Basic, but functional (Motorola M3788)

Member Name: Borat

Product:	Motorola M3788
Date:	22/03/01 (343 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Cheap, robust, solid controls keys

Disadvantages: Boring ringtones, can't copy number directly from SMS message to phone book, ring tone sounds as you adjust its volume, big and heavy

OK, lets get something straight - this is NOT a fashion accessory, it will not make you look cool, nor will it let you forget you are lugging it around. However, what it does do, it does fairly well.

This phone is fairly limited on features - no clock for example, which is a bit of a pain when you get a missed call, plus if the missed call was from an unknown number, it isn't listed in the missed call register. This can be a pain - say you miss a call from Bob, and then Anna phones you, but she doesn't leave her number - the phone will say "missed call", but Bob will be at the top of the list - could be confusing.

Call quality is OK, but the phone doesn't go very loud compared to my Nokia 3310. The messaging features are basic but do work, though they obviously lack new stuff like predictive text input (I love it, others hate it). The phone doesn't have a lot else in the way of features - standard SIM card based phone book (with 9 speed dials), 11 rather dull and dated ringtones (though only one message tone) and a simple call register and call timers. It does have a non resettable "lifetime timer" which you can see how long you've spent on the phone.

If you are prepared to learn things about the phone, you'll find it has some handy extra features which the Orange manual at least, doesn't mention. The phone has a shortcut menu, accessable via an arrow key, but the manual doesn't tell you these shorcuts can be changed (by highlighting the icon you want to change and holding down the OK button), so you can have instant access to things like ringer on/off, which I have on button 1, instead of the less useful "call voicemail". Another timesaver is that each phonebook entry has a number. Numbers 1 to 9 autmatically become speed dials, but to get to the higher numbers quickly, you can just key in the number and then press # to get to it instantly. If you know the person you want to di
al's shortcut number this makes phoning them very fast - even Nokia's can't do that! To find out about all these features, download the official manual from Motorola's website. A couple of niggles are that while you can reply to text messages, you can't put the number in the phone book automatically, you have to copy it manually, possibly using pen and paper, and the other thing is that when you want to adjust the ring volume, it plays the ring as you do it - great if you want to quieten it down in a meeting or library!

As far as size and weight goes, this is a big and heavy phone, and you won't forget you're carrying it, but if you put it in a case and hang it on your belt it's not too bad. Plus, being built like a brick means you can play football with it and it'll survive. It can also take standard AA batteries, but don't rely on it; all the (alkaline) ones I've tried only keep it going for about a minute and then it switches off, though the batteries are still fine. Battery life with the supplied NiMh cell is OK - about four days, providing you discharge it fully before you charge it again.

For the money (£19.99), this is a great bargain buy - you can pay more for a pay as you go SIM on it's own! Great if you just want a basic phone to make calls, and nothing else. Don't expect much and you won't be disappointed.

Summary: