Motorola Backflip – First Android phone from AT&T
For:
Motorola Backflip has fresh design with trackpad behind the display. It also features numerous wireless features, more AT&T services and 5-megapixel camera.
Against:
It is sluggish and only runs on Android 1.5. The display size is smaller than that of other smartphones.
The Whiz Kid Speaks:
Motorola Backflip is based on WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM technology that supports quad-band of WCDMA(UMTS)/GSM 850/900/1800/1900. The smartphone has folder type design and is powered with 528MHz Qualcomm MSM7201A processor. The operating system is Google Android 1.5. The Backflip has one micro-SD expansion that accepts up to 32GB cards. Supported wireless interfaces are Bluetooth 2.0 and IEEE 802.11b/g.
3.1 inches capacitive touch-screen LCD display has a resolution of 320×480 pixels that supports 18-bit (262,000) colors. Motorola Backflip has Backtrack pad behind the display and QWERTY keyboard. It has 5-megapixel camera that features LED light, automatic focus adjustment and video recording. Supported digital video playback formats are H.264, H.263 video and AMR audio, and MPEG4. Supported audio standards include AAC+, AAC, MIDI, WAV and MP3.
The additional features of Motorola Backflip are Class 12 EDGE, Class 12 GPRS, HSDPA, Android Market, Android Webkit HTML browser, RSS feeds, voice command, voice dialing, internal antenna, touch-screen, USB, A-GPS and speakerphone. Messaging features include multimedia and text messaging, support for POP3/IMAP4/SMTP and instant messengers such as Wireless Village 1.1 and Google Talk.
Motorola Backflip has 1400mAH lithium ion battery that has a life of 350 minutes talk time and 315 hours of idle standby time. The smartphone has two connectors: 1×3.500 headset jack – mini-phone and 1×micro-USB.
Razzle Dazzle:
Motorola Backflip looks like the Cliq due to its round edges and rectangular shape. The Backflip is 4.25 inches tall, 2.08 inches wide and 0.6 inch deep. The smartphone has flip design.
Inside Dope:
AT&T had announced that it would launch its first Android Device in February and has come up with the new – Motorola Backflip. This smartphone was one of the big announcements in CES 2010 and was awarded the “Best of CES 2010” awards in “cell phones and smartphones” category. It features QWERTY keyboard, 5-megapixel camera, numerous wireless options and trackpad located behind the LCD display. But the Backflip smartphone has some performance issues and uses Google Android 1.5 as operating system. If you are waiting for some improved and upgraded features, then maybe you should wait for a little while because four other Android smartphones are expected to launch in upcoming months. Motorola Backflip costs $99.99 and comes along with a two-year contract from AT&T after mail-in rebate of $100. Motorola says that keyboard is rugged. The display size is smaller than that of other smartphones. The keyboard is a matter of concern as it is exposed at the back. The company also announced that the Backflip will be upgradeable to Android 2.1, but it did not releasing any details.
Design
The major aspect of the Backflip is its flip design instead of slider. The keyboard is located just beneath the display. The hinge is hard enough and the layout is impressive.
Camera activation/capture key, micro-USB port and volume rocker are located on the right side. Power/lock key and 3.5mm headset jack sits on the top. Touch-sensitive controls for back key, home screen and menu are located beneath the display. Micro-SD card slot is located behind battery door.
Display
3.1 inches capacitive touch-screen LCD display of Motorola Backflip has HVGA resolution of 320×420 pixels that supports 256,000 colors. The display is not sharp and vibrant like other Android smartphones like Nexus One and Motorola Droid. Also, the display size of the Backflip is smaller. The smartphone features inbuilt accelerometer, but not pinch-to-zoom feature. You have to double tap on the screen for quick zoom. The accelerometer only works in selected applications like maps and browser. There is a noticeable delay in the working of accelerometer.
