All fly iq phones. Phone Fly DS123: specifications, settings, reviews

In general, I used push-button devices a lot, but I never did reviews on them, because I was already spoiled with "five-inch shovels" with HD resolution. And what can be viewed in a regular phone? Calendar, camera with 0...MP? Or a grainy screen?

It turned out that since regular phones a lot has changed. No, of course, you will not find a high-resolution screen in them, good camera, and more. But now, if you pick up an inexpensive push-button device, you can find functions that previously seemed unrealistic in such devices. For example, support for memory cards, MP3 player or dual SIM.

So, I think this is where we can finish the introductory part of my review, and proceed directly to the review of today's hero, whose name is Fly DS124. To do this, watch the video - unpacking the device:

Appearance of the device - black, rather thick monoblock, on the left of which the inscription XLife flaunts. You can draw an analogy with Philips devices, the manufacturer of which has something like a brand - Xenium, which means long use of the phone without recharging.

At the bottom of the screen you can proudly see the company logo - Fly.

The buttons on the phone are plastic, the move is very clear, which confirms the loud clicks when they are pressed, for some this may be a minus (for example, for schoolchildren who love in the classroom ... although, what am I talking about? Schoolchildren love to sit in ICQ or in contact, and it is not very convenient to do this from such a device, and it is unlikely that a student will voluntarily take a push-button telephone for himself). So, it can hardly be considered a minus. For me personally, this is a plus, since I love it when the keys (be it a push-button assembly, or the volume and screen lock buttons) click. (On my Fly IQ451 Vista, the lock button is vague, recessed into the case, and is pressed almost silently.)

Behind the device is not much different from most similar models. At the back there is a loudspeaker grille, it must be admitted that it is very loud, and a camera eye, although it is hardly needed in such a phone, the main purpose of which is to make calls.

On the left side there is a connector for standard headphones, that is, 3.5 mm, which has already become the norm for any phone / smartphone.

A flashlight is visible on the top end.

The connector is conveniently located on the bottom end Micro USB for charging and connecting to a computer.

There is also a spoken speaker.

Viewing angles are quite good, which is even strange for a device of this price category. If you look at the screen from the left, right and bottom, the picture does not change. But it is worth looking at it from above, as the image darkens, although not very much.

We figured out the screen, let's move on. It makes no sense to talk about the operating system here, since it is absent. The platform is unfamiliar to me, and inferior to the S40 platform from the Finns. But it is quite comfortable and functional. What is the cost of the lock screen. Yes, you heard right, this device has a lock screen similar to that of a touchscreen smartphone. It looks very stylish - from the "lock" icon of the lock, you need to press up to unlock it. Left - calls, right - messages. The lock screen itself displays all the necessary information: current time, date, battery indicator, connection level, and there is also an icon that shows that a memory card is installed.

The desktop shows which SIM cards and in what order they are installed. Below there are some sort of widgets through which the most used programs are accessed - these are contacts, messages, a music player, and a browser.

Connection. The speaker is loud and clear, there is no interference during conversations, which will undoubtedly please those who like to talk for a long time.

Two SIM cards are no longer a luxury, but commonplace. Of course, there is only one radio module here, and the presence of two radio modules seems like nonsense to me, since the battery will drain faster.

Contacts. Here, this function is organized just fine - all numbers are collected in a single list, and when you call from any number, you are immediately offered the choice of which SIM card to make the call from. Very convenient and understandable.

The Message Center offers you the following features: create a message, conversations (instead of "inbox"), drafts, IS messages, templates, and settings, all very easy.

In incoming messages, that is, when you select the "conversations" item, all incoming messages are shown in the form, hehe, of a conversation, or better to say - a chat.

Music player. In essence, here it is organized quite simply and concisely, and performs only one function - playing music. No folder playback with songs, or an equalizer.

Camera. Here it is purely for "fad - eat and okay." The resolution is 1.2 megapixels, of course, there is no autofocus or flash, just like two fingers - you press the button - the picture is ready.

Photo examples:

Video example:

There is a simple file manager in which all the files are mixed - photos, videos, pictures and so on.

There is only a choice of "memory card" and "phone", although the second item is useless, because its memory is about 500 KB.

Interestingly, this device has Java support, although it's not much use. According to user reviews, almost none of the toys started up.

bluetooth. It is quite common, and performs the only function inherent in it - transferring files to other devices.

Browser. There is both a standard browser and Opera, but it is unlikely that anyone will access the World Wide Web via WAP through this device, since there is no 3G here. And the screen is not very conducive to lasagna on the Internet.

As for the speed of the device, then this is in order. The menu opens and scrolls very quickly, even a beautiful animation is used when flipping, which does not interfere with the speed of the device.

Finally, the most important plus in the device, for which it has the XLife logo, is a 3000 mAh high-capacity battery. There is no such battery in any push-button device. Its charge is enough for an average use of two weeks, which is a very good indicator.

Fly DS124 is a well-balanced device that performs its "ringing" function uninterruptedly.

If there are any downsides, they are not. I read reviews that criticized the camera, the grainy screen, and more. If you need a good camera, an excellent clear screen, then you need to take more expensive devices. And in this device, I think there are no minuses.

Thank you all for reading my review.

: Not so long ago, it became known that Russian market Fly will only produce "dual-sim" phones. Such a move is justified for a company that thinks in terms of local markets, and adding an "extra" SIM-card costs $1 - $2.

The topic is especially relevant for the budget segment, since Samsung, LG and Philips do not yet have really cheap "two-SIM" phones, and Nokia still cannot make a final decision on the need to give the green light to such solutions. Thus, the resulting niche continues to be filled Chinese fakes and GSM terminals under the Fly brand.

