Our 3 Skypephone S2 Review

3 Skypephone S2

Design

The 3 Skypephone S2’s design is straightforward and reminiscent of the Sony Ericsson’s designs back in the early 2000’s. It comes in black and white with red or aqua lines round the edges. Made from plastic and silver metal, the 3 Skypephone S2 gives off a durable look which didn’t disappoint – the accidental falls to the ground did not give it any serious scratches.

Screen

At 2.2”, the 3 Skypephone S2’s delivers 262,000 colours at a 420x320 resolution. The TFT screen is bright with colours and well contrasted. We were stunned with the screen’s performance under direct sunlight, as it delivers great quality and proper clarity.

3 Skypephone S2 angled

User Interface

The 3 Skypephone S2’s interface is easy to follow and neatly organized. Since the handset is marketed as a “Skype” handset, its user interface revolves around Skype integration. It comes equipped with a functional Skype client with great functionality. The lower home screen strips offers quick access to your favourite applications with nifty speed.

Keypad

The 3 Skypephone S2’s keypad is dependable and easy to type with, whilst the branded Skype D-pad provides proper directional navigation. The keypad is not as comfortable as the handset’s previous model as the keys are a tad smaller. Using the bottom carousel, you can easily navigate through your widget system. It offers a refreshing change from the touch screen’s QWERTY keyboard and accidental tapping.

Camera and Multimedia

The camera at 3.2 MP spots a maximum 2048 x 1536 resolution which should do for most Skype users. It lacks flash and autofocus making it harder to shoot in poor-lit areas. While it is not up to standard with most high-end camera, it develops great photo quality that looks great both on screen and on your laptop’s screen.. It was disappointing for us not to find a front video-conferencing camera, after all the 3 Skypephone S2 is built for VoIP calls.

3 Skypephone S2 flat

In terms of multimedia, the 3 Skypephone S2 isn’t a performer. The music player supports MP3, AAC, and AAC+ which comes off as pretty basic for most music lovers. The video recording and playback is average with MPEG 4 and 3GP support.

Connectivity and Battery Life

The 3 Skypephone S2’s is bundled with great connectivity from 3G HSDPA, GPRS, Bluetooth 2.0, to a USB port, you are always connected and ready to take your Skype calls.

The handset comes with a built-in Skype client allowing users to automatically connect to their accounts. We found the 3G HSDPA to be a great booster for VoIP sound quality, but at times it suffered greatly from crackles and a peculiar echo. In addition to the built-in Skype client, the 3 Skypephone S2 is integrated with Facebook and Windows Live Messenger. While the former is minimalist and restricted to your profile, messages, and alerts, the latter functionality is the same as the desktop version. Texting lovers will enjoy the handy Skype Chat IM is bundled with the 3 Skypephone S2.

3 Skypephone S2 back

The 3 Skypephone S2’s battery life is currently estimated at 7 hours talk-time and 262 hours standby, an impressive number for a handset of this price range. Such battery life not only guarantees you won’t be cut off in a middle of a call, but we found you can easily leave for your handset without charging for 3-4 days.

What We Liked

We liked the 3 Skypephone S2’s Skype, Windows Live, and Facebook integration. Battery life was good.

What We Disliked

No flash or autofocus. The lack of a forward-facing camera.

Our Final Verdict

The 3 Skypephone S2 is a drastic improvement from its predecessor. Not only does it accommodate the needs of Skype users, but also brings in new social networking giants such as Facebook and Live Messenger. The 3G HSDPA support makes this handset a winner for its calling quality and power saving. If you’re looking for a great social networking handset, the 3 Skypephone S2 is your choice at a great price.

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	3 Skypephone S2
General
Form Factor	Candybar
Dimensions	103 x 45 x 15 (mm)
Talk Time	270 mins
Standby Time	320 hours
Weight	95 g
Quad Band	Yes
Photo and Video
Integrated Camera	Yes
Camera	3.20 megapixels
Camera Flash	Yes
Video Player	Yes
Phone
Voice Recognition	Yes
Internal Memory	50 MB
Memory Card Type	microSD
Messaging
Photo Messaging	Yes
Predictive Text	Yes
Video Messaging	Yes
Screen
Colour Screen	Yes
Screen Resolution	176 x 220 pixels
Screen Colour Depth	262K colours
Connectivity
3G	Yes
Bluetooth	Yes
Email	Yes
GPRS	Yes
HSDPA	Yes
WAP	Yes
Web Browser	Yes
Music and Radio
MP3 Player	Yes
Additional Content
Downloadable Content	Yes
Downloadable Games	Yes
Downloadable Ringtones	Yes

3 Skypephone S2 Full Specification

General

Photo and Video

Phone

Messaging

Screen

Connectivity

Music and Radio

Additional Content

User Comments

Images of the 3 Skypephone S2

3 Skypephone S2

3 Skypephone S2 angled

3 Skypephone S2 flat

3 Skypephone S2 back