By Sean de Jesus
Published in the June 2008 print edition of PC World Philippines
July 22, 2008

Verzio Envii P29,900
www.verzioworld.com

The latest handheld from new tech company Verzio, the Envii runs on Microsoft’s Windows Mobile 6 Professional OS and features HSDPA data network support, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and a beefy 624MHz Marvell PXA270 mobile processor.

Design-wise, it doesn’t strike me as anything different from what I’ve seen from a number of other PDA brands. Below the 2.7-inch screen, you get the usual set of Windows Mobile PDA buttons (5-way navigation pad, two softkeys, call/end buttons and the Windows and OK buttons), but the pair of front-side loudspeakers positioned to the left and right of the button cluster is a nice touch. Other handsets position their speakers at the rear, making it difficult to hear anything clearly when it’s placed on a flat surface. The usual set of controls surround the exterior body’s edges, including two scroll keys at the left and dedicated shutter and recorder buttons to the right.

Verzio added their own proprietary interface to help users move between tasks. Called the Flick Dynamic Menu, this screen is enabled by tapping on the “Flick” button at the bottom of the screen, which pulls up an app launcher filled with 16 shortcuts to the mobile’s common applications (such as the calendar, FM Radio, Internet, Messaging, etc). You can pull or “flick” the screen horizontally—like turning a page on a book—to bring you to a locked screen, or back to the Today screen. The listed shortcuts (as well as the number of shortcuts on the grid) can be changed through the Settings menu.

The Flick Dynamic Menu also supports programmable gestures for rotating the screen, opening other applications, and enabling phone functions, among other things. Interestingly, you can pull up a screen that depicts the list of running programs “Vista-style”, where the program windows are lined up like cards that you can flip through. The screenshots are heavily pixelated though, but the name of the running program is shown at the bottom so you know what you’re flipping through.

The screen is bright enough, although resolution for the OS shell appears a bit rough around the edges. Evidence of this is seen on the Today screen, where text with small fonts (used for the date and other status messages) come out rather rough. The integrated 2MP camera also came out with shots that were a little bit grainy. On the upside, the camera was quick, offering fast frame rates and bright shots.

Text input on this phone is logically limited to the touchscreen, where you can choose among the operating system’s available input methods (Keyboard, Block/Letter transcriber, etc), but Verzio added another method here for people used to the usual phone’s 10 alphanumeric keys. Called Verzio TextM8, this method employs a virtual alphanumeric keypad that you use the same way you would on a regular phone, where ‘abc’ is tied to the ‘2’ button, ‘def’ at ‘3’, etc.

Performance is pretty good. Of course, normal, everyday use won’t show much of what that 624MHz processor can do, but switching between programs, opening and closing applications, and multitasking went smoothly. The 1530mAh battery did a pretty decent job as well, running for 6 hours on MP3 playback, while lasting 3:40 on video playback. All in all, it’s a pretty good deal for the price.

A solid performer with the right mix of features, an above-average spec list, and a relatively affordable price.

Operating System     Windows Mobile 6 Professional
Processor     624MHz Marvell PXA270
Display     2.7-in, 65k-color, Touchscreen
Storage     1GB internal / MicroSD slot
Networks     HSDPA / Tri-band GSM
Connectivity     Wi-Fi b/g, Bluetooth, IrDA
Others     2.0MP / VGA cameras
Dimensions     106x58x18mm / 145g

>     Executive Alternatives
>     HTC TyTN II
>     Samsung SGH-i550w