Fly DS100 is the cheapest of the certified dual-SIM phones and is offered for the same price as regular budget phones from other manufacturers with similar features. In the course of the review, we will try to figure out whether it gives Chinese phone the presence of an additional slot is a decisive advantage over competitors.

Contents of delivery

• Telephone


• Wired headset


• Charger


• User's manual

Design

Fly DS100 looks archaic and, thanks to the rubber keypad, it resembles water-resistant phones with a protective design.

The candy bar itself is quite small, which is emphasized by the minimum weight (65.6 grams) and smooth contours of the case. By the way, the airiness of the forms would be useful for the DS100 if it was produced in several color options - as practice shows, light colors combine well with a similar performance, the recently reviewed Philips E100 is an example of this. However, the phone is presented only in black, and of course, there is no need to wait for any updates.

Size Comparison:

• : 104 x 44 x 13.7mm, 75g


• : 104.7 x 44 x 13.9mm, 71g


• Fly DS100: 106 × 45.5 × 14mm, 65.6g

The body of the DS100 is made of matte plastic, the coating is quite thick and pleasant to the touch. In the hand, the device lies well, it is very smooth and easily glides over the palm of your hand.

The front panel of the phone contains a standard set of elements. The block of function keys is highlighted by two additional buttons: "flashlight" (activates the flashlight with a long press, a short press plays the role of Backspace - deleting the previous entered character) and "second call" (for calls using a secondary SIM).

The sides are empty, there is only space left for the interface connector (miniUSB). At the bottom there is a flashlight, at the top there is a mount for a neck strap.

The battery cover is aligned with the rear panel, it is completely separated from the body. Inside is a 1000 mAh battery, and below it are two slots for SIM and one for a microSD memory card.

Practicality and ergonomics

Despite its low weight, the Fly DS100 does not create the feeling of a "house of cards". The assembly is done at a good level, there are no backlash elements here. It is difficult to say how the cover fastenings will behave over time, but they do not look very reliable, so you should not arrange frequent meetings with asphalt and other hard surfaces.

Due to the fact that the keyboard array protrudes above the surface of the case, it is more convenient to work with the keys than, for example, in the Philips E100. The ergonomics of the digital block is approximately at the level of , there are no problems with typing.

The function block keys are less convenient - because of the additional buttons, the size of the elements had to be sacrificed. This applies to soft keys to a lesser extent, they are convenient due to the convex transition from the keyboard to the display.

Comments on phone durability external influences redundant, since it has a rather clumsy design, and its owner is unlikely to be bothered by small scratches on the case.

The disadvantages of the phone include an extremely inconvenient microSD slot - I never managed to remove the memory card without the help of a screwdriver or other improvised means.

Display

The phone has a small (1.44 inches) CSTN display with a resolution of 128x128 pixels, supporting up to 65,536 colors.

It is not necessary to expect any outstanding indicators from a penny display, especially when it comes to third-tier manufacturers. Looking at the slow CSTN matrices of cheap phones, one remembers the times when the “tubes” had monochrome screens that were perfectly readable in the sun and cheap to manufacture. Nevertheless, the desire to see a picture that pleases the eye with colors has long won over common sense, and in Fly DS100 we again see the same picture as in Philips E100 / E210 and many other "state employees". The thoughtfulness of the phone when working with basic functions is very noticeable, it can take up to 1 second to work out pressing.

In the display settings, you can select the brightness level (5 steps) and the backlight active time (5 - 60 seconds). Among the traditional options is the ability to set a background image, screen saver, animation to turn the phone on and off.

Menu

The main menu is represented by nine sections. The images accompanying each of them are static, for each item the name and position in the list are highlighted (horizontal dotted scale).

You can quickly navigate between menu items using the numeric keys 1 - 9. Navigation is also present inside the sections, but it is implemented unsuccessfully - pressing the key only highlights the corresponding item, confirmation is required to enter it.

The settings for quick access to various functions are organized in the phone as follows: all 4 presses of the navigation key are configured, and for one of the presses you can select the My Menu list, which, in turn, contains the most popular items (up to 10 items).

Contacts

From the menu Phone book all available functions necessary for the user when working with contacts are available. Up to 300 names can be stored in the phone memory and phone numbers.

While creating new record you can add the following information: name (up to 30 characters), number (general, home, work, fax), company name, e-mail address, picture, melody and group membership. Little data, only the essentials.

From subsection Options you can set contact display options (phone memory, SIM 1 or SIM 2), edit your business card, set the fields available when creating a new entry, and select the type of memory to save (phone or SIM) and its current state.

In addition, the phone has the ability to copy contacts from the SIM card to the phone, either one by one or the entire address book fully. The corresponding function is assigned to paragraph Copy all.

Also on the menu Contacts highlighted in a separate paragraph additional numbers: phone owner number and emergency number.

Initially in phone book 5 groups are preset (for each, a name, an individual melody and an image are selected), while the possibility of creating new ones is not provided.

When viewing the list, the name, mobile phone number and an icon indicating whether the contact belongs to the phone memory or one of the two SIM cards are displayed. Quick search is possible only by the name of the subscriber.

Messages

The phone supports combined SMS, which can be typed both letter by letter and using predictive input. Up to 300 SMS messages are stored in the phone's memory.

It is possible to use one of 10 templates text messages, which are presented in a folder with the same name.

Working with MMS is organized in the form of slides, in each of which you can add images and sound files. Also, an arbitrary attachment can be present in the message, but its format must be supported by the phone, in otherwise you just won't see it in the file list. In the settings, you can specify an auto-signature, as well as set the creation mode (free or limited). To store MMS in memory, 100 cells are allocated, the total volume is limited to 225 kB. The size of one message cannot exceed 100 kB.

