Motorola Ming
Despite the lack of onboard 3G and Wi-Fi, the Motorola MING is a compact yet capable smart phone that caters to the needs of mobile professionals.
| The good | Stylish design; handy size; transparent flip cover; bright LCD screen; Chinese handwriting recognition; Bluetooth stereo; business card reader; solid build quality. |
|---|---|
| The bad | 2.5mm audio jack; microSD slot placed beneath the battery; no 3G or Wi-Fi; shutter sound cannot be disabled; sluggish operation at times. |
CNET Editors' Rating
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CNET Editors' rating
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Rating breakdown
Even with improved designs and smaller form factors, smart phones generally tend to be bulkier and less attractive than mobile phones. However, the Motorola MING (a.k.a. A1200) seems to buck this trend. Its stylish 95.7 x 51.7 x 21.5mm frame is comparable to many clamshell offerings out there, and it comes in a smart-looking case. Amazingly, there is more to the MING than just its attractive appearance. Beneath the transparent LCD cover lies a plethora of goodies, from a 2-megapixel camera to a nifty business card reader and a touchscreen display that recognizes Chinese handwriting. The MING is currently retailing at S$698 for the handset alone and S$528 when bundled with a two-year mobile contract.Design
Besides the Moto Q which is expected to make its debut soon in Asia, the MING is by far one of the smallest and best-looking smart phone we've seen from the US mobile handset company. Though it is a little hefty at 122g, mobile users will most definitely appreciate the compact design which occupies a footprint slightly longer if narrower than a credit card.
We like the rubbery-like material around the sides and back of the phone, which provides better grip while giving a solid feel to the cellular. On both sides of the MING, users will find two silver strips with volume control, voice dial and camera buttons as well as a mini-USB port and 2.5mm audio jack. If you are planning to use your own earphones with 3.5mm jacks, you will have to purchase a separate 2.5mm-to-3.mm audio jack adapter.
One of the unique features of the MING is its sleek transparent cover which adds to the whole aesthetics of the phone while protecting the touchscreen display. It also has a slight magnifying effect, so users can better view of the contents on the display without having to flip open the cover. The phone's earpiece is embedded into the Motorola logo on the transparent panel and connected to the main phone unit via two thin wires.
Much as we like the transparent cover, it does take some effort to flip it open, even with two little grooves that Motorola has added on both sides of the handset. But once you get the hang of it, the phone can be a joy to use. In fact, you will need to only flip the cover to the halfway point and the rest of it is assisted by a mechanical spring action in the hinge.
Besides the buttons on the sides and bottom of the display, all other inputs on the MING will have to be done via the 2.4-inch QVGA (320 x 240-pixel) touchscreen LCD. Combined with support for up to 262,000 colors, images on the screen appear bright and sharp with excellent color reproduction. The MING comes with a stylus slot at the back of the LCD on the right.
The rear face of this smart phone houses a 2-megapixel camera with macro controls and a tiny reflecting mirror for self-portraits. Users will have to remove the battery from its slot to access the SIM card and microSD card. This is not so much a hassle for the SIM card since it's traditionally not something that one would remove often from the phone, but it definitely is for the microSD memory card. The arrangement effectively disables the ability to hot-swap the expansion card while the phone is in use.
We noticed that unlike most phones, the MING does not come with any LED lights to indicate missed calls or low battery. Users will have to occasionally check back on the main display for such information.
Features
The MING is a quadband phone, much like its Razr cousins, so it can be used to roam in most parts of the world, including Europe, the US and Asia. The lack of 3G connectivity, however, means that travelers heading to places such as Korea and Japan will not be able to use the handset in those countries.
To connect to a PC for data file transfer, users have a choice between Bluetooth, USB and the memory card (via an optional memory card reader). To make up for the measly 8MB of onboard memory, Motorola has included a microSD slot on the MING. This supports media capacities of up to 1GB capacity, which should be sufficient for most mobile productivity and entertainment needs. The Bluetooth profile also supports A2DP, meaning you can pair the MING with wireless stereo Bluetooth headsets.
The onboard 2-megapixel CMOS camera captures images at a maximum resolution of 1,600 x 1,200 pixels, which is theoretically good for printing 8R photos. You also get a basic set of camera controls such as white balance, filter effects and night mode. There's even a small switch above the lens for macro shots. However, since there's no LED flash light on the device, you can pretty much rule out shooting in low-light conditions. The camera doubles as a videocam, though the low 176 x 144-pixel resolution will limit it to mainly candid clips.
Interestingly, there's another useful application for the digital camera--as a business card reader. It works the same way as commercial name card scanners, except that you use the camera to take a picture of the card instead of scanning it. This application worked well for new business cards with large and clearly labeled fonts. But when we tried to feed in those with odd designs or even slightly crumpled ones, the MING failed to recognize the card on several occasions. Having said that, it's still a great tool to have on the smart phone, especially for mobile professionals who need to keep their contacts updated.
Perhaps due to the processor-intensive scanning and optical character recognition process, the business card reader application seems to use up quite a bit of resource when in operation. It is therefore advisable to close other running applications before using the reader.
For music and video entertainment, the MING comes preinstalled with RealPlayer application. There's also a Photo Editor software which doubles as a fun doodle board and a voice recorder that's useful for taking notes. The smart phone itself can be used as a modem, either through USB or Bluetooth. It has an FM tuner which, like most phones, requires the earphone to be connected before the function can be used.
As an organizer, the MING offers a standard suite of PIM offerings including world time, task manager, alarm clock, notepad and calculator. Other applications include an email client, Web browser and a file manager. You can download more third-party Linux software utilities from the Internet, though they are somehow not as readily available as those for the Symbian, Palm and Windows Mobile platforms.
Performance And Battery Life
As its name suggests, the Motorola MING, whose Chinese character means bright, has a well-lit and crisp display that works well indoors as well as outdoors. Used as a viewfinder for the camera, the screen is responsive and sharp for panning shots. Images captured are generally good, except for night pictures which often turn out pixelated.
On average, it takes about 2 seconds to start up the camera which is pretty fast for a smart phone. However, saving an image takes more than 5 seconds and this can be quite a letdown for some hoping to catch the next candid shot.
Some users may find the MING's user interface a little confusing at first, but it is actually quite intuitive once you get the hang of it. The main options can be accessed via the four main icons on the top row of the display for menu, contacts, messaging and phone, with the left corner icon for more options and right corner icon to close the application. Users can also configure the main menu to various user-specific categories.
One of the features we like about the MING is its Chinese handwriting recognition. It is fairly intuitive to use and accurately recognizes a wide range of Chinese characters. For English text input, the handwriting recognition works quite accurately, too, but the conversion from handwriting to text is a little sluggish and the virtual keyboard is a tad too tiny for comfortable typing. So this may not go down well with those who text often.
In our road tests, the MING did well in the areas of reception and voice call quality. Its speaker volume was also sufficient for music playback and for conducting handsfree conversations. The supplied headsets provided acceptable audio quality.
Depending on usage volume, the MING is expected to last about two days before its 850mAh battery needs a recharge. It clocked about 6 hours of talktime during our tests, which was slightly lower than the rated 7 hours given by Motorola.
Latest comments
Pros: Sleek, great performing phone with loads of useful and cool features
Cons: PC software is difficult to install
Summary: A superlative Smartphone marred somewhat by difficult to install and quirky PC software
I was a previous owner of the Motorola A768i and loved it. The Motorola Ming (A1200r), which I purchased on mainland China for $285.00 (2080 yuan in February 2008), exceeds any and all expectations I had of the phone based on my previous experience with the A768i, as well as the many reviews I had read. Aside from the fact that this phone is sleek, relatively small and lightweight (can easily fit in a pants pocket comfortably), the phone is a sheer pleasure to use and is chockfull of useful features. Unless you need a full-featured PDA (which I don’t), the 1,000 contact capacity phone book (with numerous fields for multiple phone numbers, e-mail addresses, URLs, and even notes), in addition to the calendar (which allows you to enter events and tasks with reminders), as well as the ability to save notes, should more than satisfy all but the most demanding PDA users. This phone even includes the ability to take cropped snapshots of business cards with built-in OCR software that then writes the information into a new contact in your phonebook. In regard to the calendar and scheduling events, I wish Motorola had included the ability to create one’s own categories (but the current selection of ten choices is more than adequate). Of course, you can add new ringtones to the phone and assign specific ringtones to any caller you like (a feature I take ample advantage of so I know who’s calling before I ever retrieve the phone from its holster). I think it would have been more convenient (even useful), if Motorola had included the ability to assign a specific ringtone to each user-defined phonebook category (e.g., a specific ringtone for family members, friends, etc.), but one can accomplish the same result by individually assigning the specific ringtone to each contact. A wonderful repository of truly free ringtones and wallpapers for your phone can be found at www.zedge.net. I would have preferred it if Motorola had kept the slot for the stylus on the left-side of the phone, as it was on the A768i. Previously, I would simply slid the stylus up with my left forefinger and retrieve it with my right hand. Now, when I place the phone in my left hand (in preparation for using the stylus with my right-hand), I have to bend the phone downwards in order to literally pry the stylus out with my right thumb (and it is a very snug fit, perhaps snugger than it should be). I personally preferred the longer and wider stylus on the A768i: It felt considerably more substantial in my hand, like one was holding a slightly undersized pencil, instead of an ultra thin and short piece of metal. Unlike the A768i, only one stylus is provided. I don’t use my phone for sending e-mail messages, but if you do, you should know that the current built-in software does not support any SMTP port other than 25. For those who have POP accounts with, for example, Yahoo and Hotmail, this will not pose any problem, but for Gmail users, the software will be unable to connect via SSL SMTP port 465. A relatively simple workaround for this is to use the web browser to connect to www.gmail.com or to install another Smartphone e-mail application and subscribe to a dedicated e-mail service such as those offered by Whoosh or Movamail. In addition to e-mail applications, you can download a truckload of other free Java applications for your phone at http://www.getjar.com. For those who are tech-savvy, you should definitely visit www.motorolafans.com (probably before you buy the phone). This website contains a lot of useful information about the A1200, including firmware revisions for the three different firmware tracks currently in use (with extensive and detailed information about how to do just about anything you may care to with your phone). I changed the firmware for my phone (using the 30p-c2_oent_emea_l4_00_mis “C2-track” firmware revision) so that the China Mobile branding and Chinese language were removed (this new firmware also considerably improved my battery life and significantly increased the speaker’s volume, but completely disabled the phone’s voice recognition feature, which I never use anyway. I have also noticed some distortion in the way the callers’ photos are displayed until I lift the phone’s cover but, overall, the tradeoff was well worth it). You can read all about the pros and cons of each firmware revision so that you can decide for yourself which one is best for your particular needs. The only significant complaint I have about my purchase has absolutely nothing to do with the phone, per se, but, rather, with the PC software that is provided with it. The standard edition of the Phone Tools (MPT) software package, provided by Avanquest (BVRP), is extremely difficult to install and often requires multiple attempts before one is successful (I had the same problem when I owned the A768i). Before buying the phone, you may want to navigate over to Avanquest’s support forum for its Motorola software and read all the nightmarish stories users have had trying to install the package (www.bvrpforums.com/motorola/). I am a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE) and it took me two tries and a system restore from a Ghost backup file before the application was up and running properly. For the greatest chance of success, do not install the software from the provided CD. Instead, go to the motorolafans.com website and follow the links to the latest version of MPT (currently 4.5.6a, as of February 2008) and Motorola Driver Tools. Install the software from the most recent version only, install the Driver Tools, then launch the application, and do NOT connect the phone to your USB port until instructed to do so. Only versions 4.5.1c and higher support Outlook 2007. Aside from the challenge of properly installing the software, MPT has several noticeable quirks. For example, the synchronization application curiously lacks automatic mapping of the notes field (which exists in both the phone’s and Outlook 2007’s contact databases). There is no way to save images that have been modified other than by selecting a different image, at which time you will be prompted as to whether you want to save your work. Perhaps this is all just a “clever” ploy to force users to cough up the additional $29.95 for Avanquest’s deluxe version of MPT. The handwriting recognition software is still a bit quirky as it was in the A768i, but, with a little bit of practice, you’ll be able to produce the letters you want to (although there still is no way to get the software to distinguish a comma from an apostrophe on the first try—you will have to write a comma, and then select the second choice which is an apostrophe). Other than these few minor peccadilloes, and completely aside from the Herculean task of properly installing the PC software, I love the phone and can recommend it to anyone who is in the market for an outstanding, compact, lightweight, and very “smart-looking” Smartphone with lots of great features.
Pros: Excellent Still Picture quality, fast OS, touch screen, hand writing recognition
Cons: Poor Video Recording Quality, Poor quality of the metal finish on the sides and the flip cover
Summary: The best cost effective solution for a smart phone - as on date
You can not get a better phone for the cost that comes with it. The photo quality seems to be better than some of the digital cameras which cost about the same. The very fact that Linux is the OS solves the sluggishness of rivalling smartphones. If software updates are provided for the phone, it can take a long time for the phone to become obsolete, and one has to keep in mind that there are relatively few networks in number which provide all latest standards of mobile telephony.
Pros: It has got everything for the price it comes for
Cons: Poor Video recording capability
Summary: Best Value for money Smart Phone
It has the best design of all smart phones that I have seen. Except for the poor video recording capability, every other aspect is stunning for the very little amount I paid for it.
Pros: ausum
Cons: cool
Summary: toooo hot
Hi guys, Me working with an IT sector so thought of buying an ultimate phone which have all compatibility and all the looks...so thought off buying MING the supper phone...I just love the look it has..Before thsi i had an Motorola V3i i did love that as well...yeah but its true that the mp3 sound is not that good as compared to sony phones...but i dont have an keen love to hear music on phone as i dont have the time for it...it has the best clearity with its 2mp camera...the screen quality is ultimate..i just love it...the best part of it is it has a call recording facility..and the ultimate flap is mind blowing..its a pretty smart phone...iam using motorola phones from last 1.5 years..and i didnt faced any single problem with it till yet.and moreover the beautiful linux it has ....just ultimate...I dont know abt others but i love moto....keep it up moto....