Keyboard
The QWERTY keyboard of Motorola Backflip is spacious and has square shaped buttons of good size. On pressing, the keys provide springy feedback. Symbol and numeric keys are marked in blue and have double size as compared to white marked letters keys. As usual, the keyboard has bright backlight. You will also find some shortcuts such as for menu screen, home screen, messages, search and Web, located at left side and in bottom row. The camera lens and flash are located on the corner of keyboard.
Backtrack Navigation
Motorola has introduced new feature – Backtrack navigation pad located behind the touch-screen display. It just works like trackpad for navigation. You swipe your finger on it for moving between photos and home screen, and scrolling via applications and lists. This Backtrack provides clear view of display because your fingers are behind the screen. We are sure that after some usage, you will like this new concept. It offers smoother experience than touch screen. When you open the Backflip at 90-degree angle, it enters into media mode that shows alarm clock, weather, date and time.
Features
The feature set of Motorola Backflip includes A-GPS, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, 3G Support, noise reduction technology, speaker phone, voice dialing and quad-band world roaming.
In addition, the basic features are polyphonic ring-tones, conference call capability, call timer, basic calculator, reminder, calendar and alarm clock.
Operating System and Applications
Motorola Backflip runs on Google Android 1.5 operating system. The company says that the Backflip will be upgradeable to Android 2.1, but does not comment on releasing any details.
Motorola Backflip has pre-installed YouTube, QuickOffice Suite, Google Maps, Google Talk, Gmail, Amazon MP3 store, Android Market and Android Webkit HTML browser. The default search engine is Yahoo! instead of Google.
MotoBlur
Motorola Backflip uses MotoBlur interface like the Devour and the Cliq. It merges the contacts information from numerous social networking Web sites and email accounts in one master list. Moreover, all emails except Gmail are combined in one universal inbox. All appointments also combined in one master calendar. It also features widgets, which you can add on five home screens to display messages, status updates and others.
A small icon will be displayed next to each unread message to indicate the email account. While testing, we easily configured Twitter, Facebook, Yahoo, Gmail and our Exchange account on the phone. The appointments took some time to display.
AT&T Services
AT&T has also included its services in Motorola Backflip such as Mobile Banking, Yellow Pages Mobile, AllSport GPS, AT&T Wi-Fi Hot Sports, AT&T Navigator and AT&T Music and Video.
Camera
Motorola Backflip has 5-megapixel camera with LED flashlight. While testing, the picture quality was washed out and little hazy. Also, camera took few seconds for turning on.
Call Quality
We made few calls through quad-band based Motorola Backflip using AT&T network. The overall call quality was average and mixed. We received clear, crispy and loud sound at our without any noise distortion or background noise. The callers received some static on their end. The speakerphone call quality was good on both sides. Both of us received full, rich and clear sound without any hollowness. We also did not get any problem in pairing Bluetooth headsets from Motorola S9 and Logitech Mobile Traveller.
3G Test
We browsed some Web sites through browser using 3G network of AT&T. Microsoft.com loaded in 10 seconds and a Google search took 5 seconds to complete. The AT&T and YouTube videos buffered quickly only before playback. Streaming video quality was murky from AT&T Videos, but better from YouTube. The music quality over the speakers was awesome and impressive. The volume was enough loud and clear both on speakers and headphones.
Performance Test
Motorola Backflip is using a 528MHz processor but its Android 1.5 operating system is a hurdle in good performance. The Backflip took some seconds even to rotate the screen on tilting the phone. Moreover, the smartphone restarted once on trying to start camera application. We think that it is better to wait for Google Android 2.1 for this smartphone.
Battery Life
Motorola Backflip uses 1400mAH lithium ion battery that has a life of 13.5 days idle standby time and 6 hours of talk time. The digital SAR rating is 1.37 watts per kg as per FCC radiation tests.
Verdict:
Motorola Backflip has new and fresh design as compared to other smartphones, but its lacks in performance and features. If you need a new smartphone and cannot wait for latest Android smartphones and upgrades, then you can buy Motorola Backflip. We will recommend you to check other smartphones in same price range.
