What one looks for in a mobile handset, apart from the obvious features is perhaps sometimes a bit of style and class. This of course depends on each individual's taste and requirements. There are quite a few mobiles in a decent budget that look like they are capable of catering to most requirements and Spice’s S-940 is one of these. However having all the features is one thing and being able to deliver a good experience is another. On that note allow me to provide you with my opinion on whether or not the S-940 is capable of delivering just that.
Form Factor
The S-9007 is quite the looker. It is fashionable with a touch of class with the shiny and lined metal finish. The large 2.4-inch TFT LCD looks very attractive and clear with 65K colors and a resolution of 240x320 pixels. Though the keypad seems well designed and neatly placed, it was only after a bit of testing that I came to the conclusion that it’s not. The five way nav-pad’s directional buttons are a little too slim to access for someone with large fingers. It took a while getting used to. The center select button doesn’t depress too well and seemed to be a bit off center and hence made an annoying ‘clik’ every time it was pressed. Even the process of pressing it was uncomfortable. I’m hoping this was just an issue with the test piece I received.
The alphanumeric keypad is large and well spaced out. It’ll take no more than a minute to get used to. An issue was that the number ‘3’ key was dangerously close to the ‘End’ button. On more than one occasion while typing I ended up back at the desktop and had to go through the painful procedure of returning to the message menu. That meant I had to keep using the center select key often which I was just not willing to do as much.
The rest of the handset is designed with a very basic aesthetic sense in mind. A microSD card slot is located on one side of the handset and a mini USB, universal port on the other. The 2 megapixel camera is located at the rear with a single LED for the flash.
Features and Performance
Interface
Spice has gone with a Java-based OS exactly like you’d find in a Chinese mobile handset. It’s quick, colorful and easy to navigate - however, a few of the features are a bit odd. For instance, when I changed the Time/Date settings to a 12 hour clock and I had to either Schedule an SMS to go out or set an Alarm, I was required to enter the time in 24 hour format.
A confirmation even after making small changes to any setting requires a save which is followed by an animation. It just wastes time sometimes. Aside from a few quirks though it’s not too difficult to get the hang of.
Media
From a Melody Composer to an Image Editor with plenty of settings, there are quite a few media options available with the S-940. The music player has a flashy interface with EQ presets for audio adjustments. The audio quality is not too bad but the decibel level is just too low. The earphones attached to the hands free kit were not too comfortable for me personally but I’m sure it won’t be too much of an issue for most. But with the volume being so low, I can’t say it was a good overall audio experience, especially when it came to drowning out the daily commute's shrieks and banter.
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The FM radio, on the other hand was not too bad. It took just 16 seconds to locate and store five out the seven available stations. You can very easily manually adjust the remaining. Reception was not too bad but while traveling if you’re not near the window, I’m afraid it’ll be rather difficult getting a clear signal. The radio has a manual recording option as well as scheduler for the same. Recording can be saved in either WAV or AMR. This is in addition to the independent voice recorder that’s also on-board.
I had a big problem when it came to videos. I used most of my regular test videos in the most acceptable – 3GP and Mobile Mp4 formats and I was quite surprised to find that both gave me a non-compatible error. So that feature was out, although videos captured by the camera played just fine.
What I dislike the most are those really off beat odd built-in ring tones. I couldn’t even find a sensible message tone that simply beeped. All message tones seemed to be lengthy arias. Of course I’m exaggerating but only a little. You can just use your own music files as ring tones and create message tones via the composer.
Other features
The S-940 also comes with all the regular features that includes a Calendar, Tasks, Note pad, Stop Watch, Converters, a health function for BMI and for keeping track of a woman’s menstrual cycle if you happen to be one of course. There’s also a calculator, World Clock To-Do list, a flashlight option that activates the LED on the camera and even an E-book reader.
Spice has also included a section with a whole lot of freebies that are put in by the company. These include a Mobile Tracker for security, Contacts Back up for emergencies, links to a Spice Gang which is an online community for Spice users, ibibo Friend Finder and a quick link to Reuters. Another additional feature included is Private Menu which allows a user to protect particular sections of the handset like Call History, Messages, Camera, Phone Book, File Manager, E-Book Reader or Calendar using a password.
Games like Sudoku, Magic Sushi (go figure) and Puzzle are also present to help pass the time.
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Connectivity
The S-940 supports GPRS and WAP. I especially liked the fact that BPL GPRS was part of the preloaded settings menu. Other connectivity options include Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP support and USB 2.0 for data transfer.
Part of Spice’s additional features package that’s preloaded is Email to SMS that will allow users to get all emails from designated accounts as an sms. You’ll also be able to send, forward and reply to mails via the same system. There is the regular POP and IMAP mail downloading method as well. Apart from the native browser, Spice has included Opera Mini as well. Both browsers are easy to use and not too hard to set up. An MGurujee link is also on board to help young users, prepare for competitive exams like CAT, MAT, IIT-JEE or CBSE etc.
Camera
The on board 2 megapixel camera with LED flash is really quite average. There are however plenty of settings to select – White Balance, Night Mode, Multi Shot (up to 6 images) and a few Effects and Frames you can add to portraits. The entire keypad can be used to activate each setting but you’ll have to figure out which key does what and memorize all that on your own as there’re no indicators for the same.
Image quality is really bad. The pictures always appeared out of focus and the colors were just not accurate enough.
Battery
When it came to the battery, the S-940 really excelled. On a single charge I used the handset for a little over two full days. Usage included calls and messages, games, pictures and a little music. Stand alone talk time clocked in at about 3 hours, give or take a few minutes. Not too shabby at all.
The Bottom Line
The Spice S-940 is priced at Rs. 5, 999 (MRP) and Rs. 5, 200 (Street) that includes a 1GB microSD card. While it does have its plus points it also has a lot of negatives. It’s not an expensive phone considering the features, but with a music player that’s not loud enough, no support for basic video formats and a camera that’s not clear enough, I can’t really call the S-940 a good multimedia device. It does have a large clear display, plenty of extras included by Spice and it looks good. But that’s it. The thing is, it’s a great looking handset with multimedia features that don’t really function too well.
Specs
Network
GSM 900/1800/1900, GPRS
Physical
99.9 x 48.1 x 17.2 mm, 86g
Display
240 x 320, 656k, TFT LCD, 2.4-inches
Memory
8184KB (8MB) internal, microSD external (1GB included)
Media
MP3, WMA, 3GP, MPEG4, AMR, WAV, FM radio with recording
Camera
2 megapixel, LED Flash
Connectivity
USB v2.0, Bluetooth with A2DP
Battery
200 hrs standby, 3 hrs talktime
Street Price
Rs 5,200
MOP
Rs 5,999
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