No matter what's been squeezed inside, a mobile phone must first excel at making calls. The SCP-5300 certainly scores in this regard. We placed calls from all over Los Angeles, New York City and San Francisco, and it worked well everywhere. The dual-band, tri-mode phone works on Sprint's CDMA-based PCS network and can roam on other analog and digital CDMA systems. Unlike many Nokia and Sony Ericsson phones, the SCP-5300 has a pull-up antenna. This can increase range, but is also easier to snap off—and expensive to replace.
Most likely because of the integrated digital camera and flash, the unit is a bit larger than many of the clamshell phones available today. The phone, at by by inches (HWD), is about 40 percent larger in total volume than the popular Samsung SPH-A500, for example. And perhaps because of the extra bulk, finding the right listening angle took us a few tries. The built-in speaker is loud enough, but our ears often covered up the single tiny sound hole, forcing us to shift the phone around until we could hear comfortably. A multihole design would help somewhat, but if you use a headset, this is no big deal.
The clamshell design will appeal to people who like to protect a phone's screen and buttons. And you'll want to protect this screen—a gorgeous bright color TFT that can display 65,536 colors. It was a joy to look at.
Sanyo claims hours of talk time (we got around ) with the bundled battery and about 10 and one half days of standby time. A high-capacity lithium ion battery should add 50 percent more time.
Traversing the phone's menu system is reasonably easy. The circular, four-button navigation button and center Select button are easy to use. We kept using the left-arrow portion of the navigation circle to go back to previous menus, although Sanyo includes a Back button located underneath the navigation keys. But once we got used to this change, we adjusted just fine.
Although decent, the navigation keys just aren't responsive enough for the bundled action games, which is a shame. Missile Command, a bowling game called Reversi!, and Ms. Pac-Man come with the phone, but the sluggish keys just couldn't keep us away from Inky, Pinky, Blinky, and Clyde.
You'll also find a Web browser, screen savers, SMS chat capability, and basic PDA features including an address book and calendar. There's even a PCS Business Connection feature that hooks up to corporate Microsoft Outlook and Lotus Notes systems to let you read your mail and check appointments on the go. You can use the Internet connectivity to download games and ring tones, among other things.
SMALL CAMERA, BIG FUN
Though the aforementioned features are useful, it's the camera that makes this phone.
You access the camera's capabilities via a dedicated button located above the number pad. The lens and flash sit on the outside of the clamshell case, so when the camera is active, the LCD screen turns into the viewfinder. You can snap pictures using the center control button or a button on the side.
And in a nifty bit of engineering, the SCP-5300 also includes a small LCD panel on the outside of the phone, right under the lens and flash. This display typically shows phone status when the unit is shut, but turns into a mini-viewfinder when the camera is on.
The novelty of a built-in camera is tremendous—friends and strangers gasped over the ability to capture photos with a phone. Alas, this is a first-generation device, so don't expect great pictures. The camera takes only 640 by 480 images. The 4X and 16X digital zoom is really just a cropping feature and doesn't add much. Including a built-in flash is a good idea, but this one's range is less than 3 feet, so you have to get pretty close to your subject before snapping a picture. The flash was not very useful, so we ended up keeping it off most of the time and using ambient light for our photos. The results were okay, though some shots were a little blurry. Still, as with a singing frog, the astounding thing isn't the quality, but the fact that it does so at all.
You can upload pictures to a special Web site or to a PC using the bundled sync software. Posting photos immediately to the Web is certainly entertaining, but don't expect much. These are small, grainy shots more like those ejected from a mall photo kiosk than what you'd get from a real camera.
At $400, this is an expensive phone. And the built-in camera adds bulk. Those looking for the coolest, lightest, and smallest Sprint PCS phone are better off with the Samsung SPH-A500, which costs $100 less and includes a stunning color screen. Don't expect the SCP-5300 phone to replace your digital camera either, since the images are just too poor and small. But if you're looking for a cool gadget to impress your friends, check out the Sanyo SCP-5300—but get it now before the novelty wears off.
