In the history of mobile phones, there are always particular models which leave their mark, either because they reflect a pivotal moment, such as the old ‘brick’-like models of the early 90s which introduced mobile telephony to Malta, and the Apple iPhone, hailed as the first smartphone, or simply because they make the use of the mobile phone more affordable and universal, like the Nokia 3310 which can still be seen around in Malta.
The Vodafone Smart Android is a budget phone custom-made for Vodafone by Chinese manufacturer Huawei, of the largest mobile manufacturers in the world.
However this is not a Chinese phone, but a small smartphone that can sit comfortably with its larger and more expensive brothers. It has the potential to introduce the smartphone world to tens of thousands of mobile users still stuck to simple calls and SMS.
This phone is small, with a 2.8-inch touchscreen and weighs just over 100 grammes, thus it will fit into any pocket. Yet it sports the Android 2.2 Froyo operating system, a two megapixel camera, allows 3G and Wi-Fi internet connectivity up to a speed of 3.6 Mbps, has Bluetooth, has a micro-SD card slot expandable to 3Gb, and even has an in-built FM radio receiver.
The first impression, i.e. that it is very light, is immediately confirmed but the overall build does not feel cheap.
The screen has a resolution of 240x320, which is not very good, and the touchscreen is resistive (and not capacitive like on the high-end smartphones). We found the cramped virtual keyboard hard to use (especially if you are a man with large fingers, which should make girls more comfortable with it).
The heart of the Vodafone Smart Android is a single core processor that provides decent power but cannot handle multi-tasking.
We were impressed with Android 2.2 Froyo on such a small device. Though it is not the full 2.2 experience, it works well and comes ready with the most basic but essential apps such as Gmail and Facebook. However the user can quickly log in to Android Market and download more apps. Users should beware that the phone has limited on-board storage capacity for apps.
We liked the FM receiver and it proved quite handy.
3G and Wi-Fi connectivity are ok, and making/receiving calls, sending/receiving SMS and surfing internet is fine within the limits of the small screen and low-power processor.
The small screen has one advantage: the bigger and brighter the screen the higher the drain on the battery. The battery life is ok on this phone but it always depends on the usage, with 3G internet and the brightness of the screen always sucking most power. We could easily get a full re-charge in about two hours.
The Vodafone Smart Android is a small, easy-to-carry, basic phone that, if it won’t get its name engraved in any hall of fame, it could easily be remembered by many as their first smartphone. At €99 it is truly an affordable introduction to this new exciting mobile world of internet and social networks.
Vodafone Malta gave a review copy of the Vodafone Smart Android to i-Tech.