Motorola is a major player with Android, so what’s one of it’s latest Android Phones the Devour actually like?
The problem with reviewing any new Android phone from Motorola is that it’s going to be compared to the Motorola Droid.
The Droid is a good, powerful smart phone which has the ability to make anything less powerful from the same manufacturer look inferior.
We’ve got to remember that the Devour, like the Motorola Backflip are going to be aimed at different people. At least that’s the theory.
If you’re going to buy a Devour you have to remember that it’s meant to be a more entry level phone than the Droid, but if you want something to make the most of Android I still wouldn’t let that put you off.
The Devour will be available on Verizon in the US and will be priced at $149. You’ll be able to buy it from mid March.
Design
If you like a sturdy phone then this is for you. The Devour is heavier than other phones and noticeably so, it weighs in at almost 6 ounces. Some people will see this as a negative point, others will like that.
The phone looks sleek in it’s design. Probably sleeker than the Droid. If you had to choose between a Devour and a Droid only based on looks you’d probably go for the Devour. It just seems like an improvement. More modern.
It’s also thicker than an iPhone so worth bearing in mind.
The screen is 3.1 inches and is touchscreen. It’s not the largest screen, but good enough for most users.
The keyboard slides out from under the screen. Keyboards are always a talking point wth smart phones. They can be annoying to use, the Motorola Droid’s keyboard wasn’t the best and the Devour’s is an improvement on this.
Keyboards are an important part of a smartphone and it’s not easy to get right. Is there a perfect keyboard on a smart phone? probably not. This is what the next generation of smartphones should conquer.
Using the Devour
The phone runs on version 1.6 of Android so it’s an “older” Android version. This will put people off who want a really up to date Android phone but for the audience that the Devour is targeted at I don’t think it will be or should be a problem.
If you’re an Android fanatic you’re going to go for the most powerful, latest Android phone. The Devour is good for you if you want to own a smartphone but probably aren’t going to be using loads of apps and making use of every feature the phone has.
The Devour is similar to the Backflip because it runs with Motoblur from Motorola which puts all your social media and contacts together onto one screen. So instead of opening lots of applications and going into each one you have it all available to you.
I have to say, that it’s a really useful feature on the phone built in by Motorola, you don’t need an app to do that which you would have otherwise had to have.
Some say it’s annoying having everything available on one screen. The argument is that it’s too much. It’s always annoyed me to have to keep going into different applications so I like it.
The phone has Flash Lite which allows flash games and inline videos to be played using the Android browser. That’s something you’re not going to get with many other Android phones so it’s a feature that makes the Devour stand out from the crowd.
The Camera
It’s a 3 megapixel camera which isn’t as good as the 5 megapixels on the Backflip or Droid. That’s obviously an important consideration if you’re going to be using the phone for taking a lot of pictures and will sway some people’s decisions about which phone to buy.
Summary
What’s strange about the Devour is that it’s almost like it’s competing with the Droid. The Droid is a Motorola Android phone too but they are both quite similar. You’d only pay about $50 more for the Droid which is more powerful and has better specs.
What Motorola perhaps should have done is make a phone that is much cheaper and quite obviously entry level. The theory as I said earlier is that this is entry level, but it goes beyod that too with some of it’s features and price.
The Devour isn’t really one thing or the other, top of the range or entry level.
It’s easy to analyse these things too much as well though and if you’re looking for a decent Android phone from a good manufacturer with a track record of making good Android phones, then you should go for the Devour.
What Others are Saying
Gizmodo “What you’re getting with the Devour, then, is a downgraded Droid.”
Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars
CNet “The Motorola Devour is built to last and it delivers on features and performance.”
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
SlashGear “The new phone’s design and build is impressive, but we’d go for the DROID every time.”
Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars
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