Review: Cingular 8125 Pocket PC

The Cingular 8125 Pocket PC is a new smartphone from Taiwan-based manufacturer HTC that offers both high-speed EDGE connectivity and Wi-Fi capabilities in a stylish and compact case. Targeted at everyone from productivity-minded consumers to enterprise employees, the new Windows Mobile smartphone runs Microsoft's complete portfolio of Pocket PC software applications right out of the box.

Look and Feel

Sporting a glossy dark-silver finish set off by light-silver accents, the Cingular 8125 measures 4.32 x 2.32 x 0.93 inches and tips the scales at 5.3 ounces with the battery pack installed. The large dome-shaped keys on the handset's spacious, Qwerty-style keyboard deliver ample tactile feedback and are attractively backlit.

The handset's 2.8-inch screen offers images that are big, bright, and sharp. Moreover, the luxuriously large color display automatically switches to landscape mode whenever the keyboard is slid out from the casing.

Features

Cingular's new quad-band smartphone sports a 1.3-megapixel camera with flash and self-portrait mirror; a stereo headset jack; an infrared port; 128 MB of ROM; 64 MB of RAM; and a mini-SD expansion card slot for adding even more storage capacity. The handset also sports a full-duplex speakerphone and supports the conference calling, call forwarding, speed dialing, and call waiting features that handset customers have come to expect.

Mobile workers will appreciate that the Cingular 8125 can be integrated easily with corporate e-mail applications such as Microsoft Office Outlook Mobile and Microsoft Exchange Server. Even better, the Cingular 8125 will be compatible with the new "push" e-mail technology that Microsoft intends to introduce later this year.

The handset's Bluetooth radio, which offers support for wireless headsets and car kits, can double as a wireless modem for a Bluetooth-enabled laptop or PDA. The onboard Wi-Fi radio also provides mobile users with easy access to local Wi-Fi hotspots.

The available Pocket PC software applications include mobile versions of Excel, PowerPoint, Word, Internet Explorer and Microsoft Outlook. PDF files also can be accessed by way of the handset's ClearVue PDF viewer.

In addition, the Cingular 8125 features an integrated multimedia suite that includes Windows Media Player 10 Mobile, which supports MPEG-4 video streaming as well as multiple audio formats.

On the messaging front, the Pocket PC ships with Pocket MSN Messenger as well as with Cingular's own multimedia messaging service (MMS). With the Cingular 8125, users can even draw or write directly on the screen and save the resulting notes in their own handwriting.

Performance

The Cingular 8125 smartphone has been designed around a dual-core processor that bumps up the device's speed performance well beyond what one would normally expect from a 200-MHz chip. Road warriors will appreciate the handset's sliding keyboard, which renders the device impervious to the hinge connectivity problems all-too-often associated with clamshell designs. On the downside, the sliding keyboard does not lend itself to one-handed operations.

The Cingular 8125 delivers up to five hours of crystal-clear talk time with lots of moxie on the volume, or up to seven days of continuous operation in the standby mode. Buyers also will benefit from the storage capabilities of the Windows Mobile OS, which make it possible for the handset to retain data even when the device's battery has run out of juice.

Best of all, the new handset incorporates a higher-speed EDGE component that is capable of delivering data at speeds ranging between 150 and 200 Kbps. Sensitive data stored on the smartphone can be protected by requiring the use of a password every time the device is turned on.

The Verdict

Stylish and compact, the Cingular 8125 combines an admirably designed keyboard with the power of the Windows Mobile 5.0 operating system and its associated suite of Mobile Office applications.

Cingular 8125 Pocket PC

Specs: Quad-band GSM/GPRS (850/900/1800/1900 MHz) phone with EDGE capability; 2.8-inch color LCD; 195-MHz processor; 128 MB of flash memory; 64 MB of RAM; Wi-Fi (802.11b) and Bluetooth (Version 1.2) radios; Mini-SD expansion card slot; 1.3-megapixel camera and camcorder; infrared port; stereo headset jack; full-duplex speakerphone; 1,250 mAH Lithium-ion battery; internal antenna with external connector.

Pros: Qwerty keyboard; good looks; EDGE data capability; runs Microsoft's complete portfolio of Pocket PC software applications.

Cons: Sliding keyboard does not lend itself to one-handed operations.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Verdict: Stylish and compact, the Cingular 8125 effectively combines smart design with the power of the latest Windows Mobile 5.0 operating system.

Price: $299.99 with a two-year contract and qualified rate plan

www.cingular.com

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