Feature

BENQ SIEMENS EF81

SPECIFICATION

Size
Length 94mm
Width 51mm
Depth 15.9
Weight
110g
Main display
2.2in QVGA
240x320 pixels
262K colours
Camera
2mp, video, 5x digital zoom Connectivity 3G, tri-band GSM, Bluetooth, USB (via non-standard cable)
Memory
64MB plus Transflash/MicroSD slot
Battery
Standby 250 hours
Talk time 3.5 hours


LOOK AND FEEL:
Very classy – all metal body (magnesium, aluminium, stainless steel: no plastic) with low-slip matt black back. Good solid hinge
9/10  

EXTERNALS:
Decent 120x160 display with 256K colours, doubles as a viewfinder for the camera. Four discreet buttons provide the controls for the camera, video recorder and music player  
9/10

KEYBOARD:
RAZR-like steel keypad with neat rubber-style key dividers and backlighting. The D pad takes fully a third of the keyboard space, has function keys around it, and is easy to use
8/10

DISPLAY:

Excellent 240x320 pixel screen with rich colours and good contrast (so it works ok in sunlight)
8/10

MEMORY:
64Mb internal plus MicroSD slot. Stores 500 contacts (20 fields plus photo), 100 call records each for dialed, received, missed calls
7/10

CAMERA:

2 megapixel, 5x zoom, very easy to use, provides ok pics. No flash. Lens is cleverly incorporated into the hinge to double as video call camera (when open) and stills camera (when closed).
6/10

VIDEO:

Ok for colour and sound pickup, but recording quality is not high
7/10

MUSIC:

Playlists, lots of music formats, decent onboard speaker. No standard headphone/speaker jack connection, no equaliser, no shuffle
5/10

IN USE:

Inserting SIM is tricky – ditto MicroSD card (sited under the battery). Good menus, function selection; excellent reception and call quality
7/10

EXTRAS:

Data cable and sync software in the box. Voice dialling.
7/10

WE LIKE:

• Look and feel
• Build quality, all-metal construction
• Neat four-button solution to camera and music control with lid closed

WE DON’T LIKE:
• Awkward access for MicroSD card
• Anaemic music player functions
• No standard USB or headphone socket

OVERALL:
Top 3G performance in a svelte, sexy package with very few drawbacks – shame about the non-standard connector, though, and camera and music-playing could be better

73%