Siemens SX1

The Siemens SX1 phone can multi-task, you can run more than 1 function in the same time, by clicking MENU button to switch between each function. Also no need to power OFF if you want to insert another memory card.

I've now had the Siemens SX1 for a couple of months and I have got to say it's one of the best things I've ever bought! For the review I'm going to split it into several sections:

Look and Accessories

----------------------

OK much has been made of the look of the SX1 and the placement of the keypad, but when you get used to it, it really is simple and easy to use. I'm a keen texter and I've got to say I'm certainly very happy with the keypad.

With the look of the SX1; it is quite big which doesn't really surprise me for a smartphone, with so many features - some may find it bulky, but I don't. With features you get a USB cable in the box along with a pair of Stereo headphones, which both work really well.

Features

--------------------

Features - where do I begin? Well it has a radio which can preset up to 6 FM stations. It also comes preloaded with an MP3 Player which can play MP3's. To get the most out of the SX1 though, you need a MMC card, these cost around £40 for a decent size (512mb), but will make your SX1 experience all the richer. For instance at the moment, I have a 50mb of movies on mine, along with about 250mb of audio. This really will make you chuck out your standalone MP3 player. If 512mb isn't big enough for you - there's now 1 GB versions (I'm sure bigger will come in time) as well.

The SX1 is based on Nokia Series 60 variant of the Symbian operating system. This means there's masses of programs available for you to download and use. For instance I installed an OGG player (Ogg is a format similar to Mp3) which made my life easier, meaning I didn't have to convert my whole audio collection to MP3. Games and all sorts are also available.

Siemens also regularly update the SX1 with new firmwares over the internet. Now not many companies feel they can release firmwares for mobile over the internet, basically because unscrupulous people decode them and change them - Good on Siemens I say.

Camera

------------

The camera on the SX1 is good, not the best but certainly not the worst. With recent firmware upgrades the camera program now has a night mode, which will allow you take pictures when it's darker. It spec is VGA with a resolution of 640x480.

It contains all the usual razzmatazz, you'd expect from a smartphone such as calendars, syncing with Outlook, etc.

Overall

------------

Overall this phone is fantastic! I wouldn't swap this phone for any model currently out by Nokia or whoever. If you can look past some of its negatives and get used to some of its peculiarities then you'll get no end of use out of the SX1.

Now I know better to stay away from the Siemens SX1 phone, it was a nightmare. (See Bad Points)

The Siemens SX1 mobile phone could well be from Apple's 'Think Different' school of design. Charge it up and switch it on and hope you don't get a call or worse a text, until you've grasped the basics of the button layout. The learning curve particularly for text, is steep and its taken me a good month to unlearn my Nokia habits and start to get anywhere near competent on the SX1. Thankfully, dialling can be done from the memory which is accessed using the small joystick and via the colourful screen icons. However, nothing worth having is easily gained and if you persevere with the SX1, it is a very good phone. The screen is the best I've seen on a phone, the backlight always gets a good round of ooohs and aaahs from mates in the pub and the sound quality of the built in FM radio and MP3 player is better than my iPod. My only complaints are one serious and one niggling. The serious one is the battery life - whatever Siemens say, my experience and that of a lot of users on various forums on the net, is that the phone is let down badly by the battery life. If I don't use the phone, I can just about squeeze 48 hours standby. A couple of calls however drop this dramatically and its not unusual to have to charge the phone every evening. This was a bit of a shock after my Nokia and caught me out a couple of times before i got into the habit of charging it more often. If you are a heavy user, you might want to think about this seriously before going for the SX1. Secondly, the PC software has a mind of its own when trying to connect to the SX1 - it took me a couple of weeks to get my PC to connect to the SX1 - and now its stopped again ! When I have more time (ie when I 've retired) I'll look into it, but for now the two are not talking. Generally, I'm happy with the SX1, the unusual design and layout will probably keep it from mainstream anonymity and if Siemens acknowledge and fix the battery problem, it would be nearly perfect.

Right! After a long hesitation, I finally bought a Siemens SX1 mobile phone and I am far from regretting my purchase! The selling point for me was the Mp3/Radio feature as well as the possibility to update the firmware from home. This is actually a brilliant feature! Most of the bugs / problems mentioned in the few reviews of the SX1 have been fixed and the system is much quicker now. You must be carefull though because even though I did not experience any problem for updates / communication with the phone, some seem to experience compatibility problems with their PC... These glitches should be sorted out with the new versions of the Data Suite program.

But the good thing is that the update of the firmware not only corrects some bugs but it also improves the phone on many apsects. For example, the new FW07 has enhanced the light management for the camera, allowing fantastic pictures in pretty dark areas, even without a flash! Not to mention that the camera is of pretty good quality! The colours are very warm and the 4x zoom is always quite nice to have.

The reception quality is pretty good and similar to a landline in most cases. To summarise, the SX1 is a pretty good, stylish little machine that is condemned to evolve and improve. It is not perfect (no phone is, I think) but I can only warmly recommend it!

The Siemens SX1 is a Good mobile phone? Yes. Perfect? Far from it.

This Siemens SX1 phone has a built in camcorder, is there any advancement in mobile technology that can compete? Besides Bluetooth capability, the best part of it all for me is that i just preordered mine through a new site where they sell these and other phones for really, really low prices. This is not an advertisement nor an invitation to a scam. I am sharing information that others are selling for obsene amounts. Check out this site -