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Features: 8
Now like I mentioned, the features offered by this phone is the main reason why I purchased it.
And I couldn't be happier for doing so because there are a lot of things that I can do with the stock stuff that was packed
with the phone ... and even more via free downloads. I will be discussing some of the most notable features or those that
I find really cool/useful.
Entertainment section host 3 items: Games, MusicDJ, and Record
Sound (w/c shouldn't be a part of the Entertainment section IMO). The games section is obviously where the games are located.
The phone by default comes with 3 games: RiverRiders, Darts, and Super Real Tennis (w/c is the only game worth playing among
the three IMO).
The pre-installed games are a nice plus. However like I mentioned, its only the Tennis game that
is worth playing. It uses 3d graphics with points system that adds a bit of depth to a simple mobile game. Darts on the other
hand will only give u a moving dot on the screen, and its up to u to time ur shot ... that's pretty much it. Same goes with
RiverRiders, its a side scrolling 2d game wherein u have to move left or right to avoid the obstacles ... something a 5yr
old kid would love yeah ... but c'mon!
MusicDJ should give u a few minutes of entertainment because it will enable u to compose ur own
midi tone using its pre-installed cuts. U can add drums, bass, chords, and accents cuts simultaneously using pre-defined genres.
The Record Sound function pretty much does what its name tries to imply.
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Camera section is basically
where u can take pictures and videos. Positioning the phone vertically takes pictures in landscape, while horizontally positioning
it takes portrait pictures which sound odd but it can be immediately rotated right after clicking on the "capture" button,
pushing the camera button itself, or pressing on the stick. The phone is only equipped with a .3MP camera and it is maxed
at 640x480 res. The extended mode however extrapolates the picture and was said that it generates better looking pictures
when compared to stretched pics using photo editors (though I haven't proven that myself .. yet).
There are multiple resolution to choose from (160/4x max zoom, 320/2x max zoom, 640, and 1280
extended) when taking pics w/c can easily be accessed by using the "1" shortcut key. There's also a pic quality option (normal
and fine) w/c AFAIK increases/reduces the file compression. The typical effects,
frames, nightmode, and self-timer (w/c respectively uses the number 3, n/a, 2, and 7 shortcut keys) are on offer. One
thing that is quite a nice addition is the face frames that is quite entertaining to look at. Not to mention the light ("5"
shortcut key) that helps a lot when trying to take pictures of objects on dim areas. The camera click or "kashak" sound
(w/c is irritating at best) can be disabled by setting the phone in silent mode (thought it doesn't work with all firmware
versions).
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| Panorama Mode |
The overall picture quality totally depends on the amount of ambient light. If there are lots
of it, picture quality should be pretty high at any given resolutions. Otherwise u'll feel like ur using an older mobile phone
that suffers from blue dots and magenta on bright white areas due to its CMOS sensor. On the bright side the phone has
this "Panorama" effect that takes up to 3 pictures and stitch them together to give u a 180deg effect. Let me give u an idea
how it works: U start off by taking a single picture, the camera will then store that picture and move a small portion of
the pics right side to the display's left side ... u can now move the camera going to the right and using the edge of the
first pic as a guide enables u to position the camera perfectly so that the next pic will look like its the continuation of
the first pic. Ugh! I got a headache just trying to explain that. Try clicking on the sample pic on the right to have an idea.
That picture, believe it or not is composed of 3 pics that was stitched by the phone itself.
The video on the other hand works pretty much the same as the picture camera. U have an option
to limit the video to 10secs or to whatever free space is available. However there are only 2 resolutions available, 128 and
176. The effects, nightmode, and light are still available in this mode. The quality in this mode is pretty much what u can
expect on a mid-end mobile phone. Fast moving objects or moving the camera quickly will cause pixelation. Holding it steady
generates acceptable to clear videos.
Radio and Media Player is
K700i's audio/video dept. The radio function is pretty simple. Plugging in the headset (required for radio) that comes
with the phone will enable u to listen to the phones FM tuner. Tapping and holding (manual / auto-tune) the stick left/right
will make the tuner tune into a particular BW. U can save radio stations plus the usual stuff that u'd expect with a typical
FM Tuner. Signal is a bit on the weak side with my experience. There are a few stations that was skipped when I tried using
the auto-tune. Signal strength should vary depending on where u'r located though.
