Acer Neotouch

The Acer Neotouch might look like an iPhone but it’s a Windows Phone. Side by side the two are very similar, although the Neotouch’s screen is maybe half a centimetre taller – 3.8in compared to the iPhones 3.5in – and doesn’t have the indent for the menu button. Actually that’s the first frustration with the Neotouch, the power button is on the side, which is less convenient to start using when on a desk or in the hand.

Sadly that’s not the last frustration, but turning it on reveals a completely new and improved locked screen. Instead of the unfriendly password prompt, it now displays the time and date along with any upcoming appointments. Slide the button to unlock the phone.

The unlock screen has also been improved with three buttons at the bottom so you can go directly to the messaging or contacts programs as well as the Today screen.

The appearance of the Today screen has been improved but at the cost of considerable functionality. There are now nine shortcuts all user selectable with an extra button to the new Start menu. Although the old Today screen was a little drab it is useful for getting an overview of upcoming appointments and for managing connections.

The problem with Windows Phone is that it has too obviously been built on top of Windows Mobile. The Settings page has a section for selecting what is displayed on the Today page, just like Windows Mobile, it’s just that none of these options are then used. The Start menu is a similar mixture of improvements and frustrations. Now a full-screen list of icons it is a thing of beauty but it’s not easy to change the order. All you can do is to move one icon at a time to the top.

Internet Explorer has been much improved and now supports some Flash in websites. For some reason Microsoft decided to demonstrate this with web adverts. We think the online music service Magnatune is a far more entertaining use for Flash. There are separate apps for Facebook and Youtube.

A five-megapixel camera is fitted, along with a flash for low-light shooting and there’s a microSD slot for expanding the memory.

Ending on a positive note, we were impressed with the sockets for the Neotouch. A standard USB mini cable is used both for charging and connection to a computer, so there’s no need to buy expensive extra cables. There’s a 3.5mm audio socket on the top and a wired hands free set is also included.

We found the Neotouch for sale for around £340 from expansys.com, Play.com and dabs.com.