Siemens M55
Gagan Gupta, Feb 09, 2004 0000 hrs IST
The phone design is very obviously aimed at the Generation X with its small size.
Inexpensive phone with camera, Good build quality
Unsatisfactory display, Very limited connectivity options
Camera phones are becoming a much sought after commodity. While most of them are still pretty much out of reach for the common man, the price barrier is slowly diminishing with cheaper models slowly emerging in the market.
I wouldn't call the Siemens M55 a camera phone as it comes with an external camera attachment rather than an integrated camera. The great part is that it comes at a price that should be within reach for quite a huge demography of mobile users. The bad part? Read on.
Off the Box
The M55's box contained the main phone unit (of course), the camera attachment, the battery and charger and a comprehensive manual.
The phone design is very obviously aimed at the Generation X with its small size (101 x 46 x 21 mm / 83g), sporty design and its overall layout. As experience has told me, if it's a fancy looking mid-range phone, the keypad is likely to be a pain. Thankfully, my theory was proved wrong. The keypad is very functional and responsive, with the exception of the call accept and call reject buttons that were a little hard to press. But overall, I could type quick SMS messages or punch in numbers without the keypad holding me back.
There are four red LED lights on the sides of the phone (two on the left and two on the right), which blink in their user-defined manner when the phone is on use, stand-by or basically just on. They're not only quite distracting but also make the phone look very tacky and cheap, like a toy. Normally these lights are of little use unless you want to see if you're receiving a call in a meeting where the ringer has been kept off. Besides that, it's just a battery consumer that can be turned off from the settings menu.
The LCD display of the M55 was pretty disappointing considering the kind of quality LCD screens that can be seen on most mid-budget phones. The LCD is sized at 101 x 80 pixels and supports 4096 colors. What kills the show of the LCD is the display matrix, which is clearly visible at any given point of time making all wallpapers or images in general look grainy and low quality. Not only that, the display seems to have a sepia color tone constantly on, which adds a yellowish tinge to the display. Even the images you click with the attached camera look yellowish, so you'll never know how the colors turned out unless you look at the pictures on your PC screen.
The camera attachment, IQP-530, is equipped with a viewfinder and a flash and can be attached to the bottom of the mobile unit.
USER COMMENTS
i am in baroda.can u suggest me how can i purchase QuickPic Camera IQP-530 and what will be cast in indian rupees
by dkp, baroda, on Jan 12, 2006 05:14 AM, Report abuse Reply
I like this phone a lot I just want a camera phone or camera attachment.
by Shanelle Mercha, Upper Marlboro, on Feb 25, 2004 10:26 PM, Report abuse Reply
Hi Shanelle, Your message is a little old but I just stumbled upon this site while researching the M55 and camera attachment. The camera attachment did cost $130 extra from Fido, I did not get any cables or software with mine and then got a new phone 2 weeks later so never used it. If you still want to purchase the camera and case you can make me an offer. Thanks, Ruby.
by Ruby, Vancouver, on Nov 02, 2005 05:01 AM, Report abuse
by raja, india, on Jan 26, 2005 01:49 PM, Report abuse Reply
the price is different...in fact, im switching down from the e365 to this...smaller, lighter..i can sacrifice the 65k and 128x160screen and camera... i juz love to use this phone! the software is excellent and well thought...slow? think e365. this review is very biased againts the phone. Other phones of similar class dont have the connectivity options (infra) nor the data cable. the camera option shoudnt be accounted for as it ships without it. it is an ACCESSORY. i dont see sites reviewing every phone AND acessory! siemens also gives users the ability to upgrade to FM. i may be biased FOR siemens, but i jsut feel that things arent really justified.
by Anonymous, aa, on Jul 07, 2004 03:39 PM, Report abuse Reply
Nice Cam phone...but Motoroal E365 is a better buy than this one.
by Anonymous, abc, on Feb 10, 2004 01:58 PM, Report abuse Reply
the price is different...in fact, im switching down from the e365 to this...smaller, lighter..i can sacrifice the 65k and 128x160screen and camera... i juz love to use this phone! the software is excellent and well thought...slow? think e365. this review is very biased againts the phone. Other phones of similar class dont have the connectivity options (infra) nor the data cable. the camera option shoudnt be accounted for as it ships without it. it is an ACCESSORY. i dont see sites reviewing every phone AND acessory! siemens also gives users the ability to upgrade to FM. i may be biased FOR siemens, but i jsut feel that things arent really justified.
by Anonymous, aa, on Jul 07, 2004 03:38 PM, Report abuse
the price is different...in fact, im switching down from the e365 to this...smaller, lighter..i can sacrifice the 65k and 128x160screen and camera... i juz love to use this phone! the software is excellent and well thought...slow? think e365. this review is very biased againts the phone. Other phones of similar class dont have the connectivity options (infra) nor the data cable. the camera option shoudnt be accounted for as it ships without it. it is an ACCESSORY. i dont see sites reviewing every phone AND acessory! siemens also gives users the ability to upgrade to FM. i may be biased FOR siemens, but i jsut feel that things arent really justified.
by Anonymous, aa, on Jul 07, 2004 03:38 PM, Report abuse
No software for the cammera is available! the given link www.my-simens.com/quickpic is death.
** Message edited by moderator **
by Stefan Velikov, Sofia, on Apr 17, 2004 09:01 PM, Report abuse Reply
by mehboob, belgaum, on Feb 24, 2004 03:20 PM, Report abuse Reply
Is camera attachment standard acessory or an add-on (charged extra).where or from whom can i buy this in mumbai and at what cost.
by Sandesh K, Mumbai, on Feb 19, 2004 05:19 PM, Report abuse Reply
i cannot really judge because i have a samsung phone, but i think it looks good but the way that the camera isnt intergrated is dissapointing
by brett, great britian, on Feb 18, 2004 10:00 PM, Report abuse Reply
Is the camera optional ? Cause when I asked a dealer he says you have to pay extra for it.
by Brendon, Mumbai, on Feb 09, 2004 11:14 PM, Report abuse Reply
No the camera is a part of standard accessories i.e. a add on camera, Data cable, software, battery and manual
by shailesh, delhi, on Feb 10, 2004 02:21 PM, Report abuse
Camera was not a standard part of my phone, it costs $130.00 Canadian more. Also, I too experienced the short standby time. I returned the original phone because it would not stay charged longer than two days, got a replacement and it's the same thing, even after I shut the lights off. It's an ok phone.
by peter, toronto, on Feb 13, 2004 09:50 AM, Report abuse
I have the same phone & the camera is aan additional accessory.
by borg, somewhere, on Feb 11, 2004 04:20 PM, Report abuse Reply
I disagree with the battery life of the M55 mentioned in this review.I bought this phone from Singapore in September when it was just launched.I afraid my phone battery does not last even 2 days!!I am charging it almost every night.To avoid this i disabled those lights that blink on the side as a mode of saving battery.Secondly,i did not find a camera,cable or any software in the box .Lastly,my phone charger got spoilt becuase i think i used it too much and i could not buy a new one because even the Siemens dealers in bombay did not have it with them so i had to call for one from a friend coming from London.
by Dhruv Kapoor, Mumbai, on Feb 11, 2004 03:38 PM, Report abuse Reply
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by sameh, alex, on Sep 14, 2006 06:54 PM, Report abuse Reply