Let aside the bigger brands, the Transformers movie fever is slowly catching up with our very own homegrown brand like Spice, which has announced a special Transformers branded feature phone.

Design

The best thing about this phone is not the transformer branding or the wallpapers that you generally get with co-branded devices, but the concept that allow this device to transform. Yes you heard it right transform; this device can be made in to a full touch screen based phone or a handset with a full alpha numeric multitap keypad as per the need of the user.

The colour of the device (Red) seems to be inspired by the main character of the movie Transformers – Optimus Prime. Although it would have been real nice to see a combination of both red and blue on this device but still it looks good. A single matter red finish might not appeal a lot of males but for females, the M5500 is a steal. The device is also available in white but again it will appeal females the most.

The phone itself is a touchscreen device with a clip on keyboard that comes as an extension to the device and transforms the whole meaning of this phone. As I said earlier, the concept is really nice and will be appreciated by a lot of users but the execution part is where it lacks behind.

The clip-ons are really difficult to open and there is no indication on as to how to go about swapping between the two. If only the whole process could have been refined just a little bit more, this device or the concept would have really been liked a lot.

Display and touch

The display on the M5500 is a smaller 2.6 inch LCD with a QVGA Resolution with a resistive touch interface. The display, although small, is vibrant and good enough for basic phone related tasks and some multimedia playback also. Video playback, however, disappoints a little with the lower resolution but for occasional video watching it is ok.

The touchscreen on the other hand is good considering it is a resistive one. The device requires some time to get used to as the actions or the quick access menus work with specific gestures only, all thanks to the limitations of the resistive touch screen. The company has not included a stylus with this device but at some points you feel that they should have provided one with the device. But as you spend more and more time with the device you understand things better.

Interface and usability

The Interface of the Spice M5500 is a classic example of how well MKT (Dual SIM phone operating system based on Java) operating system is equipped with learning and taking features from other popular operating systems. For instance, the five home screens feature is inspired from Android, then the HTC Sense Watch will be the next big thing you will notice and if that’s not all then the SMS quick access menu will definitely grab your attention.
All in all, the interface or the whole user interface is similar to the ones found on most dual SIM mobile phones but is better customised and has got more features as compared to others.

The interface is responsible for the improved usability of this device; all the shot cut keys and the simplified menus are perfect for a first time user as well as for the experienced one.
The keypad on the Spice M5500 is probably one of the best keypads we have ever seen on a dual SIM phone. The keys are soft to use but have the right pitch and feedback making them easy to use for people with fat fingers too. The keypad also has a big ‘D’ pad in the center for navigation which is more like a silver ring in the upper center of the keypad.

Camera and Multimedia

The Spice M5500 comes with a basic 1.3 Megapixel camera which is good enough for on device photography only, even if the user wants to take a bigger print of the picture he won’t be able to as the quality really suffers once the picture blows up and the lack of auto focus clearly shows up. The camera is biased for bright light and captures dark images even if there is a slight change in the light.

In terms of multimedia, the M 5500 features a multi format audio video player that supports most popular audio and video formats like MP3, WMA, MP4 and 3GP as well. Plus, the M5500 comes with a standard Micro USB port so no compatibility issues will be faced by the users.

As far as the expandable memory goes, the M5500 supports up to 8 GB memory but 4 GB will be suggested for normal functioning of the device as more memory might result in sluggish performance.

The inclusion of a micro USB connector for audio headset is the worst that could have been done for a device and it highly disappoints as it loses on connectivity and even quality of headset is really bad.

Build Quality

Although the device is completely made up of plastic, the build quality of the device is not bad. It will withstand a couple of drops and everyday usage jerks easily. We are not very sure whether the clip on mechanism will hold on much longer or not but otherwise the device is built to last.

Call Performance

Being a dual SIM phone, this phone can be connected to two cellular networks or two different numbers at any given time, but it does not feature two SIM standby feature that allows the other SIM to be active while the first receives a call.

The signal quality of this phone is normal and it works flawlessly in most places. The call sound quality both for the speaker and the receiver are good without any distortion or voice quality loss. The microphone positioning of the phone is good that allows the device to catch to catch minimal ambience noise as well.

Battery life and Conclusion

The Transformer M5500 comes with a 950 mAh battery pack that is enough to powers this for some longer durations. We got a total usage time of three days with moderate usage on this device between charges.

Overall, the Transformer M5500 comes as a bit of over priced feature phone according to the price mentioned on the box which is Rs 4,600 approximately. But in the real world, this device will be available for much lesser and with the kind of concept this device brings along, it is a good phone to have with decent set of features but not many colour options, especially for the males.

Beetel Xpert Connect GD530 is a dual SIM phone with a QWERTY keypad, and it comes with useful features for those who text heavily and would love to be socially active and ready to do business all the time. The user interface of the phone is simple. Its icons are slightly too small for comfort, which is understandable as it has a Qwerty keypad that takes up much of the space in front.

In terms of design, the concept appears to be good but the device doesn’t look like a compact whole. The keys are small and slightly difficult to operate for people with large fingers, but then that is a common Qwerty keypad problem. The camera button right in front is a welcome addition, but is misleading because it gives the impression that the camera can be launched at any moment, whereas the button launches the mail service when it is clicked. Only if you have a camera App with a timer facility can this button be used to take pictures. At its price a 2 Megapixel camera is quite decent.

The other dedicated key on top of the keypad is for Beetel Push Mail, which is useful for people who want to be able to check mail at any time. The internet generation is addicted to emails and Facebook these days, and Beetel Xpert Connect GD530 provides app shortcuts on the homescreen that accelerate the functionalities of the phone and are a joy to work with.

Many Indians find dual SIM phones particularly useful because they give out one number to their friends and acquaintances, while the other number is from a service provider that offers cheap call rates and this SIM is used largely for making calls. The other type of users who like to use dual SIM phones are those who would like to keep their personal and professional lives separate. Whatever the reason, the Beetel Xpert Connect GD530 allows users to easily access two SIM cards, and they have the option to keep both the SIMs working, or can switch one SIM card off.

The camera is located at the top left of the rear of the phone. On the right side of it is a 2.5 mm Audio Jack and it will be difficult for users to get a compatible earphone. The phone’s handsfree kit makes things easier but it has to be bought in addition to the device. Sound in the handsfree’s earphone is clear and talking through it is also a pleasant experience. Its volume controls are on the right side.

The phone is WiFi enabled, has Edge/GPRS support and many useful apps including Facebook, Snaptu, Ibibo, Nimbuzz and Yahoo. Snaptu is especially useful for those who like to access news on the go, and on WiFi it works very smoothly. The device also has a Reuters app to provide users with world news. It has its own Browser as well, which was slightly difficult to locate because its icon was named ‘Services’.

The phone’s user interface is like that of other Java phones, but the number of features available is good enough for budget users to buy this phone at Rs 3,600, though maximum retail price as mentioned by the company is Rs 4,500. Beetel has also provided its own email service called Beetel Push Mail. The phone offers the option to connect with the computer for data transfer. It comes with a 1000 mAh Li ion battery which easily lasts for a day. It is good but there is still scope for improvement.