Built-in e-mail client is not provided, but sending MMS is also possible by e-mail.

Also in the "Messages" section you can find an item dedicated to working with information messages.

Call center and conversation mode

On the menu call center information about missed, outgoing and incoming calls is stored (20 latest numbers for each type). Here, in other sections, you can view information about the duration of calls, the number of received / sent SMS and the counter of GPRS traffic.

During a call, you can activate the speakerphone (right soft key). Using the left soft key, a menu is available from which you can enter the phone book, start a new conversation, send SMS, activate the voice recorder, turn off the sound and DTMF signals.

Profiles

In Fly DS100 profiles have not been allocated a separate menu item, they are available in the "Settings" section. In total, there are five preset options; when you connect a headset, the “Headphones” profile is activated.

Each profile is assigned its own melody for incoming calls and SMS (for each SIM card), a melody for turning the phone on and off, and setting the volume and tone of the keystrokes. You can also activate answering the call with any key and set the event indication mode.

Separate from the list of profiles is presented offline mode(Settings –> Dual-SIM Settings), which disables the radio part of the phone.

Dual SIM mode

The main feature of Fly DS100 is the support of two SIM-cards. Both cards are active at the same time, that is, it is possible to make and receive incoming calls without having to switch SIM cards. Both SIMs are designed to work on 900 and 1800 MHz networks.

The operators of the two installed SIM cards are displayed in idle mode in the center of the screen. Each entry has an icon labeled "1" or "2" depending on which card is secondary and which is primary.

Dialogues for choosing between two "sim cards" are integrated into all telephone functions. As mentioned above, there are two call keys - one for each SIM card. Call lists, respectively, are also two.

In the settings, you can deactivate any of the SIM cards, or both cards (offline mode). Everything is quite convenient here, the implementation does not raise questions.

Memory

The phone has very little internal memory, so if you need to store MP3s, ringtones and photos, it's better to expand it using MicroSD cards (support for media up to 4 GB is declared). The expansion slot, as mentioned above, is located under the battery.

built-in file manager(menu item - My files) is very simple and allows you to do only the standard operations of viewing, moving/deleting and sorting files. The copy and move options are available only individually, it cannot be done simultaneously for a group of objects. All operations are performed only with directories located on the memory card, while the phone's own memory is not available.

You can only send files via MMS (pictures, sound, video).

Audio player and FM radio

The second most important advantage (after dual SIM support) of Fly DS100 is the MP3 player and FM radio.

One of the hallmarks of a phone's budget origins is the lack of download capability. music files directly through the phone (connection to a PC is not provided at all). Every time you need to update your music library, you have to disassemble the phone, pull out the memory card and place it in an external card reader.

Nevertheless, the very fact of having a full-fledged MP3 player cannot but rejoice. The application is located in the "Multimedia" menu and "feeds" on the songs downloaded to the My Music folder (from other directories they are visible only through the file manager).

The program interface contains all the necessary elements, rewind is supported. The volume is controlled by the navigation key, it cannot be changed in the background.

When the player is minimized, a scrolling line with the name of the song being played is displayed on the screen. In our sample, the scrolling of the name was incomplete - a software flaw, which is most likely typical for all existing Fly DS100 (the manufacturer was not seen in frequent updates firmware).

In the settings, you can enable / disable the work in the background, automatic update library, repeat play and random play.

The player's menu companion is an FM radio listening application equipped with simple interface from multiple lines.

Among the functions of the receiver - memory for 9 stations and playback through an external speaker. The radio also works in the background, the main thing is not to forget to connect the headset.

Interestingly, radio broadcasts can be recorded on a voice recorder, including according to a schedule. In addition, the FM receiver can be used as an alarm clock.

The phone comes with a stereo headset, its quality is exceptionally low. The service life of such an accessory will be at most a couple of months, after which it will tear, break, or something like that. Needless to say, it produces the appropriate sound.

It would be foolish to expect outstanding musical possibilities from the Fly DS100, in this phone you only need a player to replace the sounds of the street with your favorite radio show or listen to music on the subway. However, the presence of features such as FM alarm and scheduled recording set the phone apart from the competition.

Organizer

You can find the classic set of office applications in the section Applications. Let's take a quick look at their main features.

Calendar

The calendar is as simple as possible - viewing occurs by months or by weeks, for each day you can create tasks (reminder, meeting or courses).

When creating a new reminder, you are prompted to set the start and end dates and times, enable/disable sound signal, add a note, and set the repeat order and location.

Notes

You can create text notes with notifications. Variants pre-installed as templates Date, call and Anniversary.

Alarm

You can set up to five alarms at the same time, and for each you can specify the frequency of operation and the type of signal.

Calculator

The simplest calculator with memory for one number.

world time

Moving around the world map, you can view the time in different parts of the globe.

Stopwatch

There is no currency converter in the phone, but there is a stopwatch.

Two options are provided: Regular stopwatch and Multi-stopwatch. The possibilities of each are intuitive: the first one has one time scale, while the other one is convenient for registering several results. The stopwatch can run in the background.

Additional applications. Games and WAP browser

Additional applications include Photo album and Dictaphone. The corresponding items can be found in the Multimedia menu.

Photo Album is a simple photo viewer application. Its capabilities are standard, but very often it becomes useless due to the inability to work with files larger than 100 - 150 Kb.

Unfortunately, Fly DS100 does not support J2ME. This is an insignificant shortcoming for such a phone, but given that only one game is preinstalled in the Fly DS100, this fact may upset some potential buyers.

