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Category: Mobile Phone

  • Nokia 208 review

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    Welcome to the Nokia 208 mobile phone review. Released in 2013 it is one of the last genuine Nokia phones left that you can still purchase. Although very basic by 2015 smartphone standards it has a number of features that will keep any one after a mobile phone only for calls, txt and notifications very happy. The Nokia 208 is priced under $90 outright and can also be purchased at a measly $29 as a pre-paid package as we write this review! The Nokia 208 still has a huge market around the world due to many countries limited mobile networks and limited competition. The 208 stands out from the competition by have 3G capabilities missing from others and still has the brand recognition in this end of the market. In the smartphone dominated market these days the Nokia 208 and it's competitors are living fossils which is also oddly a good place to be. (More on this in later posts) In terms of construction the 208 is put together really well, there is nothing to complain about in this price range. The rubber keypad actually feels ok and probably hard wearing. The materials can only be described as minimal and together with the various bright colours in comes in once again stands out and hard to loose. It's not expensive looking so should keep pick pockets away. In terms of use the Nokia 208 is responsive as with all phones in this class. The S40 user interface has not changed much over the decade so you will be familiar with it very quickly. Of course there aren't new apps for the phones anymore so you are reliant on what's in the box. Of course you can still find caches of downloads to try on the internet but that's not what this model is about. The Nokia 208 is great for those who want a simple and resonably tough phone to talk and text on. The added bonus is being able to use it as a notification device like a smart watch so it uses very little data. As a final swan song to 'Nokia' brand we wished that the released a high quality standard phone like the Nokia 8800 Sirocco or the Sony W880 phone would be a fitting send off. Specifications
    • Nokia 208
    • Network Quad-band GSM 900/1900/850/1800 Dual Band 3G 2100/850
    • Design Standard
    • L114 x W50.9 x D12.8 mm Weight 90 grams
    • Display/s 2.4 inch TFT 240 x 320
    • Camera 1.3 MP
    • Video Camera 176 x 144 pixel main video camera 15FPS
    • Connectivity Bluetooth V3 Micro-USB
    • CPU xxxMhz
    • Memory Up to 256MB available to user MicroSD up to 32Gig
    • Ring tones MIDI, MP3, Video, vibration and others
    • Features JAVA Apps Music and Media player Organiser/Calender SMS, MMS, IM, Email JAVA MIDP 2.0 FM radio with RDS and recording Speaker Phone/Hands free 3.5mm AV/headset BL-5C 3.7V 1020mAh Up to 21 days Standby Up to 12 hours Talk Time
    • Price history Under $89 AUD early-2015 (Outright) Under $30 AUD early-2015 (Pre-paid)

