Motorola W230 review

Network and connections
Motorola offers a simple and essential phone, with basic features and an affordable price. This is why the W230 is a device equipped with Dualband GSM network support, for fairly good signal reception. It does not have UMTS technology, nor HSDPA for fast data traffic, which is however handled by GPRS. This, thanks to the integrated modem, allows browsing the Web, together with the WAP browser. For connection with external devices, a USB 2.0 output is instead provided.

Design and features
Even though the lines are clean and unassuming, the design is nonetheless appealing and fresh. Starting right from the color options, with a bold satin orange or light gray, the W230 immediately catches the eye. The keyboard is a simple numeric one, with two additional function keys to manage menu navigation, along with the five-way directional pad. Above it is the 1.6-inch screen, a CSTN display showing 65,000 colors at a resolution of 128x128 pixels. The weight is also truly contained, at just 83 grams; the thickness of 14.5 mm, on the other hand, is in line with classic Candybar phones. In the sales package you will find a USB cable, headphones, and a 512 MB microSD card.

Main features
As already mentioned at the start, Motorola wanted to launch a low-end phone that could guarantee good trade-offs. The features are therefore limited, but fairly complete. Clock, alarm, and organizer, as well as support for writing SMS and multimedia messages. For the voice side, the W230 instead allows the use of speakerphone, which is also handy when driving a vehicle. The proprietary platform does not allow for much expansion, however it is possible to install compatible games and utilities.

Entertainment and multimedia
We now move on to the area where the Motorola W230 proves to be most competitive. The company's designers wanted to direct their project towards a device that could be easy, convenient, and portable, especially with regard to music functionality. This is why the W230 is equipped with a multiformat player, to always have your favorite music in your pocket. The dedicated standard memory is quite small, however it is possible to use a microSD card for expansion up to 2 GB. In addition, the AM/FM tuner allows you to listen to radio stations without any problems.