As technology relentlessly marches onward, smart phones tend to get more of things. More megapixels, more regular pixels, more gigahertz, more cores -- it's relentless. But until now, we've had to make do with only one SIM card.
Rejoice, citizens for we are about to leave those dark and frightening times behind us -- the ViewSonic V350 mobile phone has dual-SIM capability, and runs Android 2.2 to boot. We've gone hands-on with the V350 and here we bring you our first impressions.
Floaty light
Grabbing hold of the phone, we have to say we've felt sturdier handsets. At 125g the V350 felt eerily light, and while that's no bad thing, we hope it's not an indicator of shoddy build quality.
The phone is a decent size, measuring 61 by 114 by 12mm. It felt comfortable in our hands, and the rounded design was quite satisfying. It's not the slimmest phone we've ever wrapped our meaty digits around, but it's slender enough to slip into your pockets without any hassle.
Along the bottom of the phone you'll find the usual four touch-sensitive buttons associated with Android, and around the edge of the V350 there's a band of silver that's wider at the bottom of the phone. It does add an element of class, we suppose, and the back of the phone is flat, with a brushed aluminium effect. That looks a little out of place, to be honest.
We feel slightly mean criticising the V350's design, because it's built to be useful, not stylish. With that in mind, let's talk about the dual-SIM gubbins.
Simultaneous translation
There's space in the V350 for two separate SIM cards, and it can run on two networks simultaneously. That could come in handy if you need to keep your work and personal bills separate, for instance, or even if you live in a signal black spot and want a SIM card from a different provider to use as backup, in case your bars mysteriously vanish.
When you fire up the phone app, to the right of the numerical keypad you'll see two separate call buttons, each assigned to a different SIM card, so it's dead easy to decide which SIM you want to use for a call. On the homescreen you can see the names of both networks you're connected to, which is very handy.
We want to use this feature more before we decide how helpful it is, and how well it's implemented, but for now we're cautiously optimistic. This feature won't be useful to everyone, but to a small group of users it could prove massively beneficial.
Elsewhere, the V350 looks like a budget Android phone. It's running Android 2.2 Froyo, which means you'll be able to play Flash video in the phone's browser, among very many other cool features. Android has excellent email integration and an app store bursting with useful stuff to add to your phone.
There's a 600HMz processor inside, which isn't particularly powerful, but could ensure the phone is cheap. We noticed occasional lag during our brief testing, but nothing catastrophic.
There's a 5-megapixel camera on the back of the V350, and the 3.5-inch capacitive screen has a resolution of 320x480 pixels. Wi-Fi and 3G are ready to go as well.
Outlook
All things considered, the ViewSonic V350 could prove to be a handy little mobile if you need two SIM cards. We're hoping that with more testing the phone proves easy to use, and the slightly weak processor doesn't slow the phone down too much. Stay tuned for a full review.
Edited by Nick Hide
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User reviews6
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Krishna Malani 7 August 2012
Good: nothing
Bad: everything
Comment: well i bought viewphone 3 from reliance digital pune 2 months back, and belive me it is the worst phone iv'e ever bought in my life. the phone hangs every now and then, goes dead . and won't come back unless u remove and replace the battery.very slow. proximity sensor doesn't work and in the middle of the call , it puts u r call on hold.secondly there are no service centers of this phone in india, when i spoke to reliance digital guys , they said we are helpless, and can't do anything.
don't buy this phone, i've wasted 9000 bucks . worst mobile company
now let me tell you about reliance digital's world class excellent service, when i bought this phone viewphone3, the sales guys told me sir we are the exclusive importer of this useless brand in india, and if there is any problem we will service it ourselves. on 24 may i got a response from customersupport@resq.in.that you will be attended shortly, till date i'm still waiting to be attended.then about a fortnight ago i got a call from the reliance digital store, pune 020-41495301, asking me about the quality of the phone, i told him i'm facing all the problems, and he told me sir all the viewphone 3 buyers are having problem, and we are working on it. and he is still working on it. and that also shows that these guys where aware that this is a substandard product. be cautious, while buying from reliance digital, they will just fleece you, and then take you for a merry go round ride, coz they themselves are unable to find a solution. i can't understand what is so rocket science , that they are taking months to respond. i hope reliance digital fans take a note. thanks
Mez Galadriel Demarais 25 January 2012
Good: excellent phone, dual sim works well, not had change to upgrade to gingerbread yet but i will. call and sim function works well. no issues - easy to use.
Bad: no real accessories and cannot use the phone well with in-car blutooth system
Comment: excellent phone, dual sim works well, not had chance to upgrade to gingerbread yet but i will. call and SIM function works well. no issues - easy to use. A few settings are not the same on other android phones, i.e. advanced call settings for each SIM is not there. Only reason it has been marked down is no real accessories, and cannot use the phone well with in-car blutooth system - and no one from support is responding. Incoming calls on either SIM is fine, but if you try to use the in-car sterio to make a call (even via voice dial) - it still prompts you to choose a SIM on the phone, which is impossible if you are driving and your phone is in your pocket or bag - anyone know of a workaround? is it fixed in gingerbread?
weisweiller 5 October 2011
Good: 3-G Dual Sim, Android, Light
Bad: Battery overheats, processor not compatible with everything, battery life not impressive
Comment: I have had several 3-G capable dual SIM phones. My first, a Glofiish (Acer) DX900, had all the software availability advantages of a Windows Mobile 6.1 phone but a weak battery life and the poor usability of a Windows phone. The second, a Samsung 7722, had a good battery life but a very basic operating system and rather unstable 3-G reception when using it as a tethered modem. The Viewsonic V-350 has all the know disadvantages and advantages of an Android phone. On the downside, synchronizing Outlook with an Android is s struggle, needing additional software from the Android Marketplace, and Viewsonic does not provide any software in the box. The phone itself is reasonably fast. Given its unimpressive battery life, I would rather have its usable but not fast speed than a faster processor with a shorter batter life. The biggest issue is the overheating battery. When in the car using bluetooth for the handsfree and Internet for Google Maps, the battery quickly overheats, at which point charging stops. I stress that it is now autumn, not summer! Taking the back cover off the phone and blasting the car's air conditioning at it helps, but that is hardly ideal. The second problem arises with the processor. A few programs, such as the Android Firefox browser, will not run on this device. On the other hand, it is a good telephone, reception when using it as a tethered modem is stable and throughput is fast, the GPS receiver is good and the screen, although shiny, is usable in the sun. Moreover, it is far cheaper than a Windows device, making it far preferable to the DX900 for that reason alone. If 3-G and Dual SIM are essential, this is the best to date.
See all 6 user reviews