Motorola MILESTONE review: Hello Droid

Reasonable retail package

Motorola MILESTONE comes in a plain box and there isn’t a whole load of interesting stuff inside but all the basics are covered. The mandatory - for the Android breed - microSD memory card is 8GB, which is probably more than most users will ever need.

There is also a one-piece handsfree, which doesn’t exactly ooze quality but does the job. Audiophiles will perhaps choose to replace the headphones of course but will have to sacrifice the remote functionality.

The decent retail package

The microUSB cable is supplied in the box too so you won’t have to look for one yourselves. We wouldn’t give any bonus points to Motorola for it however as its omission would have been ridiculous for an expensive smartphone such as the MILESTONE.

The final things in the box are a charger, a CD with computer sync software and of course a quick start guide.

Motorola MILESTONE 360-degree spin

At 115.8 x 60 x 13.7 mm the Motorola MILESTONE is obviously no midget but you can’t really expect anything less given the side-sliding QWERTY keyboard and such a huge screen.

Motorola were obviously keen to have their own interpretation of the trademark Android chin. The slider doesn’t completely cover the lower part of the handset, accounting for the asymmetrical line. However, we feel that the whole thing is a lot more refined and understated than the chin on the G1.

We could have really done without the D-pad on the QWERTY keyboard too, but we doubt fixing either of those would have made too much of a difference, so it’s hair-splitting really.

The MILESTONE compared with the Apple iPhone 3GS

The MILESTONE weight of 165 grams is also about what you would expect of such a handset. In fact, bearing in mind the metallic body we like so much, we wouldn’t have been too fussed if it was a few grams heavier.

A marvelous display

We are rather pleased with the design of the Motorola MILESTONE. The handset feels rock solid and the rubbery rear provides a nice grip, in addition to looking quite attractive. Of course, that 3.7" touchscreen at the front doesn’t look at all bad either. The high-res capacitive display makes us purr with delight.

The subtle chin of the MILESTONE is perhaps paying tribute to the first of the Androids but is a questionable design solution nonetheless. It’s not about looks – it actually makes access to the main on-screen controls a bit harder.

The 3.7-inch display dominates the MILESTONE front when the slider is closed. The capacitive touchscreen has the highest resolution currently available on the market - 854 x 480 pixels. Its image quality is also great with deep blacks (although no AMOLED deep) and high maximum brightness.

This MILESTONE fella has a pretty amazing display

Since the Motorola MILESTONE is the first handset to run on Android 2.0, it enjoys 16M-color support and no color banding issues. The 65K-color limitation is taking the fun out of the other Android displays (the XPERIA X10 probably suffering the most) and it's nice of the Open Handset Alliance to have solved that issue.

The sensitivity of the display is top notch but that is to be expected in a capacitive unit. Since there is no need to apply pressure, even the lightest of touches from your (bare!) fingers will do. Gloves and long nails are a no-go with the MILESTONE but that is the price you usually have to pay to get this kind of touchscreen experience.

We are also quite pleased with the sunlight legibility of the MILESTONE. It enjoys near iPhone-grade usability out in the open.