Toshiba Portégé G500

The Toshiba Portege G500 was one of two smart phones released in the second quarter of 2007. However, with the introduction of Microsoft's new mobile operating system (Windows Mobile 6), Toshiba decided not to integrate the new system within the Toshiba Portege G500. Instead they went with the older Windows mobile 5 operating system. A wise choice?

This phone like the Toshiba Portege G900 has fingerprint recognition, which is a security ...
.../> Overall I think that Toshiba have made a very good phone. But due to the minority of phones that include a fingerprint recognition feature, I personally think Toshiba have purposefully put a high price on the G500 for that reason, 1. To increase sales revenue and profit and 2. To globally make a name for themselves by claiming to be the "first" to integrate the newest & most innovative programs and features presently provided.
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The Toshiba Portege G500 was one of two smart phones released in the second quarter of 2007. However, with the introduction of Microsoft's new mobile operating system (Windows Mobile 6), Toshiba decided not to integrate the new system within the Toshiba Portege G500. Instead they went with the older Windows mobile 5 operating system. A wise choice?

This phone like the Toshiba Portege G900 has fingerprint recognition, which is a security bonus for all users who like to keep their personal files private and confidential. Also with the new finger print technology you can program the G500 to respond to different finger prints, giving you the option to create short cuts with each unique and individual finger print.

Windows mobile 5.0 as it is known, makes the G500 seem more like a portable PC than a mobile phone. Like many new smart phones you have the ability to respond to e-mails as soon as they are recieved, check/organise meetings and access office documents wherever you are.

If the computer like interface does not impress you then maybe the two cameras, a high-quality mp3 player, video streaming and mobile TV will. You get a 2 mega-pixel camera with digital zoom on the back of the phone, whilst at the front you get a standard VGA camera giving you the option of video calling. Which can prove to be very expensive in the long-term, plus the VGA camera quality is just not good enough and the buffering that takes place within the call may ruin your nice chat. I am telling you this from my own experience. Your experience of video calling might have been better, but you still have to admit video calling is not the best option for saving money.

You also get Microsoft's popular mobile office tools, which include Outlook (for e-mail), Office, Excel and PowerPoint. Support for PDF's is also included, which basically means you can view files in the PDF format, which on a computer are opened by the well known Adobe Reader.

The phones dimensions are 96 x 49 x 22.9mm, it weighs 135g, is dual-band (which simply means that the phone will work in the U.K, in Europe and in most of the world). However you will not be able to use the phone in America, the phone must be tri or quad-band in order to work in America. Dual-band phones meet a frequency of GSM 900 to GSM 1800, whilst tri and quad-band phones meet frequencies at and above 1900 GSM. The higher the GSM frequency, the further your phones signal is able to travel in order to give your phone reception.

The QVGA TFT display is just 2.3" in size and boasts just 65,000 colours. You get 50 MB of internal memory with support for up to 2GB mini SD. Connecting is easy with three different ways in which you can connect, you can choose to connect via blue tooth, Wi-fi or USB 1.1 (the traditional and less efficient form of USB connection, with USB 2.0 being the newer and more efficient form of USB connection). You obviously get the traditional form of communication, namely voice calling and the more conventional form of messaging such as SMS and MMS. The Standby Time is up to 290 hours (3G), 250 hours (GSM) and Talk Time - up to 140min (3G), 280min (GSM).

Finally, like all new smart phones you have the ability to access the GPS navigation function. Which can only be accessed if you have the essential program installed on your phone, which has to be bought separately as it is not provided with the phone. Which can be seen as a disadvantage and an advantage at the same time. The disadvantage is that you do not get much of a phone for a very high price (without the essential pre-installed GPS program) and the advantage is that it basically saves you from buying a separate navigation system. However, the software required for GPS functionality may be very expensive, thus adding to the overall price of the phone. This very phone can be bought at a price of £259 - £329, which in my opinion is very expensive looking at the phones range of features. You can purchase much better and much cheaper phones with more features for a fraction of the price of the G500.

Overall I think that Toshiba have made a very good phone. But due to the minority of phones that include a fingerprint recognition feature, I personally think Toshiba have purposefully put a high price on the G500 for that reason, 1. To increase sales revenue and profit and 2. To globally make a name for themselves by claiming to be the "first" to integrate the newest & most innovative programs and features presently provided.

I recommend this phone to business men/women who are keen to keep their office files secure with the handy fingerprint recognition feature. However for everyday users of a mobile phone I do not recommend the G500 as you will simply not have enough memory for your music and the other types of media you may hold and you will have to pay extra for a memory card. With support up to 2GB mini SD, which is not a lot for most everyday users of a mobile phone. 

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