THE MOTOROLA DEFY

The new Defy handset from Motorola is different breed of smartphone. Whilst boasting the looks that catch the eye like many models such as the iPhone 4, this phone is far more durable, making it set to become a firm favourite amongst consumers.

The Motorola Defy dispels all myths about toughened phones lacking the features of their shiny counterparts,not only is this phone laden with tools and tricks, it also maintains an overall chassis size similar to the majority of modern smartphones. At 107 x 59 x 13.4mm the handset is the perfect balance of large screen technology and compactness, remaining small enough to be easily pocketable. The screen really does dominate the front of the phone, and at 3.7" the size allows very detailed pages such as web pages to be displayed clearly. If things are still a little on the small size, you can zoom by double tapping the screen, or thanks to multi touch technology, by using the pinch and zoom method. Thanks to a powerful 800Mhz processor, pages adjust almost instantly, resulting in a great all round user experience. Graphics look full of life too. The 16 million colour count contributes towards this, as does the high resolution, which at 480 x 854 is only bettered by Apples Retina display. Looking around the sides of the phone, the only indication to its extra ridgidness is found by virtue of physical screws that are visible, yet they do not look unsightly. These screws also do there job very well, and when dropped on a variety of surfaces, the Defy stayed impressively intact. Add into the equation the fact the phone is water and dust resistant, and you have perhaps as complete a package in the looks/build department as you are likely to find.

Working on Android 2.1, the Motorola Defy allows users to utilise the vast download options that are available on the platform. This is a key point for anybody looking to get straight down to downloading, and an area where Windows 7 handsets such as the Samsung Omnia 7 may suffer until developers can get more applications into the marketplace. If you are looking for the phone to store your music collection, then you may need to invest in a micro SD card with the built in memory being just 2GB. These cards are however available in sizes up to 32GB, exceeding the built in storage found on all but the very top models. A 3.5mm headphone jack helps to complete the comprehensive music package. Camera wise the phone includes a 5 mega pixel snapper, also enabled to capture VGA video at 30 frames per second.

If you are looking for something a little more robust than the average phone, but not at the sacrifice of features, then the Defy from Motorola is the handset for you.