In a nutshell: What girl could resist a cute clamshell
phone that looks like an enormous jewel? The Motorola Jewel has
a bevelled shiny surface with an invisible mirror display and animated
screensavers that appear to move over the phone's surface. Inside
you'll find a 2 megapixel camera, a music player, MP3 ringtones,
Bluetooth wireless connectivity, a memory card slot and good battery
life.
Review:
November 2008.
The
Motorola Jewel is a phone that looks like a jewel, and a whopping-sized
jewel at that! What girl wouldn't want to carry this in her handbag?
The
Jewel is not expensive, but looks a million dollars! It's a cute
clamshell, petite in size, with a shiny metallic reflective finish.
The external display uses a mirror effect that blends the display
into the shiny surface of the phone so that's its invisible when
turned off. When in use, specially designed animated screensavers
move over the phone's surface, appearing to float in and out of
view. The display also shows information such as caller ID or music
track / artist, and when music is playing, touch-sensitive controls
appear. It's definitely a very sensual phone.
The
Jewel is actually a remodelled version of the popular Motorola
U9, and is technically identical, so read our U9 review for
more info. The main features of the phone, apart from its looks,
are the 2 megapixel camera and music player. The camera lacks a
flash, but will take good snaps and video clips in day lighting.
The music player plays all common file formats and the supplied
software lets you transfer music from a PC to the phone using a
USB cable. The internal memory of the phone (25 Mbytes) is only
enough for 5-6 songs, so you'll probably want to buy a memory card.
The U9 can take microSD
cards up to 4 Gbytes, which is enough to store around 1,000
songs in MP3 format, or more if compressed.
The
battery life of the Jewel is good, with enough power to last several
days between charges. Connectivity is good, with both USB and Bluetooth
available. It's a quadband phone too, so you can use it anywhere
in the world.
The
only issue that we have with the Jewel is that it may have a problem
with occasional freezing, as the U9 had this problem and we assume
that it may still be present in the Jewel. Apart from this, it could
be a girl's best friend.
Features
of the Motorola Jewel include:
2 megapixel camera
Video camera (15 frames/second, 176 x 144 pixels)
with 4x digital zoom, MPEG4 format
Main display: TFT, 262,000 colours, 320 x 240
pixels
External display: OLED, 65,000 colours, 128
x 160 pixels
Music player (MP3, AAC, AAC+, enhanced AAC+,
AMR, WMA formats)
Memory: 25 Mbytes user memory plus microSD memory
card (up to 4 Gbytes)
Quadband
Size: 90 x 48 x 16 mm
Weight: 95g
Talktime: up to 6 hours
Battery standby: up to 388 hours
Motorola Jewel
Consumer Reviews
Love
your mobile? Hate it? Please share your experiences to help other
people choose the phone that's best for them. Please do not review
this phone if you have not used it. This is a review site, not a
forum, so please don't just ask questions. Please do not use swear
words or offensive language, and please, no advertising!
Average
rating from 23 reviews:
Reviewed by Ajmal from Pakistan on
24th Dec 2009
The best size and shape. but not that much good features Rating:
Reviewed by Loraine from UK on
29th Sep 2009
I love my jewel Rating:
Reviewed by beth from uk on 16th
Jun 2009
brill Rating:
Reviewed by Ellie from Scotland on
5th May 2009
Its got a beautiful shape and really handy. 5 huge stars! Rating:
Reviewed by Abi from uk on 30th
Mar 2009
it is ok, starting to freeze more regular- had the phone 3 months.
works well other than that. the music playlist and sound is very
good and can fit loads on it with a memory card. nice phone but
does getting annoying with the freezinf but does look really good
Rating:
Reviewed by Napson from Nigeria on
21st Mar 2009
Quite good Rating:
Reviewed by Bianca from UK on
12th Mar 2009
Well sweet innit. Goes with me clobber. All the girls scream when
i showed them. Down the clubs it shines. Do they do it in pink? Rating:
Reviewed by Georgia from Uk on
8th Feb 2009
it is like marmite really you either love it or you hate it....i
think it is very classy. My mum has got the motorola u9 and it looks
exactly the same as the u9. my mum doesnt really like the u9 much....
but is this one is the same or not it sounds it so i am going to
put....3 stars.. Rating:
Reviewed by Abigail from Malawi on
31st Jan 2009
Its been 2 days having the phone and for now i must say its classy!
