Motorola W315 Prepaid Cell Phone Review - Hardware
|
Richard Baguley Published on December 29, 2007 Comment on this |
|
|
|
|
Keypad
For this test, we time how long it takes to type out a sample paragraph. Using two hands and the predictive text system, it took an average of 38.89 seconds to type out our test sentence. This approximates to 24.6 words per minute. This is an unspectacular score; it is significantly slower than other phones with similarly sized sized keypads, such as the Razr v3m, and much slower than those phones (such as the BlackBerry Curve and the Dash) that have proper QWERTY keyboards.
| Cell Phone | Words Per Minute | Score |
| Motorola W315 on Verizon | 24.68 | 4.94 |
| LG Chocolate VX8550 (on Verizon) | 38.49 | 7.7 |
| Motorola Razr V3m | 29.4 | 5.88 |
| BlackBerry Curve 8320 on AT&T | 49.8 | 9.96 |
| Nokia N75 | 42.48 | 8.5 |
| T-Mobile Dash | 45.4 | 9.08 |
T9 and Auto Complete (5.0)
The W315 does not support the T9 text entry method, but it does support the similar iTap method, where you hit the keys corresponding to the letters, and the phone tries to pick the word from this. This works well for common words, but entering less common ones (such as Supercallifragilisticexpiallidocious or pendulous) was more difficult; if the word isn't in the iTap directory, you have to spell it out. Mind you, with the only real use for text entry being contact names and text messages, you aren't likely to be using words like pendulous that often.
One Hand Usability (4.94)
This test times how long it takes to enter our sample paragraph in using only one hand. Again, we turned on predictive text. The W315 took 39.2 seconds to enter the text, which translates to just under 24.5 words per minute. This indicates that, like most keypad phones, two hands are not much quicker than one.
| Cell Phone | Words Per Minute | Score |
| Motorola W315 on Verizon | 24.5 | 4.94 |
| LG Chocolate VX8550 (on Verizon) | 29.8 | 5.96 |
| Motorola Razr V3m | 26.1 | 5.22 |
| BlackBerry Curve 8320 on AT&T | 27.4 | 5.48 |
| Nokia N75 | 38.1 | 7.62 |
| T-Mobile Dash | 23.4 | 4.68 |
Keypad Backlighting (5.0)
The keyboard backlight of the W315 is a pale orange that does an adequate job of illuminating the keyboard in dark places. The time that it stay on when you press a key is set to 5 seconds by default, but this can be changed (or set to continuous) if required.
Controls
D-Pad/Joystick (4.5)
The directional pad of the W315 is good; it is decently sized, has arrows around the edge that mean it can be navigated by touch and is well placed for use with the thumb if the phone is held in one hand.
Touch Screen (0.0)
The W315 doesn't have a touch screen.
Jog Dial (0.0)
There is no jog dial on the W315
Soft Buttons (3.0)
The two soft keys on the W315 are located at the top of the controls, below the screen. They are adequately placed, and are easy to reach with the thumb. We might have liked to have seen them be a little larger, though; that might have made them a bit easier to rach with the thumb when using the phone one handed.
Volume Control (5.0)
The volume control on the side of the phone is also adequate; the two keys that control volume are on the side of the phone body and can be easily reached with the index finger when the phone is in use, so you can adjust the speaker volume on the fly. When not in a call, the volume control acts on the ring volume, and taking it to the minimum level puts the phone in silent mode.
Power and Standby (5.0)
Power is controlled using the end key; hold it down for a couple of seconds and the phone shuts down. A single press when the phone is off starts the phone up again. As with the other controls, it is adequate, but not outstanding.
Other Buttons (2.0)
The other keys on the W315 include the speakerphone control on the left (press it and the phone goes into speakerphone mode) and the vocie control button the right side. We did find ourselves pressing the voice control button accidentally sometimes when we picked the phone up or were holding it during a call, as it falls right under the thumb of the right hand. If you keep holding this button down, it will record the incoming sound of the call as a voice memo.
