Having a camera on your mobile phone is really a given these days. Regardless of its 2.0 mega pixels or 5.0 mega pixels it is guaranteed that your mobile will feature some sort of digital camera. However the market for having a mobile phone slash digital camera is growing with many users wanting in all in one device to save them carrying the two separately; hence why manufacturers have been steadily trying to increase the quality and superiority of their cameras.
The newest offering from Motorola, the MILESTONE XT720, is aiming to charge into the mobile phone/camera market and take it by storm by offering an 8.1 mega pixel xenon-flash camera. Never mind basking over most mobile phone cameras on the market right now the XT720 has the edge over some digital cameras as well. However is the XT720 all camera or are there other features which will make this model attractive?
Well, yes there are. Of course the XT720 has a fantastic camera but this is not the only feature that will drive consumers to embrace and love it. The screen for example; the XT720 features a 3.7 inch TFT screen which will work better outdoors than any OLED screen – like the one on the HTC Desire. Not only has the XT720 a high quality camera but it also provides the opportunity of 720 x 480 video capture. Even though this is not strictly ‘DVD quality’ as the spin doctors at Motorola would have you believe it is still pretty good quality when mobile phone video technology is still really only tapping into the potential that it offers.
The Motorola XT720 is another Android 2.1 handset and offers the usual array of multimedia support – mp3, AAC, MPEG4 etc… – that the other Android based OS mobiles have. However, somewhat surprisingly, is the fact that the XT720 doesn’t have Motoblur support. Motoblur is a hugely popular application on Motorola phones and provides great social networking feeds and personalization of your mobile phone – the fact that it isn’t available on the XT720 perhaps suggests that Motorola don’t envision the XT720 being as widely popular as other mobiles – the Flipout for example. In terms of web browsing and the XT720 is just as good as any other Android based mobile with an efficient and fast browser that can load webpages quickly; Motorola haven’t yet released the processor information for the XT720 – although some speculate that it will be a 550 MHz processor – but with 512 MB of RAM you will expect that browsing high content websites shouldn’t be too much of a problem for the XT720. The phone will also continue with the trend of Wi-Fi being an option whenever a wireless internet connection is available. Furthermore, the XT720 will have HTML 5 support through its Android OS and also the option of having up to 8 browser windows open at once which give you the opportunity for simultaneous browsing.
The phone has a 1390 mAh battery and, according to Motorola, offers up to 4.5 hours talk time and some 13 days on standby. However, we must remember that the XT720 runs on the Android system which is renowned for being quite energy hungry so expect it to be somewhat less than this. One of the big marketing advantages of the XT720 is its status as a GPS phone and will include a trial version of the Motonav app. Motonav has been touted as a traditional sat nav solution for the mobile phone market however it isn’t free. The XT720, as said, will have a trail version but after that you will have to fork out for a lifetime fee. So expects many to opt for the navigational system built into Google Maps instead although one bonus that Motonav will have over Google Maps is the fact that the satellite navigational system provided by Google will use a significant amount of data on your monthly allowance; so a onetime fee for Motonav does not seem like that costly an expense if you are going to be using GPS a lot.
Other good features of the XT720 are its 3.5 mm headphone jack which will allow you to plug in your ‘conventional’ earphones as well as HDMI output. The ability to connect the XT720 to an HD TV and show off your 8.0 mega pixel photographs means that the XT720 is really going for the digital camera market and the video previews of HD viewing are encouraging. Although, don’t expect to play many long videos on HD TV as the processor will struggle to keep a sustained and quality output after a continued period of time.
So what should we make of the XT720? In terms of its design it is a fashionable phone; at 10.9mm it fits comfortably in your hand and will not feel bulgy or overweight in your pocket. Obviously the camera is its standout achievement and beats of competition from many mobiles out there today so if you are looking for a phone that can double up as a digital camera as well as being able to make calls and keep in touch with friends and family through Facebook et al then the XT720 should be right up your alley. If the rumoured processor speed – 550 MHz – is correct then this is a little disappointing. Given the many high demand applications and uses that are available on the XT720 you have to wonder whether or not it will become laggy at times; certainly compared to the HTC Desire which is almost seamless. However overall the XT720 is a quality phone; a high resolution camera, the ability to have up to 32 GB of memory, HDMI output and Android 2.1 means that it can certainly challenge the likes of the HTC Desire. However doubts remain over the popularity that Motonav will have and whether or not its processor will be able to handle some of the more laborious tasks that many will expect of the Motorola XT720. Take a look at the Motorola MILESTONE XT720 deals available or leave you own comments on the Motorola MILESTONE XT720 reviews page.
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