The Philips Savvy Vogue

Some people argue that a phone is just a phone. As long as it gets them in touch with others, and as long as others are able to contact them, any ole’ phone will do. Philips has definitely thought of these consumers when they came up with their earlier model, focusing on basic functionality and ease of use.

Working from the previous consumer oriented model, Philips basically “face-lifted” the Savvy Vogue with generous tweaks in its design, as well as a few changes made to give it a fresher look to let users have something “new” to shout about for a much lower cost. Targeted at the lower end of the market for those who would like something that looks nice with the basic functions of a mobile phone, the Philips Savvy Vouge sure does the job well.

The Savvy Vogue comes forth in size as identical to the earlier model, which was described as “mid-sized” when it was released. However, with the average mobile phone shrinking in size every day, it now feels positively “chunky” at 129(h) x 51(w) x 28(d) mm, and weighing a hefty 144g with the supplied Nickel Metal Hydride battery. It is, however, comfortable to hold, with the thickening of the case around the battery area giving the extra secure “grip” needed. In terms of the looks, the Vouge does appear very different to the earlier Savvy phones because of its bright colourings – a contrasting silver front face with light- and dark-blue keys coupled together with a near-black rear casing. The area around the display and loudspeaker has also changed noticeably, with the display surrounded by a large, clear circle of plastic. It looks – savvy – but it is slightly disappointing to find that beneath the cosmetics, the screen is the same, compact green, backlit graphical LCD as used on the earlier models.

In standby, the LCD shows network name, signal and battery strength meters, with a tiny graphical analogue clock positioned neatly on the screen. Other operations are clearly indicated, often showing an icon to point toward the currently selected menu. However, all these are hampered by only being able to display two lines of text at a time. Below the display is the large, well-spaced keyboard for easy access. The four-way rocker key – called the “Compass” key is retained, as are separate ‘call’ and ‘end’ keys. On the rear of the case are connectors for a belt clip and for an external aerial (for use in car kits), while the base of the phone as an edge connector used for accessories.