Motorola ROKR E1
One heck of a misleading name
Although a few of the phones on this list place music and sound quality above call function (cough, W810i [Sony Ericsson W810i], cough), the Motorola ROKR E1 - despite its “gnarly” name - was clearly developed as a communicator first and foremost. It makes sense, and should probably be the way phone designers produce these things, but is it fun? In the case of the ROKR, the answer is no.
So, what makes this phone so special?
As we mentioned, the ROKR features impressively clear call quality. That should be important to anyone looking to purchase a music phone, since if the tunes were your only concern…wouldn’t you just buy an iPod?
With that said, we should note that the ROKR does feature great music quality, as well. Motorola has established a neat little connection with Apple’s popular iTunes service, making (legal) downloading quite easy.
- Tech Highlights
- Networks: GSM 900 / 1800 / 1900 (Tri-Band)
- Bluetooth v1.2
- Messaging: SMS, MMS, EMS, e-mail
- GPRS: Class 10, 32-48 kbps
What about the design?
Motorola’s ROKR E1 resembles Nokia’s 5300 Xpress and the Sony Ericsson W810i far more than the company’s own sleek RAZR frame. Although it won’t soon win over the hearts of any lady-phones, Mr. ROKR is still an attractive gent. The ROKR is relatively small, and unlike the competition, which is slowly moving towards jet black and blinding neon colors, it remains a few dignified shades of silver.
Cons?
Most of the drawbacks surrounding Motorola’s ROKR E1 are related to its design. That’s because a number of cool (and convenient) new features on phones from the competition trump the older styling of the ROKR. The best example of this may be the process of accessing a memory card. To find it in the ROKR users must first rip out the battery, making for an annoying and time-consuming obstacle.
In addition, like the Sony Ericsson (which the ROKR E1 closely resembles), this phone is not fully Bluetooth capable, meaning song transfers must be done with a standard USB cable.
Finally, the capability of the included (specialized) memory card offers enough storage for just 100 songs, leaving it well below the standard established by most MP3 players (which is about 1 GB, or twice that size).
Concluding thoughts
Deciding on the Motorola ROKR E1 might depend on your maturity level. Users who place call quality above music playback convenience will like what they find here. Rockers (or ROKRs), ironically enough, will want to look elsewhere.