O2 XDA Flame

The O2 XDA Flame is a touch screen PDA phone that has a candy bar form factor designed with Windows Mobile 5.0. The O2 XDA Flame comes with 3.6-inch VGA TFT resistive touch screen display, 2.0-megapixel digital camera with video capturing function, auto-focus and along with a secondary VGA camera. It is also a Tri-band GSM phone (900/1800/1900MHz) and UMTS (2100MHz) compatible where it is ready to run on 2G or 3G networks. In addition, the 3G technology provides fast downloads of data (384 kbps), multitasking task and streaming multimedia. The phone is powered by Microsoft Windows Mobile 5.0 as its operating system combined with Intel XScale PXA 270 and also NVIDIA GoForce 5500 Processors. The phone also provides users with Wireless technology (802.11b/g), IRDA (infra-red) wireless compatibility, 2 GB of flash ROM memory, 128 MB of RAM memory, support microSD memory card slot for additional storage, support Bluetooth 2.0 and USB 2.0 connectivity; plus it comes with a built-in dual stereo speaker. The cell phone is available in either Black or Silver coloured enclosure.

Specifications
Form factor
The O2 XDA Flame measures at 126 mm in height, 74 mm in width, 17.5 mm in depth and 190 grams in weight. Besides that, the device is equipped with 2.0-megapixel (1600-by-1200-pixel resolutions) digital camera, LED flash, 4x digital zooming capability and CMOS auto focus feature that provides pictures of high quality even if you are in low light area. In addition, it has a secondary VGA front camera for video call or video conferencing purposes. The O2 XDA Flame also supports video recording for MPEG-4 VGA, video playback and video streaming which can be displayed and viewed in the colour display. The cell phone is available in either Black or Silver coloured enclosure.

Network
It also works on Tri-band GSM (900, 1800, 1900 MHz) and UMTS (2100MHz) networks, support microSD memory card slot for expanding its storage capability, Wireless connectivity through 802.11b/g protocols, Bluetooth SIG version 2.0 connectivity which includes EDR, support USB 2.0 connectivity and also comes with Data GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots) that provides 32 to 48 kbps transfer speed.

Features
The cell phone comes with a Stereo FM radio with RDS, voice memo, voice recorder, Polyphonic (64-chord), MP3, WAV, MIDI and WMA ring tones; a speakerphone, vibration alert, FM radio, equipped with SRS WOW HD surround sound through its internal speaker, an internal antenna, games, 2.5mm audio headset, push-to-talk email and a connector for TV output where user can enjoy watching picture on an external display such as TV or projector. Its phone book provides advanced contacts database with support for multiple phone, an e-mail details per entry that has unlimited entries and fields, plus it also supports thumbnail pictures and groups where users would be able to categorize the caller according to specified photo or groups. The O2 XDA Flame uses Microsoft Windows Mobile 5.0 PocketPC as its operating system, along with Intel XScale PXA 270 and also NVIDIA GoForce 5500 Processors that comes with 520 MHz speed. Other software installed or supported by the device includes Windows Mobile Web browser, Wireless Manager application, O2 Phone Plus for easier searching of contacts, O2 SMS Plus that can display both received and sent text messages on the same page, O2 Menu, Java 2 Micro Edition (J2ME) application, MIDP 2.0, plus USB On-The-Go (OTG) feature using File Explorer application that support drag and drop functionality. It also comes with WAP 2.0 Browser, supports xHTML and HTML (PocketIE). The browser provides users with access to the internet at broadband speeds with the help from its 3G technology. Users can also view office format documents (Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, PDF viewer) as the device supports document viewing capabilities through its Pocket office application.

Display
It features a 3.6-inch VGA TFT resistive touch screen with 640-by-480-pixel resolutions display of up to 262,000 colours for the user to view and it also features the Handwriting recognition function. Navigation through the TFT touchscreen using the XDA flame is quite simple and easy for user with its fast responsive graphic interface.

Multimedia
The device is equipped with 2.0-megapixel (1600-by-1200-pixel resolutions) digital camera, LED flash, 4x digital zooming capability and CMOS auto focus feature that provides pictures of high quality even if you are in low light area. In addition, it has a secondary VGA front camera for video call or video conferencing purposes. The O2 XDA Flame also supports video recording for MPEG-4 VGA, video playback and video streaming which can be displayed and viewed in the colour display. It also supports audio formats such as Mp3, AAC, MIDI, WMA, WAV, AMR and still image formats like JPEG.

Messaging and data
In terms of messaging and data, it is fitted with basic offerings which include e-mail, text messaging (SMS), instant messaging and Picture messaging (MMS).

Memory and connectivity
It supports Bluetooth 2.0 wireless technology without the hassle of using wired cables, comes with a 2 GB of flash ROM memory, 128 MB of RAM memory, plus it also supports microSD card slot for additional storage and USB connectivity for expanding its storage capabilities and transferring of data.

Power and Battery
The O2 XDA Flame uses standard Lithium-Polymer with 1620mAH battery capacity. Its talk time is rated up to 6 hours of usage, while the stand by time is up to 200 hours.

Review:

“An Intel 520MHz processor powers the Flame. In our daily use, we found it to be snappy in menus and applications. However, it will take about 2 seconds for the Flame’s display to turn on after pressing the power button. While not a deal-breaker, it certainly is annoying and will take some getting used to. … Our review unit came with Windows Mobile 5.0. O2 said it is testing Windows Mobile 6 on it, but at the time of writing this, there was still no confirmation as to whether there would be an upgrade.” – (CNET ASIA, 2007)