Motorola C350

Read my review on the Philips Fisio 826 before you read this for continuity

After my disastrous experience with the Philips fisio, I decided to exchange it for something more user friendly. I was faced with few options- The Nokia 3530 and the Motorola C350. The 3350 was more or less ruled out instantly because of its size. That left the C350 staring at me in the eye. I sat at the shop playing around it for some time and decided that under the given conditions it was a good option.

The C350 is the cheapest color phone available in the market presently. You can get it now for as low as Rs. 6100. (Valid :01/12/2003). It is also the smallest and cutest phone available at that price.

Features: The C350 comes with a standard set of features that you would expect from a entry level color display phone. Nothing more. Voice dial, chat and multiple recepient option are present. I use the multiple recipient option a lot and I like the Motorola option better than the Nokias’. You can select all the recipients in one go and the then hit the send button and watch ‘em go. Nokia requires you to individually press the send button for each of the recipients.

Motorola has taken a leaf out of Nokia’s book and included customizable covers in this model.

WAP was reasonably fast when I tested. Ditto with GPRS.

The biggest vice about the phone is its rather small display. The paltry x display does not exactly make you download wallpapers and screensavers. The clock and date display takes up a substantial amount of space and the wallpaper is hardly visible. The specs mention a color support of 4096 colors but the display doesn’t show anything to justify that claim. If you want to know what a 4096-color display can show, check out the Philips fisio 826 (I have written a review on the same). The contrast is extremely low. The display is useless without the backlight… even in bright daylight! Two features I found missing from other phones are the cell info display (which shows you the present location if your network supports it) and (unbelievably) delivery reports!

Honestly, I feel most of the cell manufacturers including Nokia ought to throw out their in-house designers and the R&D team and bring in people who can think straight. It never fails, they manage to bring out this classic product and manage to forget something very basic (like the good reception or better battery backup).

That is exactly what happened here- an oversight on Motorola’s part over the display.

I am a heavy SMS user and the keys on the C350 are not up to the mark (in fact if you have big lumpy fingers you are in deep trouble). The keys are not as responsive as I would like them to be. I miss out certain letters as I type. The key 1 acts as the space key but it is preferable to use the select soft key on the top because using the space key forms a temporary concatenated sentence at the bottom of the (small) screen which is appended to the actual message only if you press the select key and this process of concatenation slows down the machine drastically. Type in a message that is long enough, you would find yourself typing ahead of the phone!

A note on the messaging options: The Inbox capacity depends on the SIM. But the phone has an outbox capacity of 40 text messages. Another feature (which I found to my dismay is something you cannot turn off) is that all the messages you send are automatically stored in the Outbox!

Motorola has its own proprietary dictionary called iTap. Similar to the T9 in the Nokia but it takes some time to get used to. Personally I find it easier to type on a Nokia any day.

The vibrator could have been stronger. If you have it in your trouser pockets while walking, chances are that you will miss a call because of the vibrator.

The cover is prone to scratches so a good protective cover is recommended.

Battery and Signal Strength

The battery life is acceptable (better that the Fisio). It will last a day if you have a decent amount of calls and lots of messages. Otherwise you can stretch it just over a day. Thankfully the phone has its own power saving feature. The signal strength is above average (actually it is better than my 3610). This is one of the few phones whose reception I have tested inside an airplane and the outcome was exceptional.

Picture message and ring tone compatibility

This is an important area for lots of people and something most people don’t cover in their reviews when it comes to alternative phones (ones that are not Nokia, I mean). The Motorola C300 could receive both ring tones and picture messages form Nokia phones (mono and b/w respectively) and those can be easily received on the C350 (from the C300) but it CANNOT receive either ring tones or picture messages directly from a Nokia. (One of those little oversights I previously mentioned). I am not bothering to mention the outcome of sending the same.

The phone does crash but it does so silently and restarts itself and chances are that you won’t notice it.

The bottom line? The C350 is the cheapest and usable color phone is the market. I am very nitpicky with my mobile, that’s why I pulled out so many negatives. But chances are that they will hardly affect a normal user. (Maybe not even notice it!).

Until I switch my cell again ;) Chow.

Features at a glance

Color Display: Yes, 4096 colors