T-mobile MDA Roadtest

By Aleksi | Permalink |

1 comment | April 13th, 2007 | Trackback

T-Mobile MDA What do you get when you combine a PDA and a cellular phone? I don’t think anyone else is sure either, but over time, many companies have tried to answer this question with their newest and coolest gadgetry. T-mobile is no exception to this, and has taken the route of other cellular carriers in creating their own exclusive line of phones. While annoying this may be, the simple fact of it for now is that’s how it is, and there’s not too much we can do about it.

The MDA comes from a family of Smartphones from T-mobile that also includes the Dash and the Sidekick, the latter a more popular youth targeted model. The MDA is not branded by one of the larger manufacturers, infact the only badging on the outside of the phone is the T-Mobile logo, leading to the next question, who makes it? If one were to remove the battery cover and battery, you can see that the MDA is actually manufactured by HTC Innovation.

The design of the MDA is rather smooth, as there are only six buttons on the face of the phone, with three additional “bumper” buttons. Slide the face to the side however, and the phone becomes a portable QWERTY keyboard. The screen retains all touch sensitivity regardless of the faceplate position, which makes it nice for internet browsing using the Stylus that is hidden in the side of the phone. Surprisingly, the size of the MDA makes it fairly practical to keep in a pocket, but when extended out and using the keyboard, most hands would find it comfortable.

The MDA also comes packed with Windows Mobile, and after a little practice, navigation is fairly easy, and very similar to Windows XP. During the three months, the phone has crashed enough times to be counted on one hand, and mostly due to user error, and consuming too many of the system’s resources. While Edge set-up was a pain, T-Mobile assured me that their phones are supposed to automatically detect and connect to the Edge and GPRS Networks without and trouble.

Overall though, the MDA is a great phone, looks stylish, not too bulky, but built nicely and it feels sturdy. If I had to buy one again and start over, I’d probably use the included case more often to hopefully keep some of the dust off of the screen, as it likes to collect dirt and grease from skin, especially while using the phone function. If you’re thinking of a Smartphone, it’d be in your best interest to consider the MDA, and while a little on the pricey side, like most companies, a contract extension will greatly reduce the cost.

Why you need one:
Large Screen
Simplistic Design
Massively expandable memory thanks to a MiniSD slot.

Why you could pass:
Larger than most standard phones
Bluetooth sometimes has problems connecting
Navigating through menus can take some practice
Fairly expensive

Rating: 8 out of 10

Buy an MDA from Amazon