Design
Most consumer-styled smartphones have gone for the sleek and sassy look -- we're thinking here of models such as the Motorola E6, or the Samsung BlackJack. They're basically the same as their chunkier enterprise counterparts, only in slimmer and presumably more enticing enclosures.
For its latest consumer-friendly smartphone, O2's taken a gamble in the opposite direction, presumably with the thinking that consumers will figure that a large phone must offer more for your money because it's, well, very large. And the O2 Xda Flame is, indeed, big. Humongous, even -- measuring in at a very hefty 126 by 74 by 17.5mm and with a carrying weight of 190g, this isn't a phone that slides casually into your pocket. Well, not unless you happen to be Andre The Giant, and as he sadly passed away fourteen years ago, it's probably safe to say you're not.
Features
The Flame is a touchscreen Windows Mobile 5.0 smartphone, with a hefty 2GB of onboard storage ROM; this can be added to via the microSD card slot on the side of the phone. It sports not one, but two processors -- an Intel XScale PXA 270 Processor running at 520MHz for primary functions, and then an additional dedicated graphics processor, the NVIDIA GoForce 5500. It's an unusual first in a smartphone, further blurring the line between smartphones and ultraportable PCs.
In connectivity terms, the Flame is both a 3G and tri-band GSM (900/1800/1900MHz) phone (but no HSDPA) with inbuilt Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 2.0 networking. And lest anyone accuse O2 of leaving anything out, it also supports TV-out (for displaying video, photos and at a more mundane level, PowerPoint presentations) and can double as a universal remote control.
Leaving aside the touch and drag interfaces of the iPhone or HTC Touch, there's really not much that the Flame omits.
Performance
The biggest strike against the Flame is undoubtedly that, well, Moses carried smaller things down the mountain than the XDA Flame. It's a problem exacerbated by the 2-megapixel camera on the back, which bulges out slightly; if you are going to jam this into a pocket you'll probably scratch the lens over time.
The inclusion of the GoForce 5500 is an interesting step for the smartphone world, but we're wary of endorsing O2's line that it turns the Flame into a portable games console -- this is no Nintendo DS. It does come with Siege: Catapult Assault, a competent enough Scorched Earth style 3D catapult game that's a nice enough diversion for a wee while, but until applications take advantage of the extra memory, it's not that worthy an addition.
Thankfully the rest of the O2 Flame shines; it's a good communicator for general use, very swift with most business tasks, and the inclusion of 2GB of onboard storage -- which can be supplemented via adding most portable USB drives quite painlessly -- makes it a good consumer-level device. Of course, by putting every feature known to man in the Flame, there's a payoff; the Flame's battery can run down very quickly indeed. Left to its own devices, we averaged around three days between charges, but if we used the Flame at a moderate level, we'd have to recharge it every single day.
6%
2%
HOPELESS SERVICE. THEY JUST WANT YOUR MONEY, AFTER THEY HAVE IT THEY DO NOT CARE TO HELP YOU. WARNING, DO NOT BUY FROM O2!!!!
The good: NONE, UNIT WAS FAULTY WHEN RECEIVED.
The bad: SOFTWARE WAS FAULTY. SERVICE CALL CENTRE ADVISE A 2 WEEK WAIT TO GET A REPLACEMENT. ALMOST 4 WEEKS LATER AND THERE IS NO WORD OF ADVISE AS TO WHEN THE UNIT WILL BE REPLACED