Eten Glofiish-X500 Review - Introduction & Design

Introduction & Design

The ETEN X500 is currently one of the thinnest Pocket PC’s available on the market. ETEN introduced their new lineup of Pocket PC’s called Glofiish. Currently two Glofiish models have been released; the Glofiish X500 and M700. They are ETEN’s high end models, offering features that other models do not. The X500 has built in GPS, Wi-Fi, FM radio and a 400 MHz processor. It is similar to the HTC P3300 offering the same features, but which one comes out on top?

Currently the X500 is the thinnest Pocket PC available on the market and measures only 15.5mm in thickness. The phone’s width is almost the same as the P3300’s but it is a bit taller. The front of the X500’s housing is silver and the back is fitted with a smooth black plate.

The X500 has a four-way directional pad located under the screen. On the right side of the D-pad there is the right soft key and the red end button. On the left side of the D-pad there is the left soft key and the green talk button. There are also two buttons located on top of the display. The one on the left side is the GPS hot key and the one on the right is the home button. This is one of the first Pocket PC’s to have the home key. A home key is usually found exclusively on Smartphones not Pocket PC’s. Both of these buttons can be customized to your unique preferences. On the right side of the phone is the power and camera button. Also in between the power button and the camera button there is a small hole for resetting the phone with the stylus. On the left side of the phone we have the volume up, down control and voice dial button. The voice dial button can also be customized to your own preference too. The left bottom side of the phone has a 2.5mm headphone jack. The leather case also has a hole for the headphones, therefore allowing you to listen to music while the phone is in its case. On the bottom side of the phone there is the Mini-USB port and memory card slot. The stylus, which can be extended is located on the bottom right hand side of the phone and is very secure.

A downside to the X500 is the fact that it does not have dedicated hardware buttons for the start menu or ok/close programs which the HTC P3300 has.  However, if you want you can assign them their own hardware buttons.  Beside the home key and GPS key there are two lights which glow different colors. When you have a missed call, the right LED flashes red, indicating that you have a missed call. When the phone is not in use the LED flashes green.  

 

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