Shiny Review: Motorola Razr²

Mobile phones, Reviews
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razr222.jpg It’s Susi’s designated day to review a piece of gadgetry for your tech-starved eyes, so read on below for her thoughts regarding Motorola’s newest phone, the Razr². Takes me back to maths class with dear Mr. Hampson, having that square root ‘2’. ARGHHH!!! Take it away, Susi…

I’ve already highlighted my disappointment at the name of the Razr², or the Razr 2 as it forever will be known. I shall not bore you again. Luckily, this is one of the only failings of this phone. Let’s start with the important stuff – how pretty it is.

The answer? Very. It’s a dark blue metal finish which is both nice and shiny, and sturdy. The hinge is steel, the only discrepancy is the black rubberised back cover. Not sure why they’ve done that, to be honest…. The screen on the front is one of the largest front display around and praise be, they’ve got rid of that weird lump which used to sit at the bottom of the keypad when it’s open. But if you think it’s just a pretty face, you’d be wrong.

Although there is a focus on MP3s on this phone, it’s not its raison d’etre. Indications come from the fact that it’s got up to 2GB internal memory, depending on which version you buy, although no option to expand this. The MP3 player is also only accessible through the main Multimedia menu. When you shut the phone the controls switch to the front of the phone, and that’s when the fun really starts. It’s got haptics, people!!!!!

No idea what haptics are? Think it’s a bit of a rubbish word? Yep, me too. But it’s the future. With all these touch screen controls it’s obvious that it’s not always easy to work them. Haptics mean that when you hit the touch screen you get a little shudder of response from your phone. Trust me, it’s fun.

So, apart from the MP3 player, what’s it got? Well, it’s got a two megapixel camera. Fine. It’s got Crystal Talk technology, which is supposed to eliminate background noise and make you clearer. In practice, the people I spoke to said that I did sound clearer than I do when I use my Blackberry Pearl.

There’s also fun to be had in the Games menu. I found Rough Guides, which finds out which European city you’re in, and then uses satellite positioning to find out where you are within it. You can then search for pubs, clubs, theatres etc in that area. Once you pick an option you then have the choice of calling them, going to their website or downloading a map.

Another nice gimmick is that it talks. Oh yes, this phone talks. Admittedly it’s not much cop at musing over the meaning of life with you, but it’ll certainly read out your text messages for you. There is literally minutes of fun to be had getting your friends to text you silly messages and getting them read out by the man in your phone.

Katie and I had a good old grope of it this morning, so you can expect some video musings of it presently. And keep an eye out for the box. It is *definitely* one of the best boxes I have ever seen.

Motorola Razr²

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Katherine Hannaford
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