow-up of sorts but less sporty and more ‘street’ than its predecessor, rigged with those fitness applications and shake music player controls last seen on the W910i.

The mid-range W580i is only Sony Ericsson’s second Walkman slider. If you’re looking for a close comparison it’s essentially a tweaked S500i dressed up in Walkman togs. Generally it feels quite solid in the hand, but the battery cover is prone to the odd creak while the soft keys are overly spongy. On the upside, the slider action is reassuringly sturdy, and it opens with a snap to reveal what looks to be a cramped keypad. But don’t fret because the arrangement is surprisingly thumb-friendly.

If you’re a fitness fanatic, the built-in pedometer is a welcome feature. Runners can track distance, average speed and time while the monitor is on default to automatically count your walking steps. If you enter your vital stats like weight, height, D.O.B and gender it can even calculate the calories you burn. But don’t get too despondent when you find out a 30 minute jog doesn’t burn of that quarter pounder you had for lunch. Your fitness progress can then be compared using the weekly breakdown of results.

Full Review with Specification and More Photos Here

JCB Toughphone Review by 3G.co.uk

JCB Toughphone Review by 3G.co.uk

Formerly know as the Sonim XP1, as well as sporting the JCB name, the Toughphone is decked out in its namesake’s bright yellow and black colour scheme. The keys are big enough and spaced out enough to be able to find when wearing gloves. Encased in some rubber body armour, the phone is meticulously sealed bo

Please try the following: 1. Drop the phone from a fourth floor window. 2. Take your phone with you into the shower. 3. Drive over your phone and feel free to reverse over it. These were just a few of the suggestions we were given when we received Sonim’s JCB-branded ‘Toughphone’. So off we set to see if this bruiser really was as tough as it claimed.

th in terms of the front keypad and the back cover where the battery and SIM are kept, to stop any fluid getting inside. Indeed the back of the handset is screwed on (although you can open it with a firm fingernail) to avoid the cover coming off, say if it falls out of a fourth floor window for example.

JCB Toughphone falls out of a window

Due to the hustle and bustle of the streets of London, we found no safe place to launch the Toughphone out of a fourth floor window. We therefore had to settle for a bedroom window on a second floor home. But rest assured, we did throw it with some force onto the concrete below. The result? Apart from a slight scuff on the top of the handset it was as good as new. The handset remained switched on throughout its descent and consequent impact. We actually tried it a further two times and still the Toughphone remained in tact.

Full Review with Score and Many more photos here

Sony Ericsson T250i Review by 3G.co.uk

Sony Ericsson T250i Review by 3G.co.uk

It’s fair to say that Sony Ericsson’s presence in the bargain basement prepay market has been marginal. Even after the mega-success of its Walkman music handsets and Cyber-shot camphones, the Japanese-Scandinavian outfit has still found it difficult to break Nokia’s dominance at this level. But in an attempt to crack the monopoly, Sony Ericsson has decided to up the production values, starting with the T250i.

Sony Ericsson wants to bring quality to the lower prepay classes without wrecking the wallet and at the time of going to press, O2 and Carphone Warehouse were shifting the T250i for a mere £30. Handle the T250i and you’ll soon see that 30 quid represents a stellar bargain. While not totally convincing, its classy brushed aluminium finish and solid build still feels out of place on such a rudimentary pay-as-you-go handset.

As a member of the recently resurrected classic Tseries, its design is also smart and refined. While it’s reminiscent of Sony Ericsson’s familiar signature candybar-stylings, the simple clean lines are nevertheless quite elegant.

Naturally, for such a frill-free handset, the T250i is incredibly user-friendly. The raised buttons on the spacious keypad are highly thummable and great for speed texting. The four-way joypad also has grips for extra purchase and sports signposted shortcuts, taking you to the phone’s more popular features. When in home-screen mode you can access the camera, FM radio, contacts and the messaging menu with one click. One minor niggle is the four-way joypad forcing you to use the left soft key for making selections. Those of us weaned on a five-way arrangement may find this disorientating to begin with, but operation will soon become second nature.

Full Review with Scores , Full Specification and More Pictures Here