Motorola Motoming A1200

They never fail to surprise me, this company. Their phones are techno marvels when it comes to design and innovation. The Motorola MOTOMING A1200 is certainly no exception – it is a full-featured business smartphone, but it looks stylish enough to appeal to a ramp model. Why it called the Ming? Well, in Mandarin, it’s supposed to mean clear and bright. Let’s find out how true that is.

Design
Motorola loves their clamshells. They’ve got a trademark on using the term “flip phone,” after all. But the MING has taken it to a new level. The flip is actually a transparent hard plastic cover for the large touch-sensitive screen. But it’s not just a cover – it also holds the earpiece of the phone! What makes it look really astounding is the fact the speaker appears like it’s not connected to the phone at all, but if you look closely, you'll see 2 really thin wires run along the edges and down to the speaker. Adds a bit to the design as well. The transparent casing also has a magnifying effect, but don’t really try to use it for that.

On the inside you’ll find a truly vivid, bright and crystal clear 2.4" touch screen display sporting 262K colors with a resolution of 320x240 pixels. I guess this is where the Ming gets its name from! Just below the screen you’ll find a tiny 5 way joystick between two keys for taking and ending calls.

On the rear there’s the 2.0 megapixel camera and the slot to store the stylus. It’s a bit tricky figuring out where your SIM or SD card should go. The design is so flawless that it makes you think the entire phone is sealed, when all you need do is lightly slide the back panel down, et voila.

On the right side you’ll see the camera and voice command keys and at the bottom is the mini USB slot. On the left are the volume keys and in between them is another selection key that can be used when the flap is closed. At the bottom is the 2.5mm socket for the handsfree or earphones.

I’m not the biggest fan of the stylus operated devices, but the MING is quite comfortable to hold and to use. The whole device may appear to be a bit bulky from the way it looks in the pictures and also the heavy specs, and even though it is a bit on the heavier side at 122gm, it’s quite compact at 95.7 x 51.7 x 21.5.