Pros: Touchscreen, Stylish look
Cons: Hangs often, Battery, bad picture quality
Summary: its OK, not very good
I got motoming and it got hung just in 2 hours of time i bought.. later in 20 days, it got hung atleast for 25 times and i had to open and close the battery to get it work.. i went to the service centre and they gave me a Dead On Arrival certificate, using which i got a new moto ming from the distributor yet to see how this piece is going to work .... wish me all the best :)
Pros: A far better screen than the Samsung Ultra 900--clear but sweet sound.LOT OF FEATURES.
Cons: UP TO NOW NADA DE NADA
Summary: THE Most user friendly and intuitive phone onTHE GLOBAL MARKET= a phone to work with efficiently
After using it during one week= SURPRISING MARVEL,SECOND TO NONE = THE SMARTEST PHONE EVER PUT ON THE GLOBAL MARKET---USING IT PERFECTLY WELL IN PERU. REALLY IN A CLASS BY ITSELF AND I BELIEVE THE FIRST HIFI sounding PHONE...YOU WILL RECOGNIZE THE VOICES OF YOUR FRIENDS IN ONE SECOND,with all their nuances...INCREDIBLE. Linux . that means complete , very easy to use and quicker than the Concorde.... Texting is done like a breeze with any keypad. Your grand mother will read the data without glasses Well done ,surprise everybody with its classy and elegant form factor( especially in black) to summ up : the cream of the crop...!
Pros: have all facilities- fm ,video, bluetooth, ms office ... Gre8
Cons: bit complicated
Summary: very stylish and compact mobile
Pros: very nice looking. cool clear flip, crisp large display
Cons: confusing/awkward UI, camera could be much better - has no flash.
Summary: more style than substance
recently bought this phone because of all the hype, but am very disappointed. This phone would have been pretty good about a year ago, but for a smart, premium priced phone, it is really lacking, when compared to premium phones by sony, nokia and others. Can't wait for the nokia n95 Reasons: 1)camera is quite basic (no flash? no autofocus?). video recording ability is of quite low quality. 2)UI is not very intuitive compared to sony and nokia, and gets quite irritating after a while. 3)battery life is very poor 4) could do with larger internal memory and support larger capacity memory cards 3)Poor shortcuts for camera + music player. Maybe i'm expecting too much having seen the specs for the nokia n95 and SE K800? I hope Moto read this. please update this phone and at least try and include some of the following: 1) better quality camera with 4MP/ 5MP, autofocus, flash/ light (light could also be used when camera not in use), with optical zoom maybe? the cameras on all moto phones are dated. 2)higher memory capacity internally and expernally. 3) GPS navigation like n95 possibly? 4) enhanced music player, eg: allowing you to arrange music files as you want, musical graphics - like WMP? 5)what about being able to use the phone as a mass storage device - to store documents - could then be linked to computers and used as an external hard drive? 6) more intuitive UI with useful shortcuts - like SE and nokia. 7) multi band radio (FM, MW, LW, Digital) for people who travel a lot. 8) remote control in the headphones allowing you to control phone functions? 9) Battery desperately needs a longer life These features would certainly put Moto back up there in the tech capability stakes and add some substance to the beautifully designed phones moto makes.
Pros: Linux OS ,Price,strong signal recep,PDA functions, multimedia,reasonable batt life
Cons: Small screen , no 3G,no WIFI
Summary: Vast Improvement over previous Linux powered PDA smartphones
Motoming is a dynamo, do not be misled by its dimunitive size. It has alot more useful functions than other phones 2 times its size. From A760 , A768i to A1200 ( I own all three models - never had a problem with any) , the most useful features are -the call record function ( especially when talking to customers on hotline calls ). -document viewer -text to speech function. The above should be standard features in future models. Motorola should also have added -Answering machine function. -Document editor My wish list to Motorola ( from a tecchie like me) ....a larger 3G version with -Linux OS -larger 256k screen -qwerty keyboard -WIFI G or N -Bluetooth -3mp camera with flash. -word /Excel/graphics document viewer/editor. -larger Internal and auxillary memory/storage -longer battery life -video call record -GPS, would be enough to keep the competition at bay for awhile. I seriously hope the Motorola R&D people are reading this.
Pros: looks great
Cons: the OS is extremely slow, business card reader does not work well, camera is hazy
Summary: Hangs all the time
i hate to give such a negative review after reading all these positive reviews, perhaps it is a problem with the particular piece i own. I bought the fone yesterday and it hangs (no exageration) every three seconds. it is extraordinarily frustrating. i am returning this phone. i hope the problem is just with my phone as the phone and the features seem great.
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