In the phone settings you can find the function Auto on/power off. This useful option, which for some reason is undeservedly overlooked by all leading manufacturers, allows you to set a schedule for turning on / off the phone. It is a nice addition to the standard functionality of Fly DS100 and will save battery power for those who do not expect night calls.

The built-in WAP browser (WAP 2.0) is located in the menu Services. Lacking the ability to install Java applications, this is the only way to access the Internet.

The capabilities of the browser are similar to those of phones 6-7 years ago, so its only use may be the periodic viewing of mail through the PDA versions of providers' sites.

Working hours

The phone has a 1000 mAh battery, which, according to the manufacturer, should provide up to 6 hours of talk time and 240 hours of standby time.

With a daily rate of 20-30 minutes of calls, an hour of listening to music or FM radio, and occasional use of other functions (including GPRS), Fly DS100 can withstand about four days of operation. Using the power control function to turn off the phone at night increases the "survivability" of the phone by 15-20%.

Competitors

Today Fly DS100 is available from the largest Russian retailers at a price of 1990 rubles. Below is a summary table of specifications for several phones of the same class.

Manufacturer	Fly	LG	Motorola
Model	DS100	KP110	W230i
GSM band	2 SIM, 900/1800	900/1800/1900	900/1800
Support 3G (UMTS) / EDGE	no no	no no	no no
Screen Options	1.44", CSTN, 128x128, 65k	1.6", CSTN, 128x128, 65k	1.6", CSTN, 128x128, 65k
Dimensions	46 x 106 x 14mm	46 x 103 x 13 mm	111 x 45 x 15mm
The weight	66 grams	65 grams	80 grams
Battery capacity and type	1000 mAh, Li-Ion	900mAh Li-ion	900mAh Li-ion
Camera	No	No	No
Memory	microSD	microSD	microSD
FM radio	Yes	Yes	Yes
Communications	USB	USB	USB
Estimated cost	1990r	2000r	2100r

conclusions

The only speaker of the phone provides good audibility of the interlocutor in any conditions. The maximum ringtone playback volume is also on high level, but the vibrating alert is rather weak.

Fly DS100 does not have a clear positioning and a specific target audience. As a grandma's phone, it has a too small display, and it's quite small itself. For children, it has redundant functionality, since a flashlight and two SIM cards are unlikely to interest schoolchildren primary school. The phone cannot be used as a GPRS modem due to the inability to connect to a PC.

Surprisingly, it turns out that dual SIM support is more of a bonus than a real necessity for a potential Fly DS100 buyer. In regions where cheap phones are traditionally in high demand, there is also no need to support two SIM cards at once. Residents of the outback are more likely to be interested in the built-in flashlight than the ability to insert another SIM.

The design of Fly DS100 is primitive, so the demand for it will be ensured by its functionality, which has no equal for the same money and is not even close. At the same time, it is difficult to imagine a buyer who will need all the functions of the DS100 at once (flashlight, MP3 player, two SIMs), so with a balanced approach, many will stop at a different phone model. On the other hand, an alternative for Fly DS100 as the cheapest "dual-sim" phone will appear on the market for a very long time.

© Mikhail Kalinin, Test Lab
Date of publication of the article - December 15, 2009

Even though the market mobile devices filled with touchscreen smartphones, the role push-button phones cannot be downplayed. Even among the “old-fashioned” devices, you can find worthy representatives that are convenient to use in any situation.

One of those is mobile phone DS123. The device just has a body classified as a “monoblock”, and, as you can guess, is equipped with a physical keyboard. Read more about it in our article.

Device characteristic

The mobile phone can be called obsolete for the reason that it is no longer produced. The segment of keyboard-type devices from the manufacturer is represented by other models, which, obviously, are more in line with the requirements of the time. However, despite this, the mobile is still worthy of your attention.

In every sense, the phone is equipped at a fairly good (as for the requirements put forward by the user) level. At least, customer reviews dedicated to Fly DS123 confirm this. Now in this review we will briefly describe the technical characteristics, after which we will directly give recommendations from people themselves.

Design and body

The Fly DS123 device has a strict but rather stylish design. Emphasizing its metallic sheen - the entire phone has been specially placed in a light body (several color combinations available) that contrasts with the darkening around the display. For this reason, the phone looks like it can be used by both a stern man and a fragile girl - regardless of social status and age. In addition, the device is assembled in such a way as to prevent its damage during shocks and falls - therefore, we can confidently speak about the security of this model, its reliability in operation.

If you pick up the phone, in general, it does not play or creak, the lid sits like a glove.

Screen

As already mentioned, the entire display is placed on a dark panel on the front of the device, which contrasts well with the light “body” seen on the side and back parts. According to technical specifications, declared by the manufacturer, there is a 2.4-inch screen running on TFT technology. For a device with a physical keyboard, the 240 x 320 resolution found here is optimal for basic tasks. Obviously, no one is going to watch a movie on this phone, although this is theoretically possible.

Connection

First of all, it should be emphasized that the device supports two SIM cards. You can understand this if you disassemble the device or just go to fly settings DS123. There you will see a window for switching cards, assigning one of them - the main one - for outgoing calls, and so on.

As for the possibilities of connecting the phone to certain networks, the latter is able to work both in the standard GSM / DCS format and connect to mobile internet GPRS/WAP. Yes, we are talking about somewhat outdated communication formats, but nevertheless, with their help, you can view a message sent to you on social networks or in the mail using a browser for this category of mobile phones (Opera Mini). There is also support for a newer communication format - 3G. Due to it, the device can be called a full-fledged smartphone.

It should also be noted that there is a Bluetooth module for sending and receiving files using this model. The opportunity is useful, and there is a place on the phone for this - there is a memory card slot up to 32 GB, with which you can expand the functionality of the device to a multimedia drive. For example, if you are a music lover, this kind of portable player that supports communication will be very useful to you.

Unfortunately, the ability to connect to a high-speed mobile wireless communication format (for example, LTE) using this model will fail, since there is no support for them at the hardware level. It is obvious that the developer of Fly DS123 preferred to cut down the capabilities of the phone, endowing it with only the most necessary functions. In this case, we are talking about a set of functions for “dialers”.

Battery

Traditionally, for our reviews, we provide an item dedicated to the phone's battery and its characteristics. However, this, apparently, is not necessary, because due to the absence of such features in the Fly DS123 set, which means battery consumption, the phone is able to work for quite a long time. According to reviews, we are talking about a few days, maybe even a week. If you are a business person who needs to be constantly in touch, this phone is just for you. Modern Android gadgets cannot even dream of such a level of autonomy that the battery installed on the DS123 Fly offers. To make it work, you need compact battery, which, moreover, allows to reduce the dimensions of the device as a whole.

Memory

We have already raised the issue regarding the memory on the Fly DS123, and previously indicated that there is support for microSD cards. In addition to the ability to expand the volume up to 32 GB, there is also a built-in volume of 1.6 MB, which is enough to accommodate several photos, as well as receive SMS messages. Of course, to get more features it is better to increase the space on the phone. Support for working with Java applications allows you to install, for example, various "readers", which turns the phone into a very convenient portable "reader" in your pocket. In addition, here you can put various games for "killing" time and a browser.

Transferring data from PC to phone (and vice versa) is very easy. The included USB cable makes it possible to exchange information according to a simplified scheme - connected mobile computer sees it as a removable disk.

Multimedia

At first glance, of course, it may seem that the phone is too limited in functions, due to which it is difficult to talk about any functions more complex than just calling or messaging. In fact, this is not so. First, we have already mentioned Java support- this can make the device a reader or turn it into a surf device (with Opera). Also, the user has the opportunity to download the ICQ client, through which you can stay in touch using instant text messages.

In addition, by default, the device plays pictures and animations (JPG, JPEG), video files (AVI, MPEG, MP4), as well as music tracks (MP3, AAC, WAV). If you connect a headset to the phone, you will also get an FM player. Thus, we can talk about the availability of options for basic work with some multimedia formats.

Camera

The device has a main camera, which, according to official description, has a matrix with a resolution of 1.3 megapixels. However, as phone users note in the reviews, this is not the case. A 0.3-megapixel module was placed on the device for creating photos and videos. The output image quality leaves much to be desired. Everything that is photographed by the device is obtained in somewhat darkened tones. And it will not be easy to make out the image itself after that - the picture will turn out to be somewhat blurry. As for the video, the subjects also turn out to be blurry, especially when it comes to shooting in motion.

Therefore, the fact that Fly DS123 is not a “camera phone” can be definitely confirmed.

Menu

Since this is the access point to all phone functions, it is very important that the menu is clear and easy to use. Fly DS123 has a rather comfortable catalog in interaction, which is controlled very simply and smoothly, without unnecessary braking and delays. Plus, the menu is equipped with colorful, intuitive icons that even people without extensive experience with mobile devices. There is nothing difficult in this part of using the device.

Codes

I would also like to draw the attention of readers to the so-called “ secret codes”, or combinations to access certain functions of key devices. So, there are also codes on Fly DS123 that allow you to perform the operation according to a simplified procedure. For example, in order to see which software version the phone is running, you need to enter *#8375#. Another example is to enter the menu technical settings you need to drive in the combination * # 13646633 # (directly there you can control some system options).

Other options

Undoubtedly, in the work with the device, other additional features. For example, this is a flashlight placed on the bottom of the phone. It is quite hardy: thanks to a powerful battery, it can shine for 5-6 hours without interruption. Also, these include enough loud speaker, the sound quality of which allows you to listen to music without headphones.

There are a lot of similar functions in the device, and everyone who directly works with the phone can discover them for himself.

Yandex Market

I found on the network a solution to the problem with the rapid discharge of the battery, when the phone abruptly "dies" during the day, while in the morning it was 60%. We type *#446633# -> 2 "Device" -> 4 "Set default level" -> 1 "Battery" And set the following values: 3000000 3050000 (If more, then it beeps about the need to charge) 3610000 (If more, it displays 0 %) 3640000 (If more, then displays 30%) 3760000 (If more, then displays 60%) 3880000 (If more, then displays 100%) 9999999 found the ability to only attach photos to numbers when taking photos from the phone. As I found out, the size of the photo is less than 20 KB. Maybe if you squeeze external photo to such sizes, they will be attached to the numbers.

Guest 2 years ago

Yandex Market

A great little thing, especially if the phone is needed only for two situations: to call and listen to music.

Konstantin G. 2 years ago

Yandex Market

In the 4th year, Akkum keeps it for a month. - the speakers work - Unfortunately, although it holds falls well, I still lost parts of the case. :(We'll have to change it soon. A chic dialer with a huge battery life. And so in using 3 of these phones. All are over 3 years old. All work and do not plan to die. Loud. Strong. Long-lived. P.S. Give me a carcass of a dead DS124, I'm resuscitating mine. :) And then I'll have to take some senseit thread ...

Guest 2 years ago

Yandex Market

Indestructible, falls and soaks did not take him for 3 years. The plastic around the screen began to crack, as it were from the inside, but not the end. Everything works, just reset to factory settings. The camera is not smartphone, but it works. It is a pity that such a more modernized model did not come out while I use the DS124).

Guest 2 years ago

Yandex Market

We've been using it for over 3 years now! The perfect caller! The charge lasts for a week or more! We are so used to it that it rarely needs to be charged, that we generally forget that it can be discharged :) Very strong! Dropped hundreds of times and never got hurt. A couple of times it turned off only when it fell, then turned it on and it continues to work without failures. It is very compact in the hand, even though it is a little plump (due to the large battery). A huge sadness that this model is no longer produced and can not be found anywhere else: (We would take a couple more pieces!

Guest 3 years ago

Yandex Market

metal body eh ... and an excellent reliable long-playing dialer, the only thing I can’t understand is why plant such a monitor ... if in fact it’s enough and half as much ... there are no cards, there’s no point in the photo (the quality is killed, although who needs it) except to sit at the opera, but without 3g it’s not comfortable update 02/01/2017 excellent handset 5+ ... covered the screen with thick plastic .... knocked out the bottom row of buttons in the minus ... in general, now the killer volume serves as an alarm clock

Alexey L. 3 years ago

Yandex Market

One of the best push-button phones in recent years. And in some respects, it has no analogues at all. And apparently it never will. My mother used the phone most of the time. And she really, really liked him, too. Until he died. She was delighted with the well-coordinated, reliable and convenient operation this device. Unfortunately, this model is no longer produced, and it is not possible to buy this device. In many technical characteristics, this device surpasses the rest. And now it is not realistic to find a more or less identical replacement for him. Well, one cannot fail to note the fact that the price of this button phone at the time of purchase was from 1,500 to 2,000 rubles, depending on the store. That is, for little money, the consumer received more than a decent gadget. The phone coped with all its functions just with a bang. And remained in memory as the best mobile phone of recent years. This device fully and confidently receives the highest score from me. As a result, "5" with a huge plus. P.S. Described only his copy. I can’t know and say how others work, but our phone worked brilliantly. And if I had not drunk water, I think it would have functioned further. P.S. After some time, I want to add a review. After spending several days in a deep coma, the phone came to its senses again. HE LIVED!!! THIS MIRACLE is just something, he healed himself. Functions now as before. This is amazing. My mother uses it, and so she is extremely happy about the return of this device from the world of dead phones. So the old pensioner Fly DS124 will still serve, since there is simply no alternative to it today.

Izhbulatov T. 3 years ago

Yandex Market

Mobile phone manufacturer Fly decided to tease its main competitor, Philips, by playing on its field. In contrast to the well-known on the market series of long-playing Xenium phones from Philips Fly has also launched its line of long-playing XLife phones. But if Xenium devices are already firmly established in the market, and many people know about their advantages in the form of long battery life, then Fly with the XLife line will have to win the favor of users, proving in practice that their phones can also work for a very long time. The first sign of the XLife line was the DS150 model, an affordable two-SIM device, which will be discussed in this review.

Design, dimensions, controls

The phone is made in a monoblock form factor and has small dimensions (103x45x15 mm, weight less than 100 grams), so it fits easily not only in a trouser pocket, but also in a shirt pocket, without burdening the owner. Externally, the device looks quite attractive, such a simple and concise design. The phone lies well in the hand, without causing any discomfort from the first minutes of communication with the device. Only one color scheme is offered for the model, this is a combination of black (front panel) and dark gray colors ( back panel). The case coating is smooth, but not at all easily soiled, so the device always looks neat.

Comparison with Fly DS420:

The case is completely made of plastic of good quality, the assembly does not cause any complaints, all parts are fitted close to each other, nothing creaks or backlash.

On the upper end in the center there is a fairly bright flashlight, the on / off button of which is located on the left side surface. The key is medium in size, it is flush with the case, which allows you to avoid accidental activation. At the bottom end is a standard miniUSB-connector, which, among other things, is used to connect a wired headset to the phone.

On the rear panel in its upper part on a small elevation is the lens of the built-in CIF camera, and to the right of it there is a speaker hole for playing a call signal and other sounds. Most of the back wall is occupied by the battery cover, it is fastened quite securely, there is a backlash, but very small, so you don’t even pay attention to it.

Screen

The device has a small 1.77” (28x35 mm) display, unlike most low-end devices, it uses not a CSTN, but a TFT screen. The resolution of the display is quite standard for this class of devices and is 128x160 pixels, and the number of displayed colors is 65000. Up to 7 lines of text can be displayed on the screen at the same time, two more lines are allocated for service information. The screen quality is low, the picture looks average on it. The viewing angles of the display are a little disappointing, they are small both vertically and horizontally, a slight deviation of the device leads to image distortion, which is not very pleasant during operation. In the sun, the display behaves well, at least it does not go completely blind, the information on it remains quite readable.

Keyboard

The keypad is also made of plastic. The keys of the navigation block are medium in size and quite comfortable to use. The four-position navigation key with the “OK” button inscribed in it is small, but it is convenient to use, and there are no problems with it.

The numeric keys are arranged in terraces close to each other, they are also medium in size, but they are not very convenient in operation, erroneous presses often occur during quick typing. For people with large fingers, working with the DS150's number keys can be completely problematic.

The backlighting of the keyboard is white, it is unevenly distributed. The central column of keys is better highlighted, but the side columns are highlighted worse, so the characters printed on them are not always well readable.

Battery and XLife Series

The device has a lithium-ion battery with a capacity of 1200 mAh. According to the manufacturer, with it the device is able to work up to 6 hours of talk time and up to 400 hours of standby time. As you can see, the manufacturer is already claiming battery life that is shorter than that of Philips' Xenium phones, with the latter averaging 8 hours of talk time and 1 month of standby time. In the networks of Moscow operators Fly DS150 worked an average of 5 days with 15-20 minutes of conversation per day and up to 30 minutes of using other functions. If you also use the phone as a player for 1-1.5 hours a day, then the battery life will be reduced to 3 days. As you can see, the results are not particularly impressive, 5 days, or even more, is able to work most of the budget devices and, moreover, with greater load. Yes, of course, you can make allowances for the fact that the DS150 uses two SIM cards, but still its battery life is short, especially for a "long-playing" phone. The time for a full charge of the battery is about 2.5-3 hours, you can charge the device both from the mains and via USB when you connect the phone to a PC, but in the latter case, the charging time will increase.

Well, Fly's first attack on Philips failed, new line XLife turned out to be not so interesting as its competitor in the face of Xenium. The company should have done more work on the first device of the XLife series, made a candy out of it to plug devices into the belt Philips Xenium. But, unfortunately, Fly decided to go the other way, it seems that the company does not want to develop a line of long-playing phones, and the launch of the XLife series was needed only to harm the competitor.

Will the company continue to develop this series of phones? this moment it is not clear, perhaps the manufacturer will abandon it, as it was earlier with some other lines of phones from Fly. If the manufacturer nevertheless decides to develop the series, then they will have to work very hard on the release of the second product, since the first phone of the line will greatly spoil the impression of the series as a whole.

Memory and PC connection

The device has only about 196 KB of internal memory, which, of course, is quite small, but the situation can be solved with the help of microSD memory cards, the slot for which is located under the phone's battery. According to the manufacturer, the device supports memory cards up to 2 GB, but during testing our device saw and worked without problems with a 4 GB card.

The phone cannot work in Mass Storage mode without installing additional drivers, when connected to a PC, it only charges battery and all.

Work with two SIM-cards

The device does not use two radio modules, as, for example, in Fly DS400/420 and B700 phones, but only one, but thanks to the new chipset, two SIM cards can work simultaneously in it without switching between them. In standby mode, the DS150 has both SIM cards available, but as soon as you start working with one of them, for example, you made a voice call, the second one becomes unavailable. The solution with one radio module is budgetary and is suitable only for low-speaking subscribers who, in principle, do not care so much that sometimes one of their numbers will be unavailable. Users who purchase a two-SIM device so that both numbers are always available for communication will not work with devices like the DS150, they should turn their attention to more expensive solutions with two radio modules.

In the phone's menu, everything is done for convenient work with two SIM cards, there are no primary and secondary cards in the device, both of them are equivalent and simply marked as SIM1 and SIM2, depending on the slot in which they are located. In standby mode on the main screen of the phone, you can see two reception bars on the left upper corner, which are numbered. The names of the operators are displayed in the center of the screen, the top ones are for the first card and the bottom ones, respectively, for the second one. Through the phone menu, you can disable one of the SIM cards or both. The device has only one call key, which does not make working with the device less convenient, but only adds one extra press.

There are no problems when working with messages, contacts, call lists, in all the above items the information for SIM cards is separated, so it is simply impossible to get confused.

Menu

The phone's main menu has only one view, which is a standard 3x3 matrix. The menu icons are well drawn, the selected item is highlighted. The submenu is presented as vertical lists. The device has a quick navigation using a number sequence. Also for quick launch applications, you can assign access to them to the navigation key, in addition, the device has a quick access menu, in which you can add up to 10 menu items.

The localization of the device is not the best, there is not quite correct translation, there is also a problem with Russian fonts in the device - the letters are thick, and besides, they “dance”, which is not very pleasant while reading information from the screen. The phone provides predictive text input eZi (analogue of T9) for Russian and English.

Phone book. Up to 300 contacts can be stored in the device's memory. For each contact, you can record a name (up to 30 characters), up to 4 phone numbers with a rigid binding to the type of number, a company name (up to 20 characters) and an e-mail address (up to 60 characters). You can also assign a picture and ringtone to a contact. In addition, a contact can be placed in one of five groups, for each of which it is possible to change the name, assign a picture, and also a ringtone.

The contact list displays both contacts from the memory card and from the SIM card. The search is carried out in the phone book letter by letter or by name. In the contact list, next to the name of the subscriber, only mobile number phone, and to view other numbers, select a contact and press the confirmation key. Quick access to the contact list is carried out by pressing the right function key from standby mode.

A photo assigned to a subscriber cannot exceed 20 Kb in size, but there is no such restriction for videos. During incoming call The photo is not displayed in full screen.

Messages. Up to 200 messages can be stored in the machine's memory. The device does not support the EMS standard, only regular SMS. It is possible to work with glued messages, while working in the upper right corner, the number of remaining characters and the number of used messages are displayed. There are 10 templates in the phone, which can be changed at your discretion. Multidistribution of messages (up to 10 numbers) is provided, as well as sending a message to a group of subscribers (from the phone book).

MMS editor is quite simple and easy to use. You can create message templates. The maximum size of an MMS message to be sent cannot exceed 100 KB.

Challenges. Standard Lists incoming, dialed and missed calls, each of them can store up to 30 numbers. Identical numbers are combined, for each you can see detailed information, this is the date and time of the call, name (if the number is in the phone book), number and number of dials. In the call counter, you can see the time of the last call and, separately, the time of all outgoing and incoming calls. There is also a counter of data and SMS messages.

Settings. All phone settings are collected here. You can set the time and date, select the menu language, as well as the default input mode.

The device has 5 profiles, fully customizable by the user. Here you can select a ringtone for almost any action and both SIM cards, set its volume and set the ringer mode (single, repeating or increasing). Here you can also select the type of call signal, it can be: only a call; only vibration; vibration and call at the same time; vibration then.

For the screen, you are prompted to select a wallpaper, it can be one of the preset images or any other graphic file. You can select a screen saver (same as for wallpaper) and set the time after which it will turn on. The default screensaver is a clock, which can be called up by pressing any key in idle mode when the phone keypad is locked.

This section also contains call, network (you can manually select the range) and security settings. From the "Security" subsection, you can set the keyboard lock automatically after a while (from 5 seconds to 5 minutes).

In the same section, it is possible to set the phone to automatically turn on / off according to a schedule to save battery power.

My files. This menu item is nothing more than a file manager. When entering it, you can choose which memory to view, built-in or external, at the top it displays the total amount and amount of free memory. From the menu, you can open the desired memory or format it. In the file manager, you can set the sorting of files and folders by name, type, creation time or size. It is possible to create new folders, as well as rename existing ones. Files can be moved between folders, sent to other devices via MMS. For the selected file, information about its type is displayed in the upper part of the screen in the form of an icon, data about its size and creation date are also displayed here.

Organizer. The calendar can be viewed for a month and a week, in addition, you can see a list of all events. For the event, select its type (reminder, meeting, courses), set the date and time (start and end of the event), a small text note (up to 35 characters), sound notification with the ability to set a repeat: daily, weekly, monthly or on selected days of the week . It is also possible to add textual information in the "Location" field (up to 35 characters).

Notes. Everything is similar to the calendar, except for the type of note (date, call, birthday), as well as the ability to select a priority (low, medium or high).

Alarm. The device has five independent alarm clocks, for each one the time is set, as well as repetitions: daily, weekly, monthly or on selected days of the week. You can also set your phone to turn on automatically when an alarm sounds.

Applications. This section contains a calculator, unit converter and currency converter, as well as a stopwatch.

Services. The device is equipped with a WAP browser version 2.0. This section also includes the SIM-menu (if available). From here you can also configure profiles for data transmission via GSM or GPRS.

Audio player. An MP3 player allows you to play songs with different bitrates, they can be located anywhere, both in the phone's memory (of course, it will be difficult to save many songs there) or on a memory card. There is one playlist, you can add any songs you want to it. You can also enable auto-creation of the playlist, in which case it will include all the songs that are in the phone's memory or on the memory card. Random playback and repeat can only be activated through the player settings, it will not work quickly. Rewind within the composition is available.

The player can work in the background, just press the end call key, in which case the name of the song will be displayed under the operator's logo in square brackets. The long name is displayed incorrectly, although if you look through the player's menu information about the file (composition title, artist, album, genre, year), then it is displayed correctly.

Musical capabilities of the device are not high, besides, a very poor stereo headset is supplied with the phone. However, it was not worth expecting any outstanding audio capabilities from a budget device.

FM radio. This function available only with a headset connected, as its wire is used as an antenna. The quality of radio reception is standard for most phones. The phone has a manual and automatic search channels, the selected radio stations can be added to the list (maximum 9 radio stations). Like the player, the radio can run in the background. In addition, it is possible to record the broadcast of radio stations. In the radio settings, you can select the recording quality (high or low), file format (wav, amr or awb), as well as the location where the recording will be saved (phone memory or memory card).

Camera. The device has a CIF-camera capable of taking pictures with a maximum resolution of 352x288. Due to the low resolution of the camera and its low quality, the pictures taken with it are suitable only for use in the phone and sending to others. Cell phones via MMS.

Competitors

At the moment the Fly DS150 has only one competitor, and that is also a model from Fly, namely the DS100. The differences in the devices are minimal and consist only in a different design, the presence of a camera and a slightly more capacious battery in the older model, and the type of screens used (CSTN display is installed in the DS100). The difference in price between the devices is minimal and amounts to about 200 rubles.

Approximately only in October the DS100/150 will have a competitor from another manufacturer, which will be a new model from Philips. This will be the most affordable device from the Xenium line, which, like the DS100/150, will support two SIM-cards, and, like the devices from Fly, it will have only one radio module installed. The price for the budget Xenium will be approximately the same as for the Fly DS150.

Impression

The communication quality of the device is no worse and no better than most modern GSM-phones. The volume of the speaker and the sensitivity of the microphone are enough for a conversation in almost any environment. I didn’t like the sound of the speaker a little, during a conversation the interlocutor’s voice is slightly distorted, metallic notes appear. The handset has 64-tones polyphony, the quality of pre-installed melodies is not high, but the situation can be easily changed by setting any of your own compositions in MP3 format as a ringtone. The ringer volume is quite high, it is difficult to miss a call, even if the phone is in a bag. But the vibrating alert is weak, you can not feel it, even if the device is in your pants pocket.

Well, if we forget about the fact that the device belongs to the line of long-playing phones, then we can safely say that the phone turned out to be quite interesting, especially for its price. At a price of just over 2000 rubles (to be precise, 2160 rubles, about 67 US dollars), the device offers a good set of features and, as a bonus, it also offers the ability to work with two SIM cards. But, of course, I note that when buying a DS150, you should remember that the device is equipped with only one radio module, and this, in turn, will go sideways if the phone is planned to be used for active communication. But for not very active users who for some reason use two numbers, the DS150 is quite suitable, such subscribers will not have any problems with it.

It is better not to remember that the device belongs to the XLife series of long-playing phones when buying a phone, otherwise you will be very disappointed later, especially if you have had experience using it before. Philips phones xenium.