  • Telstra Easy Discovery 4 (T4) Review

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    Welcome to the Telstra Easy Discovery 4 mobile phone review otherwise known as the T4, our first review for 2014. The Easy Touch Discovery 4 was released around Christmas 2013 and is a replacement for the Discovery 3. Like it's predecessor the T4 is a clam shell or flip phone with all the features for text messaging and phone calls. The Discovery 4 is usually  available on a plan or we believe can be purchased out right for approx  $189. Purchasing the Discovery 4 outright of course is not recommended as there are plenty of much better smartphones that can be purchased in the price range! The construction quality of the Easy Discovery 4 is actually very good despite being an entry level mobile phone. The flip mechanism and plastic panels fit tightly and it can even be described as stylish in terms of overall look! That said we think its just due the silver flat color and surround that give it a modern look. The keypad feels very good for traditional keypad and looks great. The case is larger than the older models but so to are the specifications for the internal hardware or circuitry. How the nice exterior will wear over time will be interesting to watch. It also looks better in real life than the pictures! The hardware inside the Telstra Easy Discovery 4 is essentially an upgrade to the T3. The T4 now features a new bigger and higher resolution screen and a noticeably larger external mono-LCD external screen. The 3MP seems to have improved image quality but that's not saying much. The Discovery 4 also has T-Mode or Tele Coil to prevent feedback on hearing aids. There is also the inclusion of GPS hardware that can provide GPS co-ordinates but no navigation software that we could find. The lack of 4G was also missed when using the basic browser. In terms of use the Discovery 4 is as basic as it gets although presented in a good looking higher definition TFT screen. All it's features are very easy to use, for txt, reading emails, MMS, and so forth. However with the small screen, it becomes tiresome to read but clearly that's not what this T4  is all about! The operating speed is good but the old school 3G data download speed is noticeably slow. To conclude the review of the Telstra Easy Discovery 4, we can say that Telstra has addressed almost all the issues we wrote about in the T3 review and can say that it would be a great but basic phone for non-tech older folk and those who want just a basic phone features. Believe it or not there are quite a few people out there on the street that still use these phones! It's also is a robbery deterrent since any would be thief simply wouldn't bother for obvious reasons. However there is still room for improvement! Include a 4G antenna for faster data speeds for download and upload, proper GPS navigation software and we believe the category killer, 4G wireless hotspot technology and you will have a truly desirable phone for the growing number of tablet users! In fact if this feature was included and it was actually advertised and explaining the hotspot feature would probably bring in a few more customers but until then the T4 does not have any unique selling points. So the Telstra Easy Discovery 4 is a decent entry level mobile phone but it's quite expensive. Specifications
    • Telstra Easy Discovery 4 (T4)
    • Network Dual-band 3G 850/2100 Mhz Quad-band GSM 850/900/1800 /1900 MHz
    • Design Flip L107 x W51.5 x D18.4 mm Weight 112.8 grams
    • Display/s Internal TFT 240 x 320 2.4 inch screen
    • Camera Dual cameras 3MP main camera 0.3MP video call camera LED flash!
    • Connectivity USB Bluetooth V2
    • Memory 120MB internal memory 32GB microSD
    • Ring tones MP3, MMF, MIDI, Vibration etc..
    • Features A-GPS FM Radio SMS, MMS, WAP, EMAIL MyWords predictive text JAVA MIDP 2.0 Speaker Phone/Hands free Hearing aid compatible Customizable backgrounds Picture Viewer Video calling Voice memos Calender and organizer 250 Hrs Standby, 180 Minutes Talk Time 900mAh Li-Po
    • Package contents XP/Vista Compatible PC suite Mac OSX Compatible software Personal hands free kit Travel charger USB cable User manual
    • Price history 2014 Approx $180 outright but usually Plan only.

  • Telstra Tough 3 Review

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    Welcome to the 2013 Telstra Tough 3 (T55) mobile phone review. The Telstra Tough 3 was released in May 2013 is a replacement for the Tough 2. The Tough 2 was an Ok 'tough' phone  that was toy like up close. The latest Tough 3 addresses some of the prior versions issues since it is less toy like than the prior 2 and has a few other surprises. The Tough 3 is only available from Telstra on a plan which is a pity - Why? read on... Update: June 2014 - You can now purchase the Tough 3 outright for around $195 without a contract. The Telstra Tough 3 is a ruggerised phone build for the careless and those who don't need a 'smartphone'. The Tough 3 is one the the very few that is an old style keypad phone in 2013 so technically its one of the best you can buy! We beleieve that only Casio still makes these types of phones but only available in the US. In terms of construction it uses better designed materials feeling more solid and looking more serious. If you've ever seen a Cygnett iPad 'tough' cover version it has a similar color but not quite as tactile in feel. The screen quality is also very good! Of note is a A-GPS and a dedicated camera button and volume buttons down the side though the resulting picture quality isn't class leading. In terms of use the Tough 3 is very good. It is fast and responsive menus as well as activating the various other apps or functions. We have on complaints at all. Sure the menu system is the same grid style as use by Nokia and others over the last 10 years but its by far the quickest we've ever used. The only problem with the Tough3 is the data speed. For a new model it does not have the fastest connection relying on a 3.6 mbps maximum download so it takes awhile for things to happen (relatively). All the regular communications are there, email, txt, video calls and MMS so you are only missing the social network ones which you'll have to rely on the built in browser to get access to. All up the Telstra Tough 3 is one of the best ruggerised keypad based phones you can buy, but virtue of being one of the very few! Even that aside its a step up from the prior version due to its updated design and excellent operating speed. The Tough 3 is also 'regular' sized so using it is convenient and there is not need for an additional protective case. Even you decided to purchase the Tough 3 as a main phone there is not much to complain about since its limitations are clear and its selling point - being ruggerized is obvious. This one is for calls and text and message notifications regardless of weather conditions. Specifications
    • Telstra Tough 3 (T55)
    • Network Quad-band 850/900/1800 /1900 MHz Tri-band UMTS 3G 850/1900/2100 MHz 3G HSDPA 3.6
    • Design Ruggerised candy bar IP67 119mm x 56mm x 17mm Weight 125 grams
    • Display/s 2.4inch 240 x 320 pixel TFT
    • Camera 3MP main camera 2nd video call camera
    • Connectivity USB Bluetooth V2
    • CPU
    • Memory 130MB available to user Up to 16Gig MicroSD or Trans Flash cards
    • Ring tones MP3, MMF, MIDI, Vibration
    • Features External antenna plug SMS, MMS, WAP, EMAIL JAVA MIDP 2.0 Speaker Phone/Hands free Customizable backgrounds Picture Viewer Voice memos Calender and organizer 300Hrs Standby 240Mins Talk Time 1900mAh Li-ion battery
    • Package contents XP/Vista Compatible PC suite Mac OSX Compatible software Personal hands free kit Travel charger USB cable
    • Price history Available on a monthly plan only. Less than $Free AUS 2013 (Plan only) Less than $195 AUS 2014 (Outright)

