Sharp FX Review

Introduction:

During the glory days before today's modern smartphones dominated the airwaves with their youth oriented attractions, the Sidekick line of devices managed to enthrall the hip and young crowd with its meticulous attention on social features. Unfortunately, the Sidekick was axed out of nowhere and was thought to be done for good – especially when smartphones began to be appealing to the younger generation. However, the Sidekick's soul continues to live on in the Sharp FX for AT&T – another QWERTY device manufactured by the same company that built the Sidekick. Being in the mid-range market, the handset employs a touchscreen with a full QWERTY – but does it have enough appeal to bring back classic Sidekick users?

The package contains:

• Sharp FX
• microUSB Cable
• Wall Charger
• Quick Start Guide
• CD with Owner's Manual

Design:

Needless to say, you can absolutely feel that plenty of design styles employed on the Motorola Sidekick Slide were utilized on the Sharp FX. In more recent memory, the handset follows in line to what we saw with the AT&T Quickfire last year – and in some way feels like an upgraded version of that. Initially from a far distance, it might have a boxy nature to it, but there are some angular hard lines which add some character to the handset, radiating a hint of industrial design. Constructed entirely out of black plastic, there is a subtle soft feeling to its coating which makes it less prone to scratching. Surprisingly we didn't find it to be too bulky since it's only 0.60” and weighing in at 5.0 oz, but we weren't too thrilled about its construction since there is a slight wiggle to the touchscreen when it's closed.



You can compare the Sharp FX with many other phones using our Size Visualization Tool.

Sporting a 3” WQVGA (240 x 400) capacitive touchscreen with support for 262k colors, the overall size feels quaint when compared to the overall dimensions of the handset – its size could have been expanded since there is plenty of unused space surrounding it. Unfortunately, we experienced some recognition woes with it since it was unable to accurately register our touch and gestures. At the same time, colors looked washed out and text lacked fine detail to make it distinguishable from a far distance. Finally, we weren't too thrilled with its viewing angle which quickly made it unviewable when using it outdoors in the gaze of the bright sun.

Right underneath the touchscreen are three distinct and sizable buttons (send, back/clear, end) that are flush to the surface, but still provided for a reasonable amount of feedback when pressed. On the the opposite end of the touchscreen, you'll find the speaker grill that's accented with a chrome siding, which looks similar to what's found on the T-Mobile Sidekick LX. Toward the left side, you're presented with the 3.5mm headset jack, microUSB port, and distinct volume rocker, while the lock/unlock button, camera shutter key, and lanyard spot all reside on the right edge. The 2-megapixel camera is found on the rear along with the speakerphone, while removing the back cover will grant you access to the SIM card slot, 1240 mAh battery, and microSD card slot.





Exposing the QWERTY can be accomplished by simply sliding the touchscreen until it snaps automatically into place, however, the same wiggle can be found when it's opened – so it makes us question its longevity. We're happy to see a 4-row keyboard which utilizes square shaped buttons that are next to one another and have a slight bubble to them. It inevitably offers a good springy feel when pressed. In addition, we like how the edge of the phone provides for a natural grip when using the QWERTY – thus making the typing experience a comfortable one. Overall, we found it extremely easy to use, sizable, and responsive to make it perfect for youthful individuals.

Interface/Features:

Much like other mid-range feature phones, the interface found on the Sharp FX doesn't deviate from others found on AT&T's lineup since it's basically straightforward. However, the homescreen UI is rather confusing and lacks the personalization found with something like Samsung's TouchWiz interface. Instead, we're presented with the usual set of finger friendly sized icons toward the bottom. Then you've got a confusing homescreen layout where you can perform left/right and up/down swipe gestures to access Mobile Web, AT&T Social Net, IM, and My Stuff. One would think it would extend the homescreen, but rather, it simply launches those applications – something that can be done instantly with a touch of an icon. Regardless, the main menu layout is your typical looking one as you're presented with three screens filled with icons with dots found toward the bottom to instantly get you into a specific panel. The platform doesn't suffer from any speed issues, but the unresponsive touchscreen does make the navigational experience rather frustrating.


Limited to only 500 contacts, which is a tad low versus the competition, you'll be asked before adding a contact if you want to save it to the SIM or the phone. From there, you'll be able to provide the usual mix of information for each contact.


It's rather shocking to be displayed with an on-screen message telling you to open up the QWERTY to compose a message – especially when it packs on a touchscreen. Unfortunately, you're restricted to using the QWERTY for all your text messaging, but it's difficult to fathom why it doesn't provide any on-screen input methods. However, we did find that you can access a typical on-screen keypad with the Notepad app, but it's just strange to see it not offered for text messaging.


There's nothing special with the Sharp FX in regards to social networking since it relies on the AT&T Social Net app that aggregates content from a myriad of social networking accounts – which is offered already on other AT&T phones. You'll find an icon for Facebook in the main menu, but it simply opens up the mobile web version. Setting up email is pretty straightforward as it will automatically set up popular clients, such as Gmail, by simply inputting your email address and password. In instances when you want to set up a custom account though, you'll be required to enter additional stuff like server data. Finally, the same instant messaging client is offered which will allow you to chat using AIM, Windows Live Messenger, and Yahoo! Messenger.


