Pharos is trying even harder these days to win an audience for their Windows Mobile-based, GPS smartphones. We reviewed Pharos' first effort, the Pharos 600, a couple years back, and found it performed well with GPS duties, but needed a lot of work in the interface department. Now, Pharos has worked with Windows Mobile specialists SPB to design a modern-looking update to the Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional OS. It doesn't have all the clever tricks of an HTC design, but it's much more effective than the standard WinMo UI.
Where are we going?
Most important, though, are the GPS features on the Pharos 137. Unlike standard carrier phones that use weaker aGPS signals for navigation, Pharos phones take GPS more seriously, using the sort of GPS sensing equipment normally found in portable navigation devices. In fact, Pharos claims the Pharos 137 can get a fix in less than 90 seconds from a cold start, which is pretty impressive for a smartphone.
In our hands-on time with the Pharos 137, we obviously couldn't test the GPS reception as the phone was being shown indoors at a CES 2009 press event, but we did have a nice time playing with the new interface. Like other touchscreen phones, the Pharos 137 uses gestures to navigate between menus and pages of shortcuts, with some snazzy transitions thrown in to make the interface more appealing. The design was nothing special, and the phone definitely lagged a bit when we tried to manipulate the menus. This isn't a performance business phone, then, but rather a PND in a smartphone's body.
A super smartphone, or a portable navigator?
Then again, looking at the hardware specs we could be wrong about that. The Pharos 137 features a WVGA touchscreen, driving 480 by 800 pixels. The phone can use 3G HSDPA networks, and can achieve speeds up to 7.2Mbps, faster than any network in the U.S. right now. Even more interesting is that the official site lists radio bands that match T-Mobile's 3G network, and not AT&T, though Pharos has yet to make any carrier announcements. For the record, though, Pharos reps told us they would welcome an opportunity to sell through a major U.S. network.
Paging Mr. Mobile, Mr. T-Mobile
That would probably be the best thing for Pharos, as the main stopping block in the way of Pharos' smartphone progress seems to be their high price. The Pharos 137 will retail for $600 when it is released later this quarter. Beyond the price, the interface might still be an issue, but we think buyers might sacrifice some ease-of-use to pick up a superior GPS phone. After all, PNDs have horrible menu navigation, for the most part, so WinMo may even be an improvement.
A few sticky points remain in Pharos' negotiations with the carriers. Company reps told us that the carriers have balked at the phone's front-facing camera, as well as the easy tethered modem support. Not too surprising, as these features are frequently removed when an unlocked phone meets a network retail plan.
Maps by the day
Besides the new phone hardware, Pharos has a new mapping plan to go along with the device. The new Smart Navigator service offers the standard maps and traffic, but also has some interesting pricing options. Buyers can purchase a year's worth of fresh maps from Pharos for $50, or, if you don't navigate often, you can buy limited access for as little as $2 per day, or $5 per week. This is a neat idea, but we wonder how many buyers will pick up a Pharos device if navigation isn't their primary concern.
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