  • Samsung Galaxy Ace Review

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    Welcome to the 2013 Samsung Galaxy Ace mobile phone review. The Galaxy Ace is not a top end phone as its name implies or even mid range, we call it just above entry level model smartphone. When released back in 2012 we checked it out but didn't see any point in writing up our review because the Ace did not impress and in 2013 it still doesn't. No regular folk it is best described as an average sort of mobile for those who don't want to do demanding things with their phone. In terms of construction the Ace is not too bad. Hard shiny plastics all round but it is sturdy and will take some heavy knocks thats for sure.  The price hovers around the $200 mark which in terms of hardware specification is good, unfortunately it's not that good. The biggest issue is the screen resolution it is quite plain to look at and low resolution - if only it had a higher screen resolution the Ace would be an Ace and a feature that makes it stand out amongst, for example the cheaper Telstra/ZTE and HTC models at about the same price. In terms of use the Galaxy Ace uses the 2 year old Android 2.3 which while simpler to use than the version 4 the top end gets hence it is missing the ability to run the latest apps and a number of settings including the hotspot feature as examples. The Ace's navigation is a bit laggy and you can 'feel' the cheaper CPU trying to keep up with you. Overall it is Ok to use. Overall its an OK sort of phone for an OK sort of price. It will do almost anything you want but just not a quickly as the higher end models. If you only use the Galaxy Ace for txt, voice calls, Facebook Twitter than Ace is pretty good. It's barely OK for web browsing or games. The Ace is not quite low end but it's not mid range either perhaps a starter smartphone? Then again the cheapest iPhone 4 on a pre-paid package is only a few dollars more...  which is what we'd go for and you probably would too! Specifications
    • Samsung Galaxy Ace
    • Network Quad-band GSM 850/900/1800/1900 Dual-band 3G 900/2100 or 850/1990 HSDPA 7.2 Mbits data speed (download) 384kpbs data speed (upload)
    • Design Touch screen
    • L112.5 x W60 x D11.5 mm Weight 1013 grams
    • Display/s External 3.2 Inch TFT 320 x 480
    • Camera 5MP LED Flash
    • Video Camera 800 x 480 video camera 24FPS
    • Connectivity Wi-Fi Bluetooth V2.1
    • CPU 800Mhz
    • Memory Up to 512MB available to user MicroSD up to 32Gig
    • Ring tones MIDI, MP3, Video, vibration and others
    • Features A-GPS Proximity Compass Accelerometer (G-Sensor) Light Sensor FM Radio with RDS Music and Media player Organiser/Calender SMS, MMS, IM, Email FM radio Speaker Phone/Hands free Li-Po 1230mAh battery Up to 26 days Standby Up to 380 minutes Talk Time
    • Price history Under $199 AUD April 2013 (Pre-paid)

