Motorola FLIPSIDE Review

Introduction:

First it was the interesting BACKFLIP, then came the compact looking FLIPOUT, and now it seems as though Motorola has come full circle to finally manufacture a normal side sliding smartphone for AT&T with the Motorola FLIPSIDE MB508. Instead of falling back with some kind of intriguing mechanism in exposing its QWERTY, this mid-range handset is looking to be like any other cookie cutter handset in its category. However, its $99.99 on-contract price might assuage the feelings of regret with its purchase as it attempts to establish a well rounded performance.

The package contains:

Design:

Similar to the Motorola CLIQ with its side sliding form factor, the FLIPSIDE looks a bit more mature with its combination of chrome bezel, hard plastics, and soft touch feeling exterior. Although it's nowhere to being flashy in design by any means, especially in comparison to some Android Motorola handsets for other carriers, the design of the FLIPSIDE is relatively typical to anything else out there with its average size (0.59” thick) and weight (5.11 oz). All in all, it doesn't scream anything invigorating to make it jump out from the pack – especially with its questionable construction.



You can compare the Motorola FLIPSIDE with many other phones using our Size Visualization Tool.

It's quite obvious that you have a mid-range handset when the FLIPSIDE sports a 3.1” HVGA (320 x 480) capacitive touchscreen with support for 262k colors. Naturally, we can't complain about its level of detail, since it's able to display distinguishable sized text and neutral looking color tones. However, it becomes almost completely unusable in direct sunlight as it becomes washed out with its poor viewing angles. Luckily, it's more than responsive to the touch which makes navigating more than forgiving.

There's a good chunk of real estate below the display dedicated to the capacitive buttons and optical track-pad. Not only did we not experience any accidental presses with the four capacitive buttons, but the larger sized optical track-pad makes it especially useful as an alternative form of navigation. If there's one gripe we have about it, then it has to be the poor back-lighting found with the touch sensitive buttons.



The only thing on the left edge of the phone is the microUSB port and LED indicator light, while on the right side you've got the dedicated camera button and decently sized volume rocker which offers a responsive feedback when pressed. And located on the top side is the noise cancellation microphone, 3.5mm headset jack, and recessed dedicated power button which provides a subtle tactile feel.



Even though we're not all too impressed with the mediocre response of its sliding mechanism, we're greeted to a versatile and usable 4-row QWERTY keyboard. Despite being made out of soft plastic and flush to the surface, much like the original Motorola DROID, we're happier with the distinctive tactile response it exhibits when buttons are pressed. Moreover, buttons are average in size to provide a comfortable experience that isn't bogged down without much typos.



On the rear, we simply find the 3-megapixel camera with self portrait mirror and a single cutout for the speakerphone. Finally, the flimsy plastic back cover can be slid off to provide access to the microSD card slot, 1,540 mAh battery, and SIM card slot.

Interface and Functionality:

It's quite disappointing to see the Motorola FLIPSIDE sporting Android 2.1 because we've already seen quite a few handsets launched recently with Froyo on board from the onset. If you can somehow overlook that one major flaw, you'll be treated to the full blown MOTOBLUR customized interface running on top of Android 2.1 – which enables for some functionality directly from its homescreen, as opposed to running dedicated apps. Even more, its 720 MHz TI OMAP 3410 is able to present a high level of response in navigating around the platform, which surprisingly leaves the experience gratifying without much slowdown or pause.



Although it offers all the basic elements found with most address books, the FLIPSIDE branches out with its tight integration of social networking. In addition to displaying the usual pieces of information associated with each contact, it ingeniously throws in recent social networking activities within the “Contacts” app so you can quickly see what's happening with your circle of friends.



There's no denying that the physical keyboard is the preferred choice for inputting text, but you can always resort to using its on-screen one. Now, the only thing offered is the stock Android keyboard which feels mightily cramped with the portrait option, but it's thankfully responsive to keep up with the fast pace of typing. Additionally, the landscape option provides a bit more flexibility with its spacious confines.



Much like most other handsets, the Gmail experience on the FLIPSIDE is unfiltered as it provides the well endowed features that most users come to appreciate. However, it offers more productivity in emailing thanks to its inclusion of a physical keyboard. Aside from Gmail, setting up alternative accounts is a breeze as the phone generally requires only an address and password to automatically set up.



Social networking is in full force for this MOTOBLUR device as it provides quick access to a few different services directly from its homescreen. Using the “Happenings” widget, you can instantly post a message on Facebook and Twitter simultaneously – which beats having to run two separate apps to accomplish it. Furthermore, the “Social Networking” app is the centralized hub where you can view all the latest happenings and keep tabs with your friends.

Don't like playing phone tag with a friend you're trying to get in touch with? Well then, you can use any of the handset's included instant messaging clients to directly keep a conversation going – it includes support for AIM, Windows Live Messenger, and Yahoo Messenger.



Seeing that the FLIPSIDE is an AT&T handset, it's only fitting to find the carrier show its presence in the form of apps. Some of the AT&T branded apps installed on the phone are AT&T FamilyMap, AT&T Maps, AT&T Music, AT&T Navigator, and AT&T Radio. In addition, there are also a handful of third party applications preloaded with the phone which some can find to be useful – such as Mobile Banking, MobiTV, Quickoffice, Vlingo, Voice Dialer, Where, and YPmobile. And if you want to share a variety of content with your computer, you can opt to use the services through the Moto Phone Portal app.

Camera and Multimedia:

Generally, the handset's lack of auto-focus with its 3-megapixel camera will make closeups look extremely out of focus; while skimping out on details. In outdoor conditions with good lighting, images have a soft tone with drab looking colors – which unfortunately reduces its clarity in making out fine details. Taking things indoors, it doesn't get any better as the overall quality takes a dramatic turn towards muddy looking images with its reduced output in clarity and color reproduction.





Almost horrifying in a way, the Motorola FLIPSIDE lacks even the ability to shoot VGA videos as it instead relies on a maximum shooting resolution of 352 x 288 pixels. Naturally, fine details are undeniably missing from its recording, but it manages to capture it at a smooth rate of 27 frames per second. Nonetheless, the pixelated videos aren't anything worth boasting about as the FLIPESIDE falls behind the curve.



Sticking with the stock Android music player, the functionality is all there at your disposal to instantly get tunes playing – but don't expect the presentation to be anything worthwhile. And even though its speakerphone is able to emit some audible levels, it's a little bit on the sharp side to make it sound rather unpleasant to endure for a long period of time.

Don't expect to watch high definition content on the Motorola FLIPSIDE, but aside from that, it presents itself as worthy vessel for general video playback. We managed to load a video encoded in MPEG-4 at 480 x 320 resolution and it didn't have any trouble in playing it at all with its smooth looking visuals. Despite being limited to resolution playback, the FLIPSIDE should be more than accepting for the needs of most individuals out there.



Packing along a 2GB microSD card in its carriage, it should be more than sufficient for light users. However, heavy media centric individuals will probably want to replace it with something more spacious.

Internet and Connectivity:

You'll have piece of mind packing along the Motorola BRAVO in your travels seeing that it's a quad-band GSM (850/900/1800/1900 MHz) and dual-band UMTS (850/1900 MHz) device. Additionally, you can switch over to using its built-in Wi-Fi in the event that cellular data connectivity is somewhat lacking in specific areas. Aside from that, it has Bluetooth 2.1 to get a variety of wireless devices to connect to it; such as a wireless stereo headset.

Without question, the handset is lacking support for Adobe Flash Player 10.1 due to its unusual choice of sticking with the Android 2.1 experience. However, most people will probably not miss it too much because the handset has support for Flash Lite – which means that some elements will load up to allow an almost ideal desktop experience. Outside of that, the experience is more than gratifying as it tastefully renders complex web sites to the teeth without much wait. Moreover, everything you'd expect out of the stock Android web browser are all there – such as multi-touch gesture support and automatic text re-flow.

Performance:

Thanks to the Motorola FLIPSIDE's noise cancellation microphone, our callers didn't have any issues in sufficiently comprehending our voices on their end. However, the quality through the earpiece is marred by some interference and static which makes voices sound very difficult to understand. As far as the speakerphone, it's more than ideal to use with its deep and audible tones which makes even the softest of voices sound rich in tone.

Consistent signal strength is somewhat lacking as we witnessed some fluctuations on a few occasions, however, it didn't cause the phone to drop any phone calls during our testing in high coverage areas in the greater Philadelphia region.

Unfortunately, you'll be required to monitor almost every aspect of the handset in order to extend its battery life seeing that it's in the below average side. Just barely edging out an 8 hour work shift, normal users will still be required to charge the handset on a daily basis. The manufacturer has it rated for 7.33 hours of talk and 288 hours of standby time.

Conclusion:

No doubt that the Motorola FLIPSIDE is missing that wow factor as it follows accordingly to the model approach taken by almost every Android powered handset out there. Design wise, it's not striking as some of Motorola's previous ventures on AT&T's lineup; like the BACKFLIP and FLIPOUT. Aside from its slightly better keyboard over the Motorola DROID, there is just too much missing to make this one a stand out contender from the onset. However, its $99.99 on-contract price from the start manages to ease the pain a tad bit which makes it slightly alluring versus other mid-range devices on AT&T's lineup right now.

Software version of the reviewed unit: Blur_Version.1.23.20.MB508.ATT.en.US

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