fashion S9120 watch phone


The fashion S9120 is a Chinese cell phone with the looks of an oversized wrist watch. Basic multimedia functions are incorporated: camera, music player, FM radio.

The S9120 is marked by a convoluted menu structure and microscopic user interface, which together can make a discourageing user experience. Moreover, it does not come with a decent English manual! To get started with this cute miniature phone, I patiently sorted out function details and documented them on this page. Notice that this is NOT official documentation by the manufacturer!

At the page bottom is a list of tips and critical comments. An extensive review with tips and tricks about the very similar S9110 is written by Dr. Lex, see here.

Hardware description:

Quadband GSM (850/900/1800/1900 MHz)
Touch screen (resistive): 29 x 35 mm (1.8 inch), 176 X 220 pix
Stills camera: max 640 x 480 pix (0.3 MP)
Video camera: 176 x 144 pix, 13 FPS
MP3/MP4 player
Bluetooth A2DP
GPRS/WAP
FM radio
Compass

Phone internal memory 819 KB
T-flash card support (4 GB tested OK)
Built-in speaker and mic
Hardware buttons: 3
Battery: 480 mAh
Largest dimensions of metal case: 63 x 40 x 13 mm
Weight with battery and strap included: 84 grams


S9120 functionality:

single sim quad band GSM phone
SMS, MMS, messenger, E-mail, WAP browser
stills camera up to 640 x 480 pix (white balance, exposure value, burst, effects, night mode)
video camera 176 x 144 pix, 13 FPS Motion JPEG in AVI container (exposure value, digital zoom 3x)
MP3 / MP4 player
FM radio
graphic equalizer
games (Mahjong and Puzzle)
compass
currency converter
'E-book reader' (.txt file reader actually)
alarms
calendar / task list
calculator
stopwatch (no timer!)
bluetooth (handsfree, headset)
webcam

handwriting for text and numerical input (works with stylus and also with fingernail)



The S9120 has three hardware buttons on the right side. The function of hardware buttons depends on context.

button 1:
- backlight on
- next menu item

button 2:
- backlight on
- unlock screen
- accept call
- hold call
- enter menu item or option
- play / rec / stop

button 3:
- backlight on
- phone on / off (press several seconds)
- end call
- go to main unlocked screen




The locked screen of the S9120 shows a clock during a couple of seconds when one of the hardware buttons is pressed (it is dark otherwise):




Press the middle hardware button twice and confirm to unlock the S9120. This is how the default unlocked start screen looks like (the background image can be replaced):



dial a number
 phone book




Apart from making phone calls,  all functions and settings are accessed via the main menu:

Main menu items:

1 - Name
2 - Messages
3 - Call History
4 - Fun & Games
5 - Multimedia
6 - Gallery
7 - Services
8 - Organizer
9 - Settings




menu overview


1 - Name (Phone Book)

1.1 - Name > Names (search contact)
1.2 - Name > Add New (add new contact)
1.3 - Name > Settings (special numbers, data fields, vCard)
1.4 - Name > Groups (view and edit contact groups)
1.5 - Name > Del all contacts (delete contacts from SIM or phone)
1.6 - Name > Copy contacts (copy contacts from SIM to phone or vice versa)

2 - Messages

2.1 - Messages > SMS (view and create SMS messages)
2.2 - Messages > E-mail (view and write E-mail messages)
2.3 - Messages > Delivery reports (delivery reports and reply path)
2.4 - Messages > IMs (chat)
2.5 - Messages > Voice messages (voice messages)
2.6 - Messages > Info messages (info messages)

3 - Call History

3.1 - Call History > Call History (call history)
3.2 - Call History > Call (call setup, auto redial)

4 - Fun and Games

4.1 - Fun & Games > Games (mahjong, puzzle)
4.2 - Fun & Games > Extra (compass, currency converter, E-book reader)

5 - Multimedia

5.1 - Multimedia > Camera (stills camera)
5.2 - Multimedia > Images (view images)
5.3 - Multimedia > Video Recorder (video camcorder)
5.4 - Multimedia > Audio Player (play music files)
5.5 - Multimedia > Video Clips (view video clips)
5.6 - Multimedia > Radio (FM radio)
5.7 - Multimedia > Recordings (voice recorder)
5.8 - Multimedia > Equaliser (graphic equalizer)

6 - Gallery

6.1 - Gallery > Phone (Audio, Ebook, Images, My Music, Photos, Video)
6.2 - Gallery > Memory Card (Audio, Ebook, mxp, My Music, Photos, Received, Video)

7 - Services

7.1 - Services > (your provider)
7.2 - Services > Wap
7.3 - Services > Data Account

8 - Organizer

8.1 - Organizer > Alarm (set alarms)
8.2 - Organizer > Calendar (calendar)
8.3 - Organizer > Notes (task list)
8.4 - Organizer > Calculator (calculator)
8.5 - Organizer > Stopwatch (stopwatches)
8.6 - Organizer > Bluetooth (bluetooth settings)

9 - Settings

9.1 - Settings > User Profiles (General, Meeting, Outdoor, Indoor, Headset, Bluetooth)
9.2 - Settings > Phone (date & time, power schedule, language, keyboard, display, flight mode)
9.3 - Settings > Pen input sett (handwriting, touch screen calibration)
9.4 - Settings > Lights (display backlight time)
9.5 - Settings > Sync and backup (synchronization)
9.6 - Settings > Connectivity (connectivity)
9.7 - Settings > Enhancements (equalizer settings)
9.8 - Settings > Configuration (network settings)
9.9 - Settings > Security (passwords)
9.10 - Settings > Rest. factory Sett. (reset)



Name (phone book) menus



search contact by name

1.1.1 - Name > Names (Option) > Search

From menu 'Name > Names' you can find a contact in the phone book. Enter (part of the) name, and select 'Options > Search'.