  • Nokia 110 Review

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    Welcome to the 2013 Nokia 110 review. The 110 is one of cheapest dual SIM and entry level mobile phones you can buy at the moment. Being the cheapest and arguably the best one you can get is a easy description for the 110 since there is nothing else like it for the price made by a major manufacturer. In terms of construction the Nokia 110 is an all hard wearing plastic phone with a spill resistant keypad. The keypad design is all that can be criticized as its a one piece plastic cover without separate keys expect for the navigation key feels cheap. That said the flaps and rear cover all fit together nicely with a nice feel in the hand for the price.  Presumably Nokia have researched the market this phone will sell in so should be able to handle the rough and tumble it will inevitably have to deal with - without the obligatory phone cover! The availability of different colors is a nice touch. In terms of use the Nokia 110 is responsive, having a number of unexpected features for the price! The micro-SD slot is one of them along with an MP3 player and FM radio with recording capabilities. The apps for Facebook and Twitter is an interesting addition since the Nokia 110 is not a 3G phone and any data will take a relatively long time to download. Apart from that the 110 is a useful dual SIM mobile phone with decent battery life. It is unfortunate that many don't understand the need for multiple numbers on the one phone unless they live in certain countries! To conclude we can't really say much more about the Nokia 110. It is basic but handy little phone and very useful if you are only making calls and SMS messages on. It's very good for its targeted market or as a spare mobile phone. Specifications
    • Nokia 110
    • Network
    • Dual-band GSM 900/1800
    • Design Candy bar
    • L110 x W46 x D14.5 mm Weight 80 grams
    • Display/s TFT 128 x 160
    • Camera 620 x 480 pixels
    • Video Camera 176 x 144 pixels 15 FPS
    • Connectivity Bluetooth
    • CPU ???Mhz
    • Memory Up to 10Mb available to user Up to 32Gig microSD card
    • Ring tones MIDI, vibration and others
    • Features Music and Media player Organiser/Calender SMS FM radio Speaker Phone/Hands free BL-5c 3.7V 1020mAh Up to 26 days Standby Up to 10 hours Talk Time
    • Price history Under $50 AUS 2013 (Outright)

  • Nokia Asha 311 Review

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    Welcome to the 2013 Nokia Asha 311 mobile phone review. The Nokia Asha 311 was released in 2012 and comes with the latest version of S40 Nokia OS. It's one of the most fully featured regular mobile phone you can buy at the moment. It's not a 'smart phone' but something that sits in-between the basic ones with a regular keypad. The 311 is one of the cheapest touch screen mobile phones priced around $129 at the time this was posted. The build quality of the Asha 311 is is good but its not exactly premium with a shiny  plastic rear panel. The screen is quite responsive and looks pretty good for the price and no complaints.  The bonus of having Wi-Fi makes life a little cheaper too assuming you wouldn't be getting a decent data plan at this price point. In terms of use and compared with the cheapest Android phones for the same price the Asha 311 is our choice. It's fast by comparison and does virtually everything you need. Mind you it is better at notifications for all your social networks like Facebook and Twitter rather than inputting which really requires a bigger screen to be faster. However for talk and text it works perfectly and reliability without any lags. The free 40 EA games are a nice bonus too. In the end the Asha 311 is a good cheap mobile phone. It is better than the 308 version without the dual SIM functionality. The 311 is also better than the cheapest Android phones at this price point as we have yet to find one comparably priced that works without significant lags. It may not have GPS or a proper web browser but the basics are full covered and if that is all you need than its a great little phone. Specifications
    • Nokia Asha 301
    • Network Quad-band GSM 900/1900 and 850/1800 Penta-band 3G 850/900/1700/1900/2100 Mini-SIM
    • Design Touch screen
    • L106 x W52 x D13 mm Weight 95 grams
    • Display/s 3 inch TFT 240 x 320
    • Camera 3.2MP
    • Video Camera 640 x 480 pixel video camera 25FPS
    • Connectivity Wi-Fi Bluetooth V2.1 Micro-USB
    • CPU 1Ghz
    • Memory Up to 100MB available to user MicroSD up to 32Gig
    • Ring tones MIDI, MP3, Video, vibration and others
    • Features Accelerometer/Pr0ximeter/Ambient Light senors JAVA Apps Inc. Angry Birds Music and Media player Organiser/Calender SMS, MMS, IM, Email JAVA MIDP 2.0 FM radio with RDS Speaker Phone/Hands free 3.5mm AV/headset BL-4U 3.7V 1110mAh Up to 32 days Standby Up to 14 hours Talk Time
    • Price history Under $129 AUS early-2013 (Outright)

  • Nokia Asha 308 review

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    Welcome to the Nokia Asha 308 phone review. The Nokia Asha 308 was released in late 2012 and comes with the latest version of S40 Nokia OS. The claim to fame for the Asha 308 is that it is one of the more powerful a dual SIM phones yet priced very reasonably. The Asha 308 retails for around $120 if you can still buy one since dual SIM phone are niche models in this market. The Asha 308 is essentially an upgrade for the C2-03, besides being a dual-SIM phone it is also a pure touch screen model. The dual SIM setup also allows for live swapping of SIM cards without turn off.  Like its predecessor the 308 is missing features specifically 3G capability which means this is mainly a mobile phone for talk and text although it can do emails.... If you want 3G and Wi-Fi you have to go for the Asha 311 model which is a mere $9 more. But you can't have the dual SIM. In terms of construction the 308 is put together really well but the materials are for durability rather than 'luxury'. The gold version looks quite good and not too tacky for a cheap phone. Nothing to complain about or commend thanks to the low outright handset price. On terms of use, bearing in mind it's cheapness is very good. There's a camera and phone FM radio touch screen and so forth, 10 years ago this would be top of heap... It's very easy to use and quite responsive ... We don't have much more to say since we all have seen it before, Nokia's efficient but old S40 interface. We can see where the Apple iPhone copied its simplicity from. Mind you higher screen resolution or nicer icons would have been nice. In the end the Asha 208 is a decent low end dual SIM mobile phone that works. If this was the sort of phone we where after and on a budget then this would definitely be on the final list. Specifications
    • Nokia Asha 308
    • Network Quad-band GSM 900/1900 and 850/1800 Dual SIM
    • Design Touch screen
    • L110 x W54 x D13 mm Weight 104 grams
    • Display/s 2.4 inch TFT 240 x 320
    • Camera 2MP
    • Video Camera 176 x 144 pixel main video camera 8FPS
    • Connectivity Bluetooth V3 Micro-USB
    • CPU xxxMhz
    • Memory Up to 10MB available to user MicroSD up to 32Gig
    • Ring tones MIDI, MP3, Video, vibration and others
    • Features JAVA Apps Music and Media player Organiser/Calender SMS, MMS, IM, Email JAVA MIDP 2.0 FM radio with RDS Speaker Phone/Hands free 3.5mm AV/headset BL-4U 3.7V 1110mAh Up to 21 days Standby Up to 6 hours Talk Time
    • Price history Under $120 AUS early-2013 (Outright)

  • Telstra T96 Review

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    Welcome to the 2013 Telstra/ZTE T96 mobile phone review. In the basement end of the mobile market there are some great bargains! Less than 10 years ago phones like the T96 cost over $500 and quite desirable by everyone! However in 2013 only certain less developed markets and niche users are these types of phone in high demand. As a pre-paid phone the T96 is priced at $49 which is quite reasonable. In terms of construction the T96 is quite good. There are no uneven gaps in the case or keypad and the button feel good to press although a little limited in keypad travel. They have used matt colored panels which  are not slippery to touch which does give it a more expensive feel than a sub-$50 phone usually has - based on past models like the T95. The keypad isn't the best for those still with the old txting skills but it not too bad either. It comes in a variety of colors too which is a in change, The screen resolution and size is finally the industry standard or several years ago prior to the original iPhone. The screen and image quality is also very good for a cheap mobile phone. In terms of use the T96 works great. It responds to keypress will minimal delay for any of the various functions and it does seem smoother than prior models.  Mind you the internet download speeds despite 3G capabilities is still not as fast as it should be. The screen  graphics rate a mention as being very classy despite the multi-colour number display. I think they've been looking at Sony-Ericssons of late for inspiration. In fact it probably presents better than the latest Nokia Asha series thanks to better graphics - easily.  However the comparable Nokia Asha 300 for example has much more munctionality. Apart from the graphics there is nothing else worth pointing out. In the end the T96 is a basic phone but at least it doesn't look like one which is strangely the selling point. All we need now is the ability to use one as a wireless modem for our tablets and we can dump our 'smart phones'. The T96 is now one of the better cheap mobile phone you can buy. So if all you need is text and talking with email notifications then the T96 is good value. Specifications
    • Telstra T96
    • Network Single-band UMTS 850, 2100 Mhz Quad-band GSM 850 / 900/1800 /1900 MHz
    • Design Standard L116 x W50 x D12.4 mm Weight 84 grams
    • Display/s External 2.4 inch TFT 240 x 320
    • Camera Dual cameras 2MP main camera
    • Connectivity USB Bluetooth V2.1
    • Memory 64MB internal memory 30MB available to user Up to 32Gb microSD
    • Ring tones MP3, MMF, MIDI, Vibration
    • Features SMS, MMS, WAP, EMAIL MyWords predictive text JAVA MIDP 2.0 Speaker Phone/Hands free Customizable backgrounds Picture Viewer Video calling Voice memos Calender and organizer 300 Hrs Standby, 240 Minutes Talk Time 1000 mAh Li-Po
    • Package contents XP/Vista Compatible PC suite Mac OSX Compatible software Personal hands free kit Travel charger USB cable User manual
    • Price history Approx $49 (Feb 2013 Pre-Paid)

