Look around, and all you see are barely-differentiated touchscreen phones running a version of the Android platform, so maybe it’s time for something different, a novel form factor perhaps? Close on heels of the surprisingly usable Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 mini comes the Motorola FLIPOUT, with its rather unique take on the phone.

Form factor wise, this is no candy bar/ touch screen slab/ slideout QWERTY variant. It’s a thick square handset, measuring 67mm x 67mm x 17mm, sporting a touchscreen across its face, and as the name suggests, a full QWERTY keyboard that ‘flips out’, from under the screen.

It’s fully operable via the responsive 2.8-in, 320 x 240 pixel resolution display, which includes an onscreen keyboard, but when you do want to type anything more than the odd text message, you can swivel out the keyboard without having to struggle with an on-screen keyboard, on what, it has to be said, is a screen smaller than most of its rivals. The swivel action is pretty addictive for fidgety souls, and seems sturdy enough for rough use, but I wouldn’t want to test that hinge in a back pocket.

Using the device, despite its form factor, is pretty easy. The QWERTY keyboard is a little cramped but the keys are easy to press and bashing out an email isn’t a painful proposition. In the bottom left-hand corner of the keyboard is a D-pad (directional pad) for navigating around menus and on-screen, and I found the option rather useful when I was hunting through long lists.

The FLIPOUT runs Android 2.1, and has some neat social integration features to boot. Worth a mention is the Moto Phone Portal app, which lets you access your phone’s data from any browser through a USB or Wi-Fi connection on your PC or Mac. No more carrying wires everywhere you go!

The rest of the handset is pretty bog-standard — a very barebones 3MP camera (no flash), b/g/Wi-FI, Bluetooth, a 3.5mm headphones jack, GPS, an accelerometer, microSD support and 3G. Verdict? It’s a nicely priced tweener handset — capable touchscreen without sacrificing the keyboard — but if it’s squarely oriented at the fairer sex, as the promotions suggest, it may be a bit too thick to hold for smaller hands.

• Rating: 8/10
• Price: Rs 16,990
• URL: http://bit.ly/awbVQZ

More than a mini

If you’re on the Android platform and find the built-in browser too basic, and Opera mini was way too mini for your needs, help is here. Opera has launched an early release (beta version) of their popular Opera Mobile browser, and I took some time taking it through its paces.

Like Opera Mobile on other platforms, the beta for Android packs in speedier page-loading compared to other browsers, especially over mobile connections, courtesy of the Opera Turbo feature which moves all the heavy lifting onto Opera’s servers and sends down a compressed version of the page. You get pinch to zoom support, the Speed Dial bookmark management features and Opera Link which lets you synchronise bookmarks, speed dials, search engines and visited web pages with your desktop. But what I liked in particular is its excellent visual tab management — Opera Mobile was designed with tabbed browsing in mind and it shows.

I quite liked this early release, and if it’s the sign of things to come, I can’t wait for the full version. There are a few downsides, starting from its huge installed size. Folks with older Android handsets may want to note that Opera Mobile 10.1 takes up about 22.70MB of memory space, so install with caution. Also, it currently lacks any social integration features, so you can’t tweet links, or share stuff on Facebook or via text messaging.

• Rating: 7/10
• Price: Free on the Android market
• URL: http://bit.ly/ceKZfN' http://bit.ly/ceKZfN

Classy case

For a product which hasn’t officially been launched in India, the iPad accessory market is thriving rather well, with a number of cases and screen protectors lined up on store shelves. Belkin has hit the market with a set of 11 iPad cases with something for everyone. So you have the Vue sleeves with a window to operate the iPad and a transparent pocket to hold media devices and accessories like smartphone, digital camera, earbuds and charger. Or the classy Leather Folio similar to a portfolio, which allows you to access the iPad quickly and hold the iPad like a book.

• URL: http://bit.ly/cJHIOh
• Price: Vue sleeve - Rs 1,229; Leather Folio - Rs 2,999