Siemens M55

Click for more pictures of the SL55 and M55.

Clad in a shell of orange, gray and black, adorned with a set of pulsating crimson lights, the scorpion has crawled out of its burrow. The venomous arachnid is Siemens' mascot for its new M55, and we ask: Is this handset just another creepy crawly, or does it bear a real sting?

Shock Value
The M55, weighing in at a petite 83g, effortlessly stands out for its appearance. An "X"--like a flattened X-Men logo--is emblazoned across its speaker. The keys, painted loud orange, come in various shapes and sizes. Slits of red illumination decorate both sides of the frame, capable of nifty tricks like simulating disco or runway lights. It's no laser show, but it's flashy and even a little fun. The Siemens M55's looks and image isn't for everyone--at least not the conservative crowd, but it's eye-catching enough to appeal to youths and sporty types.

Furthermore, it's not all razzle-dazzle. The M55's style doesn't compromise on usability. Its numeric keys--which Siemens claims to resemble a scorpion's segmented abdomen--are reasonably crisp and responsive. The tiny on/off key on the right is a tad stiff, though.

Please Wait
When you look beyond the surface, the M55 is similar to its brethren, the slide-savvy SL55. The same 101x80-pixel, 4,096-color display marks the feature set. In technological terms, this is really nothing to crow about. Despite the presence of animated icons, the interface never comes alive, unlike some of the Samsung handsets.

Because of the low color depth, photographs may appear a little pixelated, but Siemens makes up for it with a superb collection of cartoons. There's a graphic of a goofy-looking rock singer, while one fork-wielding virus baddie looks like something out of the hit movie Monsters, Inc.

Speaking of viruses, Siemens seems to have contracted a bad case of the "Please wait" germ that infected older Ericsson phones. There's a two-second pause before each wallpaper is loaded up for the first time, while you'll have to hang on for some 20 seconds before a game starts. There's also the occasional lag in normal navigation. Thankfully, messaging is quick and easy, while new words can be added into the dictionary.

Sound Machine
A scorpion doesn't exactly kick up a ruckus as it stalks its prey, but the M55 certainly likes to make some noise. Although it doesn't offer the most fluid melodies, its percussion sounds are loud and thumping. The repertoire of about 40 melodies varies widely in quality, and includes some cool club tunes.

Siemens' handsets tend to come with good Java applications, and the M55 is no different. There's a program called Cubasis Mobile, which--like the Sony Ericsson's Music DJ--lets you manipulate four music tracks to produce a melody. Problem is: No matter how we tried to customize it, our ringing tones ended up sounding roughly the same.

Another Java application worth noting is the cerebral Chess-like Wappo game, which has gotten scores of users hooked. In this game's somewhat bizarre premise, you play a hero trying to escape a polka-dotted blue monster with nothing but your loincloth, bandanna and some wits.

The M55 supports MMS, and allows slideshows to be created and sent. It's not a WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) editor, so you'll need some patience while the preview loads up. The phone additionally comes with triband and GPRS.

Reception, Battery Life And Pricing
We experienced no problems with the M55's reception, while sound quality was generally loud and clear. The M55's 700mAh battery offered average life, quitting on us after three days of normal usage.

The M55 currently goes for S$498 without line or S$338 with a two-year contract. This puts it in the low- to mid-range category, pitting it against phones like the Samsung SGH-C100 and Panasonic G60.

Conclusion
Some may say the scorpion phone has been left behind in the evolutionary ladder. Siemens does stutter a little with the M55's meager 4,096-color display, but the German company has done much to make up for it. We certainly appreciate the phone's image, design and collection of software goodies. This scorpion isn't heading for the top of the food chain, but it will certainly hold its own against most rivals.