DROID 2 by Motorola (Verizon)

Call quality: We found call quality on the DROID 2 by Motorola to be quite clear and easy to hear in noisy environments. While, you can adjust the cell phone’s volume with the corresponding buttons on the side of the DROID 2, we rarely needed to use this feature. Additionally, the speakerphone worked well, however, callers said we were clearer when we didn’t use this feature.

Audio quality: The playback of music on the DROID 2 by Motorola speaker is quite impressive; songs sounded loud, but not distorted or too tinny. If you want the music to sound a bit louder, simply place the cell phone face down on a flat surface since the speaker is located on the back of the Android smartphone. The DROID 2 by Motorola sports a 3.5mm headset jack so you can use your own high-end headphones to listen to music stored on the DROID 2, however, unless they are also cell phone compatible you won’t be able to take calls.

Menu/phone book: The DROID 2 by Motorola runs Google Android Operating System (OS) 2.2 and has a speedy 1GHz processor so it’s one fast smartphone: loads web pages quickly (it also has pinch and zoom for web pages), plays streaming videos without any lag time, and switches between apps on the cell phone with ease.

Overall, the user interface is fairly straightforward and icon friendly. To access the cell phone’s applications simply select the up arrow at the base of the home screen and they’ll appear. One nice feature is that at the bottom of the display you’ll see an icon for phone, menu (arrow), and contacts. These three options appear on all 7 customizable screens on the DROID 2 by Motorola. Additionally, when you are navigating through the cell phone’s seven customizable home screens dots appear at the bottom of the display so you can just tap one of those and it will take you directly to the corresponding screen. There are a few things to note about navigation. If you’re in an application screen and want to go back to the previous screen simply press the back arrow. If you want to exit a program simply press the button with a picture of a house. Whenever you’re in an application and want to do more, press the Menu key and a set of options will appear.

The Google Android OS is really all about having all your contact information in one spot and constantly synched. When we say all your contact information we mean all – including social networking sites, multiple e-mail accounts, messaging (messaging is threaded – so you can see a complete text message conversation in one view), and even photo services where you may have accounts created. You can add all pertinent account information easily when you set up the device. If you want to sync with your computer simply connect it via the included microUSB-to-USB synching cable and it will appear as an additional drive on your desktop, making it easy to drag and drop files from a computer to the cell phone’s MicroSD card or internal 8GB memory.

You’ll also find a few noteworthy apps pre-installed on the DROID 2 by Motorola. Of course, there are Verizon’s Backup Assistant (this app lets you easily switch contacts to a new Verizon cell phone) and Skype Mobile for keeping in touch with other Skype users. There’s also an Amazon Kindle application so you can download and read books on this Android phone. If you prefer movies, you can always download and rent them from the mobile Blockbuster app.

Messaging: The DROID 2 can handle multiple e-mail accounts, either corporate e-mail or web-based e-mail. Setting up an e-mail account couldn’t be easier. If you don’t do it when you’re initially setting up the Android phone, then select e-mail from the menu hit the menu button and choose setup accounts. It’s just a matter of knowing user name and password. The smartphone does the rest. We should note that if you delete an e-mail on the cell phone it also deletes it in the account that appears on the computer.

Camera/video: The DROID 2 by Motorola has a 5-megapixel camera and a dual LED flash (yeah, it’s bright). However, it lacks a tiny mirror on the back to take self-portraits. Overall, we were impressed with the picture quality. We’re happy to report the camera has a fast shutter, just press the camera button on the side and it takes the picture. Another plus is that you can add the geo location and even create custom tags for pictures, which will make them easier to organize. Colors are true and details are sharp. Once you snap a picture, you can save it, trash it, or share it to a multitude of options including Picasa, Bluetooth, social media account, send it to a retail printer, and various messaging options. As for camera settings, you can control the flash, ISO Settings, Face Detection, Exposure, and pick a picture mode (panorama assist, single shot, multi-shot, and self portrait – a setting that won’t take a picture unless the camera can detect a face). There are some editing features included such as adding tags, cropping pictures, the ability to add frames, effects, and even resize photos.

Additionally, you can view and shoot short videos on the cell phone. Shooting videos is pretty easy and the quality is acceptable. While this cell phone doesn’t record video at 720p like other Android smartphones currently available it does record at DVD quality (720 x 480 resolution) Like a video you captured on your cell phone? Why not watch it on a TV or networked computer? If you’re home has DLNA-compliant products you can watch it on a TV or computer over a WiFi network.