  • Telstra Urbane T22 Review

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    Welcome to the 2012 Telstra Urbane T22 mobile phone review. Finally we have Android smart phone from Telstra/ZTE that can compete with the other manufacturers on features and user experience and not purely on a cheap price.  Regular and non-smart phones from Telstra are usually basic but pretty good however all their Android smart phones so far have major performance flaws or interface issues that we could only recommend based on price. In some cases not recommend at all. The pre-paid Urbane T22 package is priced at cheap and tempting $149. The Telstra Urbane uses a 1GHZ CPU, decent sized screen but relatively low resolution that is OK to look at but the latest Android 4.0 software with minimal enhancements – which is good. The plastic case is definitely not high end but feels mid range and well made. However at this sort of price tag there are shortfalls in the other areas that include the basic screen resolution and quality, basic 3Mp camera and VGA video recording. In terms of operation the Urbane T22 is pretty smooth (there are noticeable lags) and not fast as you would expect. The 1Ghz CPU does wonders for the user experience compared to prior models. However it is still not as smooth as say the HTC Wildfire which has a slower CPU. However with the decent web browser, A-GPS and even an FM radio there's very little that majority will miss. Personally they should have included a better camera for the Facebook generation and possibly drop the FM radio. The standard web browser allows you to visit any site even with Flash based content - however it will not run complex games like those on Facebook. The Telstra Urbane is a pretty good smart phone and the best Telstra branded models we've tested to date. At a very cheap pre-paid price of $149 you can definitely consider it as replacement for your old keypad phone. The T22's hardware does not appear to be optimized for the latest Android due to the lags we encountered on it but not other Android phones. Sure Android has its issues but no more than the iPhone but at least it can do everything that a iPhone or Nokia's as examples can do. Forget all the other pre-paid mobile phones from Telstra the Urbane T22 is to date, one of the cheapest hence best value most fully featured mobile phone you can buy! Specifications
    • Telstra Urbane T22
    • Network Tri-band GSM 900/1800/1900 Mhz Tri-band 3G 850/900/1900 (dependent on country) HSDPA 14.4 Mbps data speed (download) HSUPA 2 Mbps (upload)
    • Design Touch screen
    • L120 x W63.6 x D108 mm
    • Weight 140 grams
    • Display/s 4 inch 480 x 800
    • Camera 3MP LED Flash Forward camera 120 x 160
    • Video Camera 640x 480 pixels
    • Connectivity Wi-Fi Bluetooth V2.1
    • CPU 1 Ghz Single core Separate Graphic CPU
    • Memory Up to 2.5 Gig for user Up to 32Gig micro-SD expansion
    • Ring tones MIDI, MP3, Video, vibration and others
    • Features A-GPS AndroidApp store Free Google Navigator (requires data plan) Compass Accelerometer Dolby Digital Proximity Ambient Light Music and Media player MS-Word, Excel and Powerpoint, PDF, ZIP compatible Organiser/Calender SMS, MMS, IM, Email Speaker Phone/Hands free Li-Po 1600 mAh battery Up to 200 hours Standby Up to 4 hours Talk Time
    • Price history Approx $149 AUD Mid 2012 (Pre-paid)