The MPx is the latest in the series of Pocket PC-based mobile phones from Motorola. It takes the Smartphone/Communicator concept ahead with its radically new design, based around a dual hinge that allows the phone to be flipped open in portrait as well as landscape mode. The portrait mode is ideal for using it as a phone, and the landscape mode is more conducive for data communication. Though bulky in design, it is pretty much in line with other Communicator models such as the Nokia 9500, and the Treo 600. The body is made of plastic and sports a combination of dark metallic blue and silver hues, lending the phone executive looks. Fit and finish is top-notch. Ergonomically speaking, the keypad is usable, but leaves a lot to be desired—especially when compared to the Nokia 9500. The blue backlight hampers legibility and does not help much. The stylus is placed in an awkward position with respect to the portrait mode. There are two displays on the phone—the small external colour display is helpful but susceptible to blackouts in direct sunlight. There are three quick access buttons beneath the external screen, and these come in handy in putting the phone into silent mode, or to control MP3 playback—or to switch on the voice recorder. The internal screen is a regular 320 x 240 trans-reflective TFT capable of 65K colour depth. Compared to other Pocket PCs, the screen on the MPx is diagonally smaller by around 0.7-inch, and this is instantly noticeable. That apart, the display quality is reasonably good. Like a true communicator, the MPx 300 offers abundant connectivity options such as infrared, GPRS, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. When switching to a Wi-Fi connection, you need to switch off the GPRS connection. A neat tool makes Wi-Fi configuration a simple task. Bluetooth, too, works perfectly without any problems. On the media side, a camera capable of a maximum resolution of 1280 x 960 is integrated, with a short-range flash that fails to impress. No video recording is possible, but photo image quality is fairly good. Memory is, however, limited, and one gets just 15 MB for use. You can, however, increase the memory by way of an SD card. On the software side, you get most what MS Pocket PCs have to offer. The speech recognition akes a while to get used to, but it works. The box comes with a Bluetooth headset, a sync cable, the power adapter and software CDs.
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