Virgin Mobile Lobster 700TV review

What is it: Windows Mobile smart phone with mobile TV and DAB radio

What we think: Not the neatest handset on the market, or the best made, but it gives you access to digital TV and radio

Virgin Mobile Lobster 700TV Review

Reviewed by: Sandra Vogel

Reviewed on: 12 October 2006

To receive TV and radio you have to plug in the provided headset, as this acts as an antenna. You can play the sound through the handset speaker or headphones. We were able to tune into close to the maximum 50 DAB stations available. The number you get will vary depending on where you are in the country, just as with any DAB set. There are some channels that offer 'interactive' services via Pocket Internet Explorer -- you hit the TV on/off button and if these are available they load into Pocket IE.

The TV coverage is more limited. There are four channels -- BBC1, ITV1, Channel 4 and E4. BBC1 is trailing for a year. Channel 4 isn't yet the full C4, but rather its Short Cuts made-for-mobile channel. On all channels, some US, sports and film content won't be broadcast at all due to rights issues. There's a seven-day programme guide, and you can set a reminder to watch a channel on a particular day at a particular time.

The 1.3-megapixel camera lacks a flash or self-portrait mirror and therefore its specifications are decidedly average. Which, apart from the TV, is probably a good word to sum this handset up. Average.

Performance
The TV and radio performance was pretty good. They both worked watchably well in areas with good reception and we successfully tested them on a moving bus and car. However, it didn't work well on a train -- it frequently froze -- and occasionally cut out on the bus and car if we were in areas with very bad reception.

Another problem we found was that the images on the TV didn't refresh fast enough in relation to the audio, creating a dubbed film-like effect, with people's mouths not moving in time with what they were saying.

The camera delivered quite well considering its low pixel count. We wouldn't be embarrassed to share the images it produced.

Battery life is a letdown, though. Continuous TV play off a full charge got us three hours of watching. That is enough for a movie and some soaps, but we'd have liked more. A more traditional MP3 rundown test with the screen forced on delivered just over eight hours of music.

Edited by Mary Lojkine and Andrew Lim
Additional editing by Nick Hide