Kyocera Echo Android Review

Kyocera Echo Review - The Kyocera Echo is the 1st dual-screen Android smartphone to attain the U.S.. With a designing evocative the Nintendo DS, the Echo looks to create a more effective tablet than a phone.

Clumsy and low-set
The Echo accepts 2 3.5-inch WVGA screens out that could combining to figure one jumbo 4.7-inch display while the phone comprises in "tablet mode" (more on duty that afterward). The device accepts 2 adjusts of Home, Menu, and Back buttons (one for to each one screen out). Curiously enough, the Echo misses the committed Search key out got on most whole another Android phones. The left hand back from the device homes the Micro-USB porthole, volume rocker, power push button, MicroSD card slot, and 3.5mm headphone jack. I comprised pleased that I did not get to take out the battery to entree the SD Card, merely not and so happy to get the power push button placed on the bound of the phone. You will find out a 5-megapixel camera (with flashing) on the back of the device.

Kyocera Echo Android smartphoneAt 6.80 oz.s the Echo comprises unquestionably among the weightier phones out there. The 2nd screen out adds up many mass to the device, contributing it like attributes to phones with slide-out QWERTY keyboards. The mass and the overall rectangle anatomy of the phone arrived fairly disquieting to behave about and to talking on for extensive periods of time. The hinge that adjudges the 2 screens out collectively comprises created of a "Super Copper Alloy" that's alleged to be quite a long-lasting; even so, if I opened up or closed in the phone, I dreaded that it would break up for some reason. When the phone comprises opened, you are able to pushing the 2 screens out collectively to lock in it in place and reduce the crack between it, which efficaciously turns over the Echo into a jumbo touchscreen. I found out that these configuration comprised the most at ease method to use the device.

Performance
The Kyocera Echo comprises a 3G phone with a exclusive 1GHz Snapdragon CPU, getting in look a bit dated stamp amid altogether the dual-core phones that have shown these yr. That doesn't mean the phone is unresponsive--far from it. The Echo could run for 2 apps at the same time (one on for each one screen out), and it does and so rather well.

Call quality was average with some minor hissing audible on my end of the call. When I tried to hang up, the proximity sensor did not respond, and so I was unable to end the call. I had to pop open both screens (activating the speakerphone) in order to press the 'End Call' button. This happened both times I tried making a call.

The Echo also cannot take advantage of Sprint's 4G WiMax network, relying instead on the carrier's CDMA network for voice and data service. That might ease the burden on the phone's battery, but other services may sap the battery just the same. Although I couldn't run exhaustive tests on the battery, I noted that having both screens open and running seems to eat away at the battery quickly--the battery dropped from 30 percent of capacity to 12 percent in a span of 30 minutes or so. Kyocera may have anticipated this, as the company bundles an external battery charger with the phone. Echo users might do well to pick up a spare battery and carry the charger at all times.

Software
The Echo comes with a largely unmodified version of Android 2.2 (Froyo) with relatively few add-ons.

It comes loaded with a handful of apps that you can run simultaneously using both screens. "Simul-task Applications" (as Kyocera calls them) are identified by a small blue square that displays next to the application icon. To run two applications at once, you simply tap both screens at the same time while running a "Simul-task" app. A list of compatible apps will pop up on both screens, and you can choose which app to run alongside the one that is currently open.

I found running two apps at once to be awkward, however; you have to constantly readjust your grip on the phone to navigate the two screens. Currently only seven apps (Browser, Contacts, Email, Gallery, Messaging, Phone, and VenQue) can take advantage of this function, but more are supposed to come in the future.

'Tablet Mode' Is a Win
As I mentioned earlier, you can lock the two screens together to form a large, 4.7-inch touchscreen. Browsing the Web in the device's "tablet mode" was exceptional: The extra room made maneuvering around larger Web pages easier, and it was nice to have a bigger screen for reading and replying to e-mail.

If you download the Tablet Mode Extension app from the Android Market, you can run some apps on the Echo in the same way that they would run on a full-size tablet. You can easily toggle this feature on or off from the app, depending on your preferences.

The Echo comes with Swype preinstalled, with the keyboard taking up an entire screen when in tablet mode. I found it easier to create error-free messages and e-mail using the bottom screen here than when using a virtual keyboard on a smaller device.
Other Preloaded Apps
Kyocera Echo Android smartphoneAlong with the usual apps that Sprint loads onto its phones, the Echo comes with a few notable apps such as VueQue, MyBooks, and Jibe Social Messenger. VueQue is a YouTube app that lets you queue up videos while you watch. MyBooks turns the Echo into a mini e-book reader, complete with e-book store. Jibe, which replaces the Facebook app found on many other Android phones, lets you link up your multiple social networks (much as Friend Stream on HTC Sense does) and view them in a clean, easy-to-navigate layout.

Multimedia
The 5-megapixel camera does a decent job of capturing still images. The camera did have a tendency to overexpose whites, but videos didn't seem to have that problem.

While the camera was okay overall, holding the phone to take pictures was not. With both screens open, I had to hold the phone by the top screen to make sure that I wasn't accidentally blocking the camera. That isn't a problem when the phone is closed, however.

The Echo comes with the stock Android media player, which doesn't fully exploit the phone's larger screen. I don't really recommend playing videos on the device, since you will be missing a chunk in the middle of the phone where the screens meet. Also, I found the top screen to be less sharp than the bottom when it came to displaying images.

Bottom Line
Aside from having a larger area for Web browsing, the Echo doesn't seem to benefit greatly from having two screens. Most of the time, the second screen on the Echo feels like a bit of a gimmick. A physical keyboard might have been a better use of the extra panel than a secondary display, and it would have made the phone more attractive for people who frequently text or e-mail. Couple that with the relatively outdated specs, and you have a phone that might offer more gimmick than utility. You may want to pass on the Echo in favor of a 4G or dual-core phone.