Music: As noted, the DROID 2 smartphone has a music player. You can listen to songs stored in MP3, AAC (Apple’s audio format), and WMA (Microsoft’s audio format) formats. There aren’t many music-centric features included in the player, but it has the ones we’ve come to expect: Repeat, Shuffle, and Playlists (you can even create playlists on the cell phone). There’s even a Party Shuffle where the phone creates playlists from the music on your phone. If you like it you can save it. We should note that Android adds all voicemails to the music files, so don’t be surprised if a voicemail comes up in the Party Shuffle. Plus, you can save tunes stored in your cell phone as a ringtone The DROID 2 by Motorola has 8GB of memory on board and comes with a 8GB microSD card pre-installed and can accept up to a 32GB microSD card. Out-of-the box you will have plenty of room to store music on this cell phone. Besides adding your own music to the cell phone, there are quite a few free music applications that you can download from the Marketplace such as Pandora and Shazam.

Connectivity/Bluetooth/WiFi/Mobile HotSpot:The DROID 2 is loaded with connectivity options. Of course, it has Bluetooth and it can be used to connect to a Bluetooth headset (we found call quality was decent when we used the Motorola T505), and even transfer contacts, and pictures to other Bluetooth-enabled devices. It also sports built-in WiFi (802.11n – so this is going to be pretty secure – also 802.11 b and g), so you can use this smartphone to log onto available WiFi networks to surf the Web or send/receive e-mail. It’s a nice feature and it just takes moments to set up. The only thing you need to know is the WiFi network you want to use and password if needed. Since this cell phone has a 3G Mobile HotSpot app, you can share the 3G data connection with up to 5 other WiFi-enabled devices. We were able to use this feature easily enough, however, it does drain battery life pretty fast so have the charger nearby.

Look and feel: The DROID 2 by Motorola looks a lot like the original model, the DROID by Motorola. However, the design is a bit more streamlined and sleeker. It still has a bit of weight to it so you’ll know when it’s in a pocket or a purse, but that also means it feels sturdy in the hand. When they keyboard isn’t extended, the touchscreen display takes up almost the entire cell phone. Like other Google Android smartphones currently available there are only 4 touch keys for maneuvering through the cell phone’s features and none of them are a send or end key. Instead there are Menu, Menu, Home, Back, and Search keys. Additionally, the DROID 2 by Motorola is one streamlined smartphone: it literally only has two buttons and those are for controlling the volume keys and activating the camera. There’s also a 3.5mm headset jack, power button, and microUSB port. You’ll need to remove the back cover of the cell phone to swap out microSD cards. You’ll also have to remove the battery, so make sure the smartphone is turned off before changing microSD cards.

The display is vibrant, bright, and visible in direct sunlight. It also attracts a fair share of face grease and fingerprints. When the display is not illuminated that’s when you can really the see the marks, otherwise it’s not that visible. To be fair, this is an issue with most touchscreen cell phones currently available. Like other Android phones on the market, when the DROID 2 is not in use the display automatically goes dark and the only way to activate it is to press the power button located at the top of the cell phone next to the 3.5mm headset jack.

Keypad:The Motorola DROID sports both a touchscreen and tactile QWERTY keyboard. You can use either to send messages or write notes. The tactile QWERTY keyboard that slides out on the DROID 2 by Motorola is a bit different than that on the DROID by Motorola. It's definitely roomier likely because it has exchanged the four-way navi-keypad on the side of the keyboard in place of four arrow keys that sit at the base of the keyboard. When this keyboard is in use the cell phone screen automatically goes into horizontal mode. We also found the keyboard easy to use and the keys are big enough that mistypes are not an issue. Additionally, the on-screen dial pad is big and easy to read. The touchscreen keyboard works well, too, though we did have better accuracy using the tactile slide out version. However, if you like Swype for faster input you’ll definitely prefer the on-screen keyboard.

We found battery life on the DROID 2 by Motorola acceptable for a smartphone. If you use the cell phone frequently to make calls, listen to music, as well as send/receive text messages and e-mail, this smartphone will last about two day before needing to recharge. If you use it less frequently, to occasionally check e-mail and text messages you’ll likely to get about three days before needing to recharge it. We should note that some downloadable applications might take a stronger toll on the cell phone’s battery life. Using the 3G Mobile HotSpot also drains battery life significantly. On the plus side, when you attach the cell phone to a computer via the included USB-to-microUSB cable it will charge the DROID 2 by Motorola.

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