Display
Primary Screen Gross Resolution (4.0)
The W315 has a primary screen resolution of 120 by 160 pixels. That's a bit less than some other similar sized phones, such as the Razr v3m.
| Cell Phone | Resolution | Score |
| Motorola W315 on Verizon | 120 x 160 | 4.94 |
| LG Chocolate VX8550 (on Verizon) | 320 x 240 | 8.0 |
| Motorola Razr V3m | 176 x 220 | 4.0 |
| BlackBerry Curve 8320 on AT&T | 320 x 240 | 8.0 |
| Nokia N75 | 320 x 240 | 8.0 |
| T-Mobile Dash | 320 x 240 | 8.0 |
Primary Screen Pixels per Inch (10.0)
The W315 has a pixel per inch count of 114 pixels per inch, which a bit less than the other phones we've looked at. This makes the dispaly look somewhat grainy and blocky.
| Cell Phone | Pixels Per Inch | Score |
| Motorola W315 on Verizon | 114 | 5.71 |
| LG Chocolate VX8550 (on Verizon) | 200 | 10 |
| Motorola Razr V3m | 125 | 6.25 |
| BlackBerry Curve 8320 on AT&T | 164.6 | 8.23 |
| Nokia N75 | 166.7 | 8.34 |
| T-Mobile Dash | 162 | 8.1 |
Screen Physical Size (4.5)
The W315's main screen measures 1.8 inches along the diagonal, a little smaller than most. In particular, the similarly sized Razr V3m and the Nokia N75 both have larger screens.
| Cell Phone | Size Diagonal (inches) | Score |
| Motorola W315 on Verizon | 1.8 | 4.5 |
| LG Chocolate VX8550 (on Verizon) | 2 | 5.00 |
| Motorola Razr V3m | 2.1 | 5.25 |
| BlackBerry Curve 8320 on AT&T | 2.43 | 6.08 |
| Nokia N75 | 2.4 | 6.00 |
| T-Mobile Dash | 2.4 | 6.00 |
Screen Brightness (3.15)
To test screen brightness, we place a light gauge two inches away from the screen while it displays a blank white screen. The W315 measured a somewhat gloomy 41 lux, which is pretty dim. Unfortunately, there is no way to increase the brightness; there is no brightness level control.
| Cell Phone | Brightness (lux) | Score |
| Motorola W315 on Verizon | 41 | 2.1 |
| LG Chocolate VX8550 (on Verizon) | 55 | 3.15 |
| Motorola Razr V3m | 46 | 2.3 |
| BlackBerry Curve 8320 on AT&T | 105 | 9.5 |
| Nokia N75 | 69 | 6.9 |
| T-Mobile Dash | 53 | 2.65 |
Screen Bright Light Performance (4.0)
For this test, we shine a 3000 lux light (equivalent to a sunny day) onto the screen to see how greatly it reduces legibility. The screen on the W315 was still legible, but it wasn't particularly bright or clear.
Color Depth (6.0)
The W315 can display 65,000 colors. This is the same as the Razr V3m's 65,000, and is adequate for the phone; you won't be viewing photos on this.
Update: we mistakenly gave the W315 a score of 8.0 in this section when it should have been 6.0. This has been corrected.
| Cell Phone | Colors (thousands) | Score |
| Motorola W315 on Verizon | 65,000 | 6.0 |
| LG Chocolate VX8550 (on Verizon) | 262,00 | 8.0 |
| Motorola Razr V3m | 65,000 | 6.0 |
| BlackBerry Curve 8320 on AT&T | 65,000 | 6.0 |
| Nokia N75 | 16,777,216 | 10 |
| T-Mobile Dash | 65,000 | 6.0 |
Secondary Screen (4.0)
The W315 has a small LED screen on the outside of the case that can display the time, incoming phone numbers, etc. This is a nice touch, and the LED nature of the screen means it is also clear in bright daylight.
Ports & Storage
Power & Data Ports (5.0)
The W315 uses a mini USB port for both power and data. This means that you can charge the W315 off a USB port with an appropriate cable; one less charger to carry on a trip. However, no USB data cable is included, and Verizon does not supply any data synching software to use it.
Headphone & Jack Compatibility (2.0)
The W315 has a 2.5mm jack, but there was no supplied headset. You can pick one up fro just a few bucks (especially with the standard 2.5-mm port), but we would have liked to see a headset included.
Internal Storage (0.0)
Motorola didn't specify the amount of memory on the W315, but it's kind of theoretical anyway; you can't access the memory or use it to store music or data.
Expansion Slot & Format (0.0)
There is no memory card slot on the W315, so there is no way to add more memory.
| Previous Next | |
|
|
|