| NEC
e228 3G Phone Review |
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| 23rd August , 2004 |
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SECTIONS |
DESCRIPTION |
PHOTOS
BELOW |
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| Introduction |
This is a review of the NEC e228 handset and was undertaken in August, 2004 by Kevin Thomas of 3G.co.uk. This review covers the phone only and does not address the performance of 3's 3G Network. |
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| Photos |
The
review is supported by a number of relevant photos in the right hand
column of the review. |
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The
NEC e228 screen shown booting up below. |
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| 1)
Style |
STYLE
DETAILS |
PHOTOS
BELOW |
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| Style |
This is a nice looking candybar style handset which creates a good first impression on looks and size. Particular, when you consider how highly specified the handset is for a budget type handset. To see how the handset looks against the current best 3G selling phone in the UK see the photos in right column. |
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| Looks |
The phone is a combination of silver and black fascia with silver / black sides and black rear. Yes, it looks up-to-date but there are many cooler looking handsets than this one. Yet, I can't really see anyone criticising this one too much either. |
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| Front |
The NEC e228 has a 4 way navigation key and another eleven key buttons on the keypad for easy access around the phone. The forward-facing camera ( for both camera pictures and video conferencing ) is located on the top right of the phone. |
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| Left | The
left hand side of the phone houses the Memory Stick Duo card slot. |
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| Right | The
right hand side of the phone features the Headset Connector and the
USB/Charger connector. |
Right side shot | |
| Back |
The
back of the phone features the reverse camera and the cover for battery/
SIM access. The cover can be removed with ease. |
Back shot | |
| Antenna | Internal antenna. | ||
| 2)
SPEC |
SPECIFICATION
DETAILS |
PHOTOS
BELOW |
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| Quick Glance | |||
| Mode | 3G and GPRS ( Dual Mode ) | ||
| WAP | WAP 2 ( XHTML, WML ) | ||
| Dimensions | 129 x 53 x 21.5mm | ||
| Weight | 125 g | ||
| Screen | 65K
TFT 35 x 43mm |
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| Talktime | 128
minutes |
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| Videotime | 97
minutes |
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| Camera | 2
Built-in VGA cameras with 2x digital zoom |
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| Memory | 19
MB internal |
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| Expansion | Memory
Stick Duo up to 128MB |
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| Multimedia | VOD
: MPEG4 Audio : MP3 and AAC |
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| MP3 | Yes | ||
| MMS | Yes | ||
| USB | Yes | ||
| Infrared | No | ||
| Bluetooth | No - Headset & Dial-up Networking profile only | ||
| MIDI | 40 polyphonic ( SP-MIDI ) | ||
| JAVA | MIDP 2.0 | ||
| In the Box | 1 x NEC e228 3G Handset 1 x Mains Charger 1 x Li-ion Battery 1 x USB Data Cable 1 x Headset Instruction Pack and booklets ( in colour ). Software on CDROM - Phone Manager and Manual. |
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| Detailed Specification | |||
| Mode |
3G UMTS 2100 Mhz 3GPP GSM : 900/1800 MHz Class B/8 Will work on WCDMA ( 3G from 3 ) Data Speed ( CS : 64 UL/DL, PS : 384 DL, 128 UL ) and on GPRS ( O2's Network ). |
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| Weight |
125g This is the weight of the phone (with battery) and is measured in grams (g). The LG U8110 weighs in at 126g. |
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| Volume |
120
cc |
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| Dimensions |
129 x 53 x 21.5mm A comparison LG 8110 : 95.7 x 49.5 23.1mm NEC 616 : 103 x 53 x 26.4mm |
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| Battery
Life |
Battery life Battery is 3.7V Lithium at 1100mH. Standby:
93 hrs Talktime comparison for other models LG 8110 : 140 minutes NEC e616 : 93 minutes Note : Battery life is affected by lower signal strength and to which network you are hooked up to. |
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| 3)
Design |
DESIGN
DETAILS |
PHOTOS
BELOW |
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Support |
Supports
all 3's video mobile services: video calling, video messaging &
download video clips. |
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| Navigation
and Keypads |
Home screen is spilt in 3 as the icon indicator bar ( top ) the home screen ( main screen area ) and the prompt bar ( bottom ). The NEC e228 has a 4 way navigation key and another eleven key buttons on the keypad for easy access around the phone. The navigation is not quite as user friendly as the LG U8110. |
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| Keypad |
Keypads are quite slim in height but wider in width and seem fine for quick texting purposes. |
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| Display
Type |
Main Screen ( colour LCD ) TFT Size
35 x 43mm |
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| Picture
Camera |
Cameras: Integral front and back mounted cameras. Easy
to select between front and back camera |
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| Video
Camera |
Video camera is dual-purpose with picture camera. See above. Good video picture quality. Video conferencing picture quality is adequate to good. |
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| Memory |
19MB internal memory Memory Stick Duo up to 128MB |
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| 4)
Conn. |
CONNECTIVITY |
PHOTOS
