Motorola V1050

Hi folks. In reviewing this phone I've tried my best to explain the technical ins and outs of the handset, but if there are any queries about it then feel free to ask me.

The V1050 is one of Motorola's recent offerings and it's immediately obvious that this is an upgrade to their V975/V980 pair that were released at an earlier time.
It's a clamshell phone, meaning that it opens and shuts with a center hinge similar to other models like the V550 and the famous Sharp GX10.

The features and benefits of this model are described below...

MP3 player
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We surely all know what this is by now, but for the benefit of those who don't - it's an application that allows you to listen to near cd quality tunes and songs via the headphones provided with the handset.
You can also use the software that comes with the pack to transfer music back and forth from your pc and phone.

Speakerphone
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This allows you to speak handsfree without the use of a cable. The only downside with this has to be the fact that it's not loud enough to use in most vehicles. It's a definite 'home only' facility that should help you to have a conversation hands-free whilst your reading Ciao reviews!!

TWO Cameras!
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Yes you read it correctly - two cameras. There is one facing inwards for the use of VIDEO CALLING (talking face to face with someone via the phone, seeing them and them seeing you if they have a compatible phone), and a 1.3 megapixel (above average) 8x zoom camera facing outwards for the purpose of recording video clips and taking those handy snapshots.

When you playback any video you can clearly view it on FULL screen and the screen display being at 240x320 pixels is bright and colourful.

JAVA games facility
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You can purchase games online via the mobile web and in high street and online stores to play on the handset. The quality is very good and comparable to what you would see on some Nokia N-Gage releases. Just look for the JAVA logo and name.

TRIBAND usage
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In short this means that you can travel to most European countries such as Portugal, Spain, France etc and also as far abroad as the US, Canada and Australia all the while making and receiving calls.
The charges will vary wildly depending on what network you are on in this country, and what network is used whilst you are in specific countries.

Be aware that under most circumstances, a contract would give you a far better international roaming package - most retailers will be able to advise you on these and which would suit your requirements.

3G video content/downloads
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The 3G term describes the phones ability to access services used for video playback. It means that you can acquire video feeds and pre-recorded sequences from a variety of websites and also record and send your own recordings.

This also works well with the video calling feature as mentioned earlier in my review.

Calling/Text messaging SMS, Multimedia Messaging MMS
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You may or may not be surprised to know that this phone does allow you to make and receive phone calls haha. It seems these days that making phone calls is old fashioned, and that sms text messaging has taken over. You can send these texts and also photo messages (mms) from this phone at varying rates (check with the retailer depending on your deal).

A neat feature is the ability to have a photo of the person calling you appear as the phone rings, and during the call etc. That way, when you say 'I know that voice', you'll definitely not forget the face !!!

Expandable memory
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The phone comes with an average 16mb memory as standard but it is expandable with the use of a Transflash memory card - up to 512mb.
This will allow you to save more mp3 songs, images and videos along with acquiring more ringtones via the mobile web etc.

THE PRO'S
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1) 3G features allowing for downloads of videos and ringtones.
2) TWO cameras for video calling and recording.
3) MP3 player.

THE CONS
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1) 136g weight - a bit too heavy for some and worth considering if you're thinking about buying this phone for a young child.
2) 130 min talktime and 145 hour standby (only 70 mins for video calls) - this is generally below average and a bit behind in the times, undermining the 'next generation' aura of this handset.
3) NO BLUETOOTH! This is an obvious feature that is needed by many of today's phone users to allow for wire-free conversations and transfering of data without a cable. Unfortunately the manufacturer didn't feel the need to include one in this phone. Thank goodness there are lots of other features!

I found this handset to be well above average and actually pretty good, but too heavy for my liking. The battery life wan't a problem but then I'm not a big user of the phone and so this may prove an issue for a business person for example.

Check it out, but I'd advise trying before buying. A range of retailers should help such as The Link, Vodafone, Phones4u, Carphone Warehouse, 02 and the Independent stores located in smaller towns.

I hope this helps everyone out there who is or was considering this handset, and as ever if there any queries feel free to get in touch with me. Best wishes all!