Just like all other AT&T feature phones, the Sharp FX includes third party apps like Loopt, Mobile Banking, MusicID, My-Cast Weather, Where, YPmobile, and Mobile TV. Additionally, they are supplemented with AT&T's set of apps like AT&T Navigator, AT&T Radio, and AT&T FamilyMap.




Camera and Multimedia:

In this day in age, it's almost revolting to see mid-range handsets sport anything less than a 3-megapixel shooter, however, the Sharp FX falls flat behind the pack with its 2-megapixel camera. However, increased numbers always don't necessarily provide for better looking images. Thankfully, images captured outdoors produced some decent quality with their reasonable amount of detail and subtle looking colors. Conversely, image quality did take a drop with indoor shots since they generally looked fuzzy with drab looking colors.




On the other hand, video capturing is downright dismal since it is limited to only QVGA resolution and a capture rate of 15fps. Not only is it pixelated looking, but there is a steady amount of jerkiness to the video.

Sharp FX sample video at 320x240 pixels resolution.

Putting presentation to the side, we were greeted to a functional music player that provides the most basic operations. Audio from the rear speaker when playing a song sounded sharp to the ear and somewhat hollow. It didn't sound strained on the highest volume, but considerably lacked any powerful tones to make tunes sound vibrant. Unfortunately, we could not find any equalizer settings to modify the monotone sounds from the speaker. Additionally, music would instantly stop playing when you exit all the way back to the home screen.


Regrettably, we were unable to load any of our test videos on the Sharp FX since it only supports 3GP videos – just like the ones produced by its camera. When we did play back those videos, they looked extremely choppy and slow, while the washed out look of the display made for a poor experience. Thanks to YouTube, we were able to load a video in HQ mode and experienced the same performance – stuttery looking videos. The handset is Mobile TV and Video Share capable, but unfortunately, we were unable to test out this feature. As long as you're in an area where FLO TV is offered, you may find the $9.99 add-on feature to cure your television appetite.

With 80 MB of internal storage available, it can prove to be adequate for light users, however, the Sharp FX will accept microSD cards up to 32GB in capacity if you plan on being media heavy.

Internet and Connectivity:

The Sharp FX is a global capable device since it boasts quad-band (850/900/1800/1900 MHz) GSM and tri-band (850/1900/2100 MHz) UMTS connectivity – so it'll suit global travelers wherever they go. As an alternative wireless connection, it features Bluetooth 2.1 to get a mix of headsets to connect with it or transfer files.

As usual, we're presented with Opera Mini as the default browser on the handset – which naturally provides for a gratifying experience. Pages are rendered correctly with text being automatically re-sized to fit the width of the display – so it'll reduce any strain of navigating through long passages of text. As an alternative, you can opt to use the POLARIS Browser which is, and if not, a very usable one that manages to offer a smooth experience. However, while Opera Mini compresses data on their servers before sending it off, POLARIS downloads everything in full fidelity – which resulted in frequent “insufficient memory” messages. Nonetheless, the overall web browsing it good on the handset, but there are still concerns about the accuracy of the touchscreen when recognizing a touch.

Performance:

On our end, voices sounded clear for the most part, but there was a slight echo that could be heard toward the end of sentences. However, on the other end of the line, our callers did state that our voice sounded choppy – which made it somewhat difficult to make out our conversation. As we switched to the speakerphone, audio was rather weak with a prominent static hiss heard in the background as we conversed – which was even more noticeable when there was complete silence. The poor calling quality found on the Sharp FX clearly doesn't make it an attractive offering, but since it's geared towards the the sociably silent crowd fixed with text messaging, it shouldn't be too much of a distraction.

Signal strength was pretty solid while we tested it out in the greater Philadelphia region with no major fluctuations in signal strength when it's stationary.

Battery life was more than acceptable on the handset since we were able to achieve a talk time of 7 hours on a single charge in an area of high coverage. That's especially enticing when the manufacturer has it rated for a mere 3 hours of talk and 240 hours of standby time.

Conclusion:

Since the Sharp FX is a mid-range offering priced at $99.99 after rebates, its performance and set of features make it a compelling offering over its rivals like the LG Vu Plus on AT&T. Not only are we witnessing a rebirth of some sort with the Sidekick line, especially when Sharp manufactured them, but they were able bring along all the things we loved about the youth oriented device – specifically the design and keyboard. However, the combination of an inaccurate touchscreen and confusing homescreen interface substantially shows off its inability to be a completely well rounded device. Naturally the Sidekick line of handsets catered to youthful individuals with its unique integration of services, but since the social networking experience on the Sharp FX is no different from other AT&T feature phones, it clearly doesn't have anything compelling to make it a superior offering. In addition, being priced at $99.99 does make it a difficult purchase for some since the same experience can be found on other AT&T handsets that are priced lower.

Sharp FX Video Review: