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.