Panasonic X700 review: Glossy Symbian

Every mobile phone that breaks through the limits deserves attention. Panasonic X700 certainly belongs among devices like that. It is a luxurious clamshell phone with Symbian Series 60, a well-known operating system from Nokia smartphones. X700 is a success of Panasonic, now you can read a large review with many pictures.

Key benefits

• attractive design
• small size (compared to the Series 60 phones)
• Symbian Series 60 smartphone
• comfortable and large keypad
• quality display
• torch (white diode)
• QuickOffice application for handling with office documents

Key drawbacks

• music functions missing (radio and MP3 player)
• the phone matches a year old Nokia 6600 in the meaning of functions
• low quality camera
• there are cases when the phone can't display missed calls
• memory card with low capacity
• obsolete way of communication with PC

Panasonic X700 is the second flip phone running on Symbian Series 60. The first was released in October - Nokia 6260. But whereas Nokia is making flip phones in its own way (that doesn't mean it is bad), Panasonic bears on tradition. It is a clamshell phone in all aspects and however, it has been produced in Czech Republic it cannot deny its Japanese origin. We can see it for example on design, construction or keypad style.

Big, but the smallest Symbian

Looking at the X700, immediately recalls me Panasonic GD87 that I was using two years ago. It was a clamshell phone of the same size and with similar design. Overall, compared to all the phones, Panasonic X700 sizing 97 x 49 x 24 mm obtains a mark "mid big", but with its weight 107 g the X700 ranks as a "heavy phone". However, comparing to its rivals in the Series 60 class it is the smallest and the most lightweight mobile phone. You can find exact comparison of sizes and weights in following table:

Comparing size: with a card, a hand and Nokia 7610

It appears like Japanese phones: X700 is complete silver, except a gray oval on the front and generally combines matte surfaces with mirrored edges. I find just these chrome parts a bit slushy. The only material used for covers is plastic but the construction is solid. The clamshell is perhaps locked too strongly when it is being locked or opened - you can hear a loud click when you manipulate a cover. In open position, you can sometimes hear soft creak of a hinge and a battery cover sounds if you clasp the phone. Anyway, the overall phone construction is above the average.

Details on the front part of the phone

Secret of a small display

Front display features resolution 64 x 96 pixels and size of 16 x 23 mm. Information about type and color scheme is diverging a bit. The display is visibly passive and even that the producer claims 65K colors in the user's guide, it is obvious that it is 4K colors (it is confirmed also from other sources).

A clock with blue wallpaper appears on a small display (Panasonic calls it Sub-LCD) after you close the clamshell; display illumination turns off after some time. Using a key on the left side of the phone it is possible to turn the display on again and besides that, you can use it to shift between the clock and the menu, where you can see the operator name, time, date, remaining battery power, signal strength indicator and other icons.

Small display: wallpaper and menu

One of the drawbacks of the X700 is that the small display sometimes do not show missed calls and messages. It is true only partially - the phone is doing that only when you have set the clock on the display. But if you set the menu to be displayed, usually you will not be reminded of the missed calls. It is not 100% sure; I was not successful to find rationality in that how it works. Panasonic should solve this function better, because you should leave some missed call out like this.

Left button also can mute a ringing by an incoming call, which you do not want to answer immediately. It is used for shooting with the phone in a closed position as well. Small display is used as a finder in this case.

Left side button