ZAM KARIM

AT FIRST glance, the South Korean-made VK2020 looks like a spitting image of the Motorola Slvr L6. Yup, it even sports the same “circuit board-look” number pad – with raised rubberised gaskets and all – that is a hallmark of the Motorola Razr series phones.

However, there are several differences that set the two apart.

Size-wise, VK2020 takes the cake for being the thinner of the two – this phone has managed to shave off another 2.1mm, making it 8.8mm thick compared to 10.9mm of the L6.

And it is lighter too, weighing 53g as opposed to the L6’s 91g.

The VK2020’s slimmer profile can be attributed to the lack of a digital camera whereas the L6 comes with a VGA shooter.

However, the most obvious indication that separates the two is the VK brand name, which is prominently etched on the top of the phone and on the battery cover.

Despite its small stature, the sleek candy bar phone still packs a punch – it comes with a 1.5in 262,000 colours OLED screen, 128MB built-in memory, triband connectivity, Bluetooth, MP3 playback (with a dedicated key) and Java support.

Additionally, it also offers an onboard mini-USB port that is not only used for synchronising data with a PC but also to charge the phone as well as hooking up the bundled earphones. Talk about multitasking!

More details
The phone looks aesthetically pleasing thanks to its dark-grey metallic exterior and sporty number pad. It also has a nice, cool feel but unfortunately, the shiny housing is also prone to smudges and scratches.

The number pad has good tactile feedback. However, due to its slim profile I found that it was more effective to use my fingertips for typing out a text message.

Note also that those with big palms will find it difficult holding the phone while making a call as its small size tends to make it quite uncomfortable. It certainly looks like this handphone is geared towards the fairer sex (or men with dainty hands).

Additionally, the phone’s four-way navigation key does not have an OK button in the middle. The manufacturer decided to put it on the left, which takes some getting used to.

On the bright side, the phone’s screen is quite nice with vibrant colours. However, it is only viewable under dim lighting or indoors as it blacks out in daylight.

One of the phone’s major selling points is the loud built-in speaker, which is located at the back. It is quite audible even when the phone rings in a noisy environment such as when shopping at a hypermarket.

Additionally this also means that you can use the phone to listen to MP3s without hooking up the earphones.

Data transfer options
The phone offers two data transfer options – wirelessly via Bluetooth or through the mini-USB data cable.

There were no problems using the Bluetooth option and it worked exactly as advertised.

However, it was a hit and miss affair with the mini-USB data cable.

Before you can use this option, you must install the bundled software drivers. Once installed, you will see a menu for accessing four different applications – VK Image Editor, VK Mpeg Player and VK MP3 Editor for still image-, video- and sound-editing respectively. Then there is PC Sync v4.0 application for synchronising data.

Before hooking up the USB cable to the PC, you must choose either the “USB Mass Storage” or “PC Sync” option on the phone.

Choosing the first option turns the VK2020 into a Flash memory drive, which you can use to store and move files. This function worked flawlessly but the drawback is that you have to bring the USB cable around.

To sync your contacts, schedule and memo information, you must select the “PC Sync” option on the mobile phone.

Unfortunately, I couldn't test out this feature as the software refused to recognise the phone when I connected it to the USB port on a notebook.

Adding salt to the wound, there is also no option to sync the data via the Bluetooth function. Flipping through the manual did not help either.

At least the phone battery can still be charged via the USB port no matter which option (USB Mass Storage or PC Sync) you select.