Pantech Breeze II (AT&T) – Solid midrange features

Not everyone out there is crazy about cell phones some people need a mobile phone just for calling other people and sending text messages. Pantech sure understands that and gives a basic entry level phone for that. The manufacturer also has high end phones in its repertoire like Matrix Pro but the company is more popular for its basic phones. I liked that this handset had quick access buttons, intuitive interface and slim design. This handset costs $19.99 and you have to sign a two year contract with AT&T for it. The gadget is quite slim which is now getting typical in low end phones. This mobile is 4 inches long, 0.7 inch thick and 2 inches wide. Pantech Breeze II is rectangular and slender with a subtle curvature that looks good in the hand. On the back too there is a dimple surface for grippign the phone properly. Weight of the phone is 3.4 ounces which is not that heavy either.

Pantech Breeze II’s lid has a 1.38 inch display which gives you resolution of 128×128 pixels and supports 65,000 colors. It can display pictures and along with that, it shows date, caller ID and time. Below the display, three LED lights which give notify you about low battery, calls and new messages. You don’t have to open the phone for this. Inside the phone, there is a 2.2 inch display which gives a resolution of 240×320 pixels and supports 260,000 colors. Text and images both look crisp and sharp even though the screen is small. For the menu interface you get “Advanced” or “Breeze” mode options. The latter gives you bigger text and doesn’t give you options for customization so it is pretty much like an ‘easy’ mode. You can adjust the greeting text and clock type on home screen, font size and style, color themes, backlight timer and brightness.

Just like its predecessor, Pantech Breeze II has three quick call buttons named 1, 2 and 3; which are located beneath the display. You can assign the key to a number in your phone book. I liked the functionality of these keys but it is difficult to access them because they are directly located above the hinge bump. The buttons are also a bit flat on the surface which makes it hard to press.

Below the display, there is a navigation array which consists round toggle button with OK button in the center, two soft buttons, call, clear, and dedicated buttons fro camera and voice command. The toggle has shortcuts for new text message, mobile e-mail, instant messaging, Web browser and AT&T’s online address book. Below this, you have the number pad which has well spaced keys and there is enough differentiation between them for easy dialing and texting.

On the left of Pantech Breeze II, you have volume rocker. On the right, there is the charger/headset jack and on the back, there is the camera lens. You will have to take off the battery to access the memory card slot. Features on this phone are same as the ones seen on Pantech Link. The phone book is limited to 1000 entries and a single entry takes multiple number, company name, three e-mail addresses, Web address, five IM names, display name, birthday, street address, note, and anniversary date. Contacts can be organized in to groups and there are seven ringtones to choose from. Photo caller ID is also supported.

Other basic features on the Pantech Breeze II includes voice memo recorder, timer, stop watch, unit converter, tip calculator, calculator, world clock, notepad, calendar, alarm clock, speakerphone and vibrate mode. You also have multimedia and text messaging, stereo Bluetooth, and instant messaging (Windows Live Messenger, Yahoo and AIM). Finally, there is stereo Bluetooth. You can also access popular Web mail service through mobile e-mail but you have AT&T a fee of $5 a month for this. There are just two advanced features: multitasking abilities and AT&T GPS with turn by turn directions.

I was surprised to see 3G on such a basic entry level phone. This means that Web surfing will be faster; and the phone has Opera HTML browser. This is not as good as that seen on smartphones but still a good feature to have in a basic cell phone. The Pantech Breeze II has 1.3 MP camera on the back which gives you four options for resolutions, the highest being 1,280×1024 pixels. The camera can also record video. I didn’t like the quality of the pictures and videos. They seemed drab and the edges were not as sharp as I expected.

Pros

Slim compact design, 1.3 megapixel camera, quick access keys, music player, 3G, stereo Bluetooth.

Cons

Nothing in particular.

Outcome

This a basic entry level phone but I was impressed by the mid range features that it had to offer.

Specifications

• 2 inches wide, 0.7 deep, 4 inches high, 3.5 oz weight
• Blue body color
• 3G/GSM technology
• 3G 850/1900 (Dual Band)/ GSM 850/900/1800/1900 (Quadband)
• Flip design
• Internal display – 2.2 inches, 176 x 220 pixels, 262,144 colors
• External display – 96×96 pixels, 65,536 colors
• H.263, MPEG4 video playback options
• 21 MB built in memory.
• Additional features – Call forwarding, Conference calling, Voice command, Voice dialing, microSD card slot, EDGE, GPRS support, Speakerphone, Intelligent typing (T9)
• 950 mAh lithium ion battery, 180 minutes rated talk time and 240 hours stand by time.
• Messaging / Data Features – E-Mail, Instant messages, Text messages.