The Media Player can play both audio and video. It supports wav, mp3, midi, amr, 3gp etc. Now
I only play mp3's with this phone. The sound quality of the external speaker is maxed out at around 32kbps / mono (although
24kbps will suffice for classical and pop music). The built-in speaker is pretty loud and doesn't distort on high volumes. However
if u'r using the earphones, u should at least use 64kbps. Well I'm not saying the included earpiece are made of high quality
speakers, but they have more detail (though high and low freq is obviously lacking) and it is using stereo instead of
mono only ouput of the external speaker.
U have the option to display the remaining time ("1" shortcut key) or the usual count-up display
("2" shortcut key) for both audio and video. U can use the stick to move fast fwd/reverse audio tracks (not an option for
video). The audio/video will pause for a few seconds if an incoming text message arrives, and resumes a few seconds after.
There's a few preset available for the equalizer as well as the option to manually set the sliders, and they noticeably
affects the audio quality. The usual audio/video info and random play are also available.
File Manager is basically where all ur files and apps are
stored into. Managing ur files here is pretty simple. Now I have only tested file transferring using a 3rd party bluetooth
dongle with its packaged software with this phone. And I can directly transfer files on the ff folders: pictures, sound, videos,
and themes. The games and applications folder are not visible and transferring of .jar etc files to the said folders are possible
by pasting them to the main directory, the phone will automatically give u the option to store them on either the games or
apps folder afterwards. U can create an additional folder on the main directory but not inside another folder. U can mark
multiple items that will enable u to move them to another folder or delete them, but u do not have the option to queue
and send them to another device (w/c is possible with other phone models). Those little things are not deal breakers but its
frustrating to send multiple items one at a time.
U can view ur pictures and videos here w/c are stored by default
on the Cam Pics/Vids folder. The pics will be resized to minimize by default to fit the width or height so u can view it in
full screen. If u however want to maximize every pixel the phone has to offer u may want to edit and resize ur pics to 176x220
or 200x176 and view it as a slideshow. The phone will automatically rotate the pic to either a landscape or portrait orientation
and will be displayed in fullscreen. This is great especially for viewing group pics. U can then use the upper left button
to pause/resume the slideshow. On the down side, if u want to view a high-res pic or doesn't want to edit pics ... the phone
weirdly enough doesn't have a zoom function. However as an alternative u can use the "edit" feature to view the pics on its
original size. There u will also be able to add frames, icons, text, adjust colors etc to ur pics. The icons quality is pretty
high unlike other phones that uses child looking sketches for icons.
The Themes can be easily applied by simply pressing on the "Set"
button. The nice thing with SE's themes is that u can have a max of 3 backgrounds: one that serves as the wallpaper, another
for the main menu, and the pop-up menu. Themes can really change the overall look and feel of the phone because it changes
a lot of things like the background, buttons, font/highlight/scrollbar colors, add transparency effects, etc. Add to
that the phone's capability to display animated wallpapers that can be customized inside the profile section. And oh, another
cool thing is that the phone enables u to create ur own theme. Weirdly enough though is that the CD that comes in with the
phone doesn't have that software. You have to download it via SE's website. Check the next page out for more info and
downloads of some of the themes that I have created.
Messaging packs the usual SMS and MMS options. There
are some things that I would like to add to what I mentioned on the previous page though. First off, this
phone supports animated icons, sound effects (etc) that is also supported by other cellphone brands. U can also
insert the original message when replying on any part of the message by accessing the menu. And one thing that really struck
me by surprise the first time I received an SMS message is that the phone also display the picture (inside the phonebook)
when receiving a SMS message (same goes when receiving calls and dialling out). That kind of feature helps heavy texter's
like me ID incoming messages. I'm not sure what other phone brands/models have this specific feature but although this might
not be a big deal for some folks, for me its an excellent feature that helps me continue on working even after receiving a
text from some guys that I know has nothing important to tell me =p I no longer force myself to read every single text messages
that I receive because I know exactly who texted me even before opening the message. One thing that I like mention regarding
this feature though is that if u have 2 or more unread message, the picture will turn into the usual envelope icon instead
of the picture of the sender/s ... that is regardless if the message came from a single person or not. And if u want ur phone
to look even cooler, add an animated picture/slideshow of ur friend (u need a special software for this though). It really
looks cool when u receive a text or when ur talking with someone using a headset and the phone continously display the animated
picture of ur friend ... kinda makes some people stare on ur phone in surprise when ur doing it lol!
A couple of other things ... the 10 last/most often texted phonebook entries are presented
to u when sending the message (along with the usual manual entry of the phone number and option to open up the phonebook).
The inbox and sent items share the same "list options", so if u don't want ur sent items to be viewed all that easily, u will
be forced to hide the details with ur inbox as well. U have the usual copy option for numerics on the message and a shortcut
to give the guy/gal who sent u the message a call. And if ur creating a lengthy message, the phone will display a 20 letter
countdown to the next SMS message w/c is IMO a bit late 'coz it may be a little bit too late to conserve letters when composing
(not really a big deal if u have unlimited text message though).
Making a call is something of what u could expect from ur typical
phone. U can conference someone in ur current call, record ur call (it makes a beeping sound every 20sec that makes the other
party suspicious though), text while in a call etc. U cannot however play a game/mp3 or open up apps while in a call. Bluetooth
detection works smoothly, well at least with my Creative CB2460. The packaged headset works pretty well too! The mic is nicely
positioned and is pretty sensitive even when ur only speaking softly.
Speaking of ID, the Phonebook has the usual input features like email,
additional phone numbers, caller specific ringtone, picture, voice command, web and physical address, etc. U can create
a group but the phone doesn't allow u to set a specific ringtone for a specified group ... yes u can always manually add ringtone's
but that's tedious.
The Organizer is where u'll find the extra features like calendar,
notes, tasks, stopwatch, alarm, timer, calculator etc are located. Unless u haven't used a cellphone before ... I'm pretty
sure u guys already know what those features are for. One thing I would like to mention however is the phone's "alarm" feature.
The alarm is by default will start using the phones Level 1 volume and will increase its volume every 3secs (or so) after
that. That's pretty cool if u don't want to wake up everyone in ur room or pee in surprise when u wake up in the
morning. The alarm system also makes the phones backlight blink and it will turn ur phone automatically even if its off.
The Profile section hosts the usual volume, vibrate, etc adjustments.
This phone however has an increasing ring feature w/c might be helpful for some who doesn't wanna bother other people because
of their loud ringtone. However u might also end up missing calls when ur callers are not patient enough to wait for u to
hear the tone. Another add-on here w/c is already a typical feature for most phones is the screensaver and power save
mode. The said features are by no means flexible and the user cannot give a specified amount of time before they are displayed
or taken off the screen. The power save mode however is almost a necessity for this phone because it drains the battery like
a thirsty camel on a desert. The phone will only usually last for a day and a half with regular usage. Otherwise u'll find
urself plugging ur phone every single day ... and yes that is even after upgrading to a newer firmware version that was said
to fix the battery issue ... sucks huh?!
Overall / Value: 8.5
I could have given this phone a much higher rating but there were little things that could have
made this phone even better. The battery issue may not be a big deal for some since its easy to plug the phone and charge
it. But it takes aroud 2hrs to fully charge the battery (while its turned off with a 450mAh charger), and that by no means
can be considered "quick". The picture zoom and numerical entries shortcut key while texting are some of the other
lacking features that prevented me for giving this phone an overall score of 9. But despite that, I still highly recommend
this phone to anyone who is looking for a cheap (well maybe not so cheap) solution for a phone that is packed with features
and is easy to use. The ability to create ur own themes and download apps and games also help extend the phone's functionality.
The addition of bluetooth helps a lot when transferring files with other cellphone's or to ur own computer.
I always find my phone getting passed around the office for different reasons, some want to
listen to music, some want to take pictures with the face frames (w/c I also love for a laugh), some want to play games with
it, some just want to check the themes that I created (and hope they can do the same w/ their phones) etc. With
that said its not hard to recommend this phone. And if u have enough moolah to purchase the even better K750i ... I suggest
that u go for it. Its got 2MP auto-focus camera, more display colors, expandable memory, better exterior looks etc.
If u can't afford either of the two and is willing to lose the bluetooth and portrait camera function, as well as only have
12mb of memory, u can grab urself this phones little brother, the K500i. The K300i is pretty much the same as the
K500i with the exception of its smaller screen and is also IMO a good buy. I recommend checking their LCD's first because
I find the K300i's screen quality pretty low when compared to K700i. Not sure about K500i's screen though.
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