Digital Trends

Sanyo M1 April 3rd, 2007 | by Stewart Wolpin

Features and Design

Considering its compact but somewhat thick around the middle 3.6" x 1.9" x 0.9" dimensions (a little less than twice as thick as the RAZR or Samsung A900m), the M1 is a bit like a middle-aged man trying to look and act young. On the front flap of the black-and-silver handset is a bright 1.3-inch LCD, sandwiched between twin 1.5mm speakers above and a music control array underneath. On the rear is the 2 MP camera lens and the video light, both of which are placed right where your index finger wants to support the phone when taking a picture.

The M1's primary claim to fame is its 1 GB of internal memory. On the surface, the elimination of the often hard-to-manipulate pinky nail-sized external memory card seems like a dream, especially since Sanyo has figured out a way to squeeze 16 hours of music in that 1 GB; nearly twice the number of tracks than the Apple iPod Shuffle can hold. But not having a memory card eliminates the easiest way to get music and pictures in and out of this phone.

However, the M1's external ports and controls present a series of interlocking pros and cons. On the left spine are the 2.5mm headphone jack, volume up/down toggle, ReadyLink push-to-talk switch, and DC power jack; on the right is the speakerphone/voice command button and the dedicated camera activation key. On the bottom is the proprietary data connection port.

Separate AC/DC and data jacks let you keep the phone fully charged, even through the half hour-plus that it takes to transfer a full 1 GB of tunes to the phone.

While there are plenty of controls to use, unfortunately they are not well thought out . For instance, the camera button activates the camera. But neither it nor the "stop" button on the navigation array deactivates the camera. You have to open the flap to end the camera program. Conversely, the "list" button on the control array does not list your music tracks, nor does hitting the "play/pause" button activate the music player. You have to open up the flap to perform both these functions.

Equally awkward is the camera lens position on the rear flap, placed low enough that your index finger naturally falls right across the lens when you use the camera with the flap up.

Numbers on the otherwise generously spaced keypad are a bit too baby blue backlit, which almost overwhelms the large sans serif font. Dialing isn't a problem, but you'll end up squinting when trying to identify the smaller alpha characters during text messaging.

Among its other handier attributes, the M1 can store up to 12 hours of voice recordings such as meetings or memos in the internal memory, depending on how much music you've managed to stuff in. And like all Sprint PowerVision phones, the M1 allows you to manage your phonebook contacts through a Sprint web page. The phone can also be used as a modem via the included USB cable.

Image Courtesy of Sanyo