Cricket MSGM8 Phone Review

The Cricket Communications has introduced various messaging phones among which the ‘Cricket MSGM8’ is also one. The phone has a simple design like a slate with matching features. Its pricing is not at the higher end. It contains the normal features like a camera. texting and other features. The phone is priced at $119.99 with no contract.

The device has its measurements, 4.2*2.3*0.5 inches and has a straight forward design with rounded corners and straight lines. But the phone is available only in the color ‘Black.’ It is dressed in a plastic material having a soft touch and is comfy to hold in your hand. It is slim with weighing just 3.7 ounces. The display screen is 2.2 inches and is colorful while supporting 262k colors with a low resolution of 220×176 pixels.

The text is big and clear. But the images appear blocky and lack luster. You have the choice of modifying the clock format, the backlight time, the menu style, appearing images when you are getting a call and the brightness. You have a variety of widgets to the screen’s left side. You can insert more by accessing the catalog of the Cricket’s widget.

Beneath the display, you have the navigation array which features a square toggle with a centre select key, two soft keys, a Back key, the Power/End key, a Talk key and a Speakerphone key. The 2 soft keys are very sleek but the remaining keys are nice and flat. The QWERTY keyboard below also looks stuffed but the keys are raised aloft for typing conveniently.

The keyboard contains a dedicated calendar key and a text messaging key. The number keys are colored red. To the left, you have a jog dial, the charger jack and the headset jack of 2.5mm with the camera button to the right. The back portion features the lens of the camera.

The phone consists of a phonebook which can accommodate 1000 entries with space in every entry for an email address, a memo, 5 numbers and a birthday. You can pair them with a snap, one of the 6 polyphonic ringtones or assign caller groups to them. The other features include multimedia and text messaging, a vibrate mode, a memo pad, a schedule, a tip calculator, a unit converter, an alarm clock, a calculator, stop watch, a speakerphone and a world clock.

The enhanced features are email, a wireless Web browser, voice command, Bluetooth and a voice recorder. The device has a camera of 1.3 Mega pixels which can be used to shoot images in 4 resolutions: 640×480, 160×120, 1,280×960 and 320×240 and 3 quality settings. The other settings are 5 white balance presets, a self-timer, 9 fun frames, mirror view mode, a silent option, 4 image color effects and 3 shutter sounds.

The quality of photos is not great since the images appear blurred and dull though the colors appeared good. The mobile can be personalized using various alert tones, wallpapers and screensavers. Also, you can purchase more from the online store of Cricket. The cell phone features few games such as ‘Super Street Fighter 2’ and ‘Where’s Waldo.’ Similarly, you can buy more of them from the online Cricket store.

The quality of the call is quite good other than small issues regarding the voice quality. Sometimes, it seems a bit warble and static. The speakerphone is bad since it adds a strong echo effect to your voice. The mobile has a battery lifetime of five hours and a standby time of ten days.