I just dont get why earphones and software arent part of the packaage.
I also expected a radio and the ability to minimise applications
like my sony ericsson w580i would let me. Its a change for me and
ill have to adapt,otherwise, i look good flaunting it! Rating:
Reviewed by J'Lostein from Malaysia
on 30th Jan 2009
I just got mine today and after a few hours of playing with it,
everything seems to be working just fine. Some things are a little
slow, or maybe I'm just used to Nokia's faster systems. And yes,
it did freeze once, and I had to take the battery out, put it back
in, and turn it on again. Navigation-wise, it's fairly user-friendly,
but a little time spent reading the manuals will do you a world
of good and save you time looking for things as the menus can be
fiddly. Texting on the flat buttons is nice enough to use, although
occasionally you find yourself hitting the wrong button, probably
because of the layout and the keys being set so close together.
Camera is of average quality, acceptable enough, but you'll want
to be in really good lighting. And yes, the external display is
just beautiful and I think it's awesome how you can read texts and
change sound profiles without having to open the phone, it's a very
nice touch. Overall, for the price, it does a good enough job. Of
course some other phones are better, but keep in mind this was marketed
mostly as a fashion phone, so don't have unreasonable expectations.
I'm happy with my Jewel :) Rating:
Reviewed by beth from United Kingdom
on 28th Jan 2009
love the phone i got it for xmas but the only prob is THE FINGERPRINTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Rating:
Reviewed by ashley mcallom from scotland
on 28th Jan 2009
i love the phone ever since i saw it i wanted it. i am getting it
for my birthday i read the reveiw and it sounds really good. myfriend
has it and she says it amazing! Rating:
Reviewed by Kimberley Accu from UK on
27th Jan 2009
i really dont like phone like dis. i returned de phone like immdeiatly.
Rating:
Reviewed by beth from uk on 1st
Jan 2009
i got this phone for xmas and i love it. its really cute with the
diamond shape and if u like it u should get it!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Rating:
Reviewed by Martine from Scotland on
28th Dec 2008
You'll either love this phone or hate it but personally, I love
it! It looks lovely and has more than adequate features to keep
all but the most ardent technophiles happy. Camera is great and
any pics I've taken have been firs class. Same goes with video.
Some other phones have better but, quite frankly, if you want to
take all singing and all dancing pic, buy a camera. I think this
is a fab wee camera for the price which looks just that bit different
from anything else on the market. Rating:
Reviewed by Amy from England on
18th Dec 2008
amazing stylish phone. camera is great for being 2mp. amazing screen
on front. can even read ur texts on the "invisible" screen. deffo
reccomend. Great sounding mp3's!! all around amazing Rating:
Reviewed by jodie from america on
10th Dec 2008
this phone looks great but it is rubbish camra is bad always reastarting
on it own don't buy this phone! i am on my third one and all of
them have been the same Rating:
Reviewed by sophie cullen from uk on
9th Dec 2008
great phone im getting it for x mas my friend has it and i love
it Rating:
Reviewed by katie thompson from England
on 7th Dec 2008
The best phone ever! I'm getting it for Christmas, I can't wait! Rating:
Reviewed by ben 10 from america on
4th Dec 2008
this is a stylish phone to impress your mates with, its reliable
and easy to use. Rating:
Reviewed by Lara from England on
27th Nov 2008
i luv it Rating:
Reviewed by Anna from UK on 27th
Nov 2008
So nice. You will love the phone. Rating:
Reviewed by mark from america on
26th Nov 2008
this phone is the best phone ever i love it!!! its like totally
amazing it is like a diamond. by this phone dont get eny other phone.
first review woo!!!!!!!!!!!! Rating: