Fly SX210 Hummer

Comes with TV-out Has FM recording scheduler

Network problem Voice reception choppy Sluggish user interface Plagued by quirks Touchscreen redundant

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We have seen Fly fight off the competition in the mobile phone vertical in India. Despite a good and viable distribution channel, the only other place Meridian Mobile seems to be concentrating is retail margin pushing. I was told the company plans to use channel partners (both retail and distribution) to push its mobiles. But I see no glowing signboards, no TV spots with Malaika Arora (yes, she's the brand ambassador), nothing at all. That too for what I understand is its flagship product – the Hummer.

I think it's an attention-grabbing gimmick when a mobile phone company buys a merchandising license from General Motors and comes out with the catchily-named Hummer. More so because the design of the phone is entirely independent of the hype surrounding the name. The Hummer (the phone, I mean) has no visible traits of the SUV. I expected a solid-body encasing at least. The finish is decent, but I would have liked to say 'excellent' or 'robust'. The Hummer comes in three colors; the one we got was a military camouflage green.

A bit of aliasing or moire pattern would have been a treat (as in the MotoRAZR V8), but we have to contend with a not so elegant finish. The phone is a slider, but the face is absent of any ridges to aid the slide. This makes it a bit difficult to push the phone up. Many a times your thumb will end up straining against the screen and even slipping off altogether.

The keypad is mildly recessed and responsive enough. The buttons are evenly spaced, and nails or no nails makes no difference, you will find the keypad to be the most perfectly designed element of the phone. Having said that, one would expect messaging and other functions of the keypad to be fun. But unfortunately the phone's sluggish performance sort of kills the experience.

The right side of the Hummer is bare save an IR port, while the left has only the volume keys and a single proprietary slot for USB, headphones, and charging. I forgot the charger on a visit to Goa, and I couldn't locate one even in the whole of Calangute and Baga. This is exactly why it's necessary to stick to an industry standard. A simple miniUSB interface would have been much appreciated.