BELOW |
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| Bluetooth |
No - Headset & Dial-up Networking profile only |
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| InfraRed |
No |
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| USB
Port |
Yes |
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| Content |
Allows
access to 3’s content services, ranging from news and weather
to games and entertainment. However, the service does not provide open
access to the internet through this handset i.e. a walled garden scenario. |
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| 5)
Comms |
COMMUNICATION
DETAILS |
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| Video
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Yes Download a 1MegaByte video clip in about 40 seconds via 3G. 2 Way
Video Call |
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| LBS |
Location
Based Services- Yes |
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| MMS |
Multimedia
Messaging - Yes |
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| SMS |
Yes |
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| POP3
E-mail |
Yes |
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| PIM |
Yes |
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| 6)
Sound |
SOUND
DETAILS |
PHOTOS
BELOW |
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| MP3 |
The
NEC e228 has an MP3 player on-board for playing music to the loudspeaker
or to the supplied stereo headphones. Sound quality is good. |
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| Vib
Alert |
Yes |
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| Speaker
Phone |
Yes |
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| 7)
Conclusion |
CONCLUSION
AND SCORE |
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| This
review covers the NEC e228 only and does not address the performance
of 3's 3G Network. The
score is based on a checklist developed by Kevin Thomas of www.3G.co.uk. |
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| Good |
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| First
impression of looks and size |
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| Quite
slim in depth |
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| Adequate
battery life |
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| Very good camera | |||
| Not
So Good |
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| No
Infrared |
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| Navigation
not so user friendly |
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| No
Bluetooth |
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| Views |
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| Anyone who warms to a candybar style handset should be reasonably happy with size and looks. I have shown this phone to approx. 20 people and most have said they would not object to having this as their own phone. The main issue for more technically orientated users is the lack of Infrared and Bluetooth. However, this is simply a budget type priced handset which will hold its own on the sales front. |
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| Kevin
Thomas scores the NEC e228. |
84
out of 100. |
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| Find out more about this phone and take part in discussions at 3G Forum |
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| Past Reviews | LG U8110 | 87 out of 100. | |
| Motorola A925 | 84 out of 100. | ||
| NEC e616 | 85 out of 100. | ||
| Motorola A835 | 84 out of 100. | ||
| Copyright |
You
are advised that this material is the copyright of Kevin Thomas 2004
on behalf of www.3G.co.uk and is my own personal view only. (C) All
rights reserved 2004.
Whilst
every care has been taken in the preparation of this review, Kevin Thomas
nor 3Gcouk cannot be held responsible for the accuracy or authenticity
of the information it contains, or any consequence arising from it. |
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Terms
used |
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Battery/Video
Times |
Battery
/ Video Times - The total time a battery can power a phone for mobile
calls. As the phone drains the battery during a call, the talk time
left in the battery is diminished until the phone is turned off or the
battery recharged. The longer the talk time the less frequently you
will need to recharge. |
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Battery
Standby |
Battery
Standby The time a battery can power a phone in the standby mode, switched
on and ready to make or receive a call, without being used for an actual
call. The longer a phone is in standby mode, the less standby time remains
in the battery. |
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Bluetooth |
Bluetooth®
is a revolutionary new technology that allows different electronic devices
to share data and communicate without using wires. These devices include
phones, printers, personal computers or laptops. In order for it to
work, both devices need to be “Bluetooth® enabled”. |
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| LBS |
Location Based Service Combined with services from the network service provider, integrated AGPS technology enables you to find your way around. AGPS helps you find your favorite stores or restaurants at a moment's notice Global
Satellite Positioning (AGPS) enabled for enhanced location services
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| MIDI | Musical Instrument Digital Interface | ||
| MMS | Multimedia Messaging Service | ||
POP3
E-mail |
The
POP3 e-mail function allows you to use your phone to access e-mail.
(The e-mail is retrieved from a server over the air). |
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USB |
USB
(universal serial bus) is a fast (1Mbps) path for data transfer between
the phone and an external device, such as a pc. |
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| VOD | Video on Demand | ||
| WAP | Wireless
Application Protocol |
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