1.1.2 - Name > Names (Option) > Input Method

You can change the keyboard input method by clicking 'ABC' indicator or by selecting 'Options > Input Method'. Selectable input methods are the same as in the Settings menu, see description further down:

9.2.4 - Settings > Phone > Preferred Input Methods


The onscreen qwerty keyboard is in fact too small and not readable. You can use handwriting instead, which works well but not so fast. If you need to set pen speed and color, use the following menus:

9.3.1.1 - Settings > Pen input settings > Handwriting > Pen Speed
9.3.1.2 - Settings > Pen input settings > Handwriting > Pen Color


add new contact

1.2.1.1 - Name > Add New > To Sim > Name
1.2.1.2 - Name > Add New > To Sim > Number

1.2.2.1 - Name > Add New > To Phone > Name
1.2.2.2 - Name > Add New > To Phone > Number


Menus for adding new phone numbers. The onscreen qwerty and numeric keyboards are too small and not readable, but you can use handwriting instead. If you need to set pen speed and color, use the following menus:

9.3.1.1 - Settings > Pen input settings > Handwriting > Pen Speed
9.3.1.2 - Settings > Pen input settings > Handwriting > Pen Color


special phone numbers

1.3.1.1 - Name > Settings > Extra Number > Owner Number
1.3.1.2 - Name > Settings > Extra Number > Service Dial Number
1.3.1.3 - Name > Settings > Extra Number > SOS Number


caller-specific ring tone

1.3.2 - Name > Settings > Caller Ring Tone

Select a ringtone and allocate it to a specific caller or caller group.


contacts storage

Check number of available and used memory locations in SIM and phone memory:

1.3.3 - Name > Settings > Memory Status

Set default storage location for contacts:

1.3.4 - Name > Settings > Preferred Storage (SIM / Phone Memory)




contacts data fields

1.3.5 - Name > Settings > Fields

Enable / disable database fields:

Home Number
Company Name
Email Address
Office Number
Fax Number
Birthday
Associate Sound
Caller Group

Remark: fields are only available for contacts stored in phone memory, not for contacts stored on SIM.




create and send vCard

Edit vCard text fields:

1.3.6.1 - Name > Settings > My vCard > Edit My Card > Name
1.3.6.2 - Name > Settings > My vCard > Edit My Card > Number
1.3.6.3 - Name > Settings > My vCard > Edit My Card > Home Number
1.3.6.4 - Name > Settings > My vCard > Edit My Card > Company Name
1.3.6.5 - Name > Settings > My vCard > Edit My Card > Email Address
1.3.6.6 - Name > Settings > My vCard > Edit My Card > Office Number
1.3.6.7 - Name > Settings > My vCard > Edit My Card > Fax Number

Send vCard to phone number or phone book entry:

1.3.7 - Name > Settings > My vCard > Send My Card

Set vCard version:

1.3.8 - Name > Settings > vCard Version (2.1 / 3.0)




view and edit contact groups

1.4.1 - Name > Groups > Friends
1.4.2 - Name > Groups > Family
1.4.3 - Name > Groups > VIP
1.4.4 - Name > Groups > Business
1.4.5 - Name > Groups > Others

All group menus have the following options:

Edit group name
Select ringtone for group
Member List (Add)

Remark: only contacts from phone memory (not from SIM) can be added to groups.


delete contacts

1.5.1 - Name > Del all contacts > From SIM
1.5.2 - Name > Del all contacts > From Phone
1.5.3 - Name > Del all contacts > One By One


copy contacts

1.6.1 - Name > Copy Contacts > From SIM
1.6.2 - Name > Copy Contacts > From Phone





Message menus



view SMS messages

2.1.1 - Messages > SMS > Inbox
2.1.2 - Messages > SMS > Outbox

View sent and received SMS messages. The following options exist:

Send
Edit
Delete
Copy to Phone
Move to Phone
Copy All
Move All
Use Number
Use URL


create SMS message

2.1.3 - Messages > SMS > Create Message

Window to write an SMS message. Send options:

2.1.3.1.1 - Messages > SMS > Create Message > (Option) Done > Send Only
2.1.3.1.2 - Messages > SMS > Create Message > (Option) Done > Save and Send
2.1.3.1.3 - Messages > SMS > Create Message > (Option) Done > Save
2.1.3.1.4 - Messages > SMS > Create Message > (Option) Done > Send To Many
2.1.3.1.5 - Messages > SMS > Create Message > (Option) Done > Send By Group

Other options:

2.1.3.2 - Messages > SMS > Create Message > (Option) Use Template
2.1.3.3 - Messages > SMS > Create Message > (Option) Insert Object
2.1.3.4 - Messages > SMS > Create Message > (Option) Format Text
2.1.3.5 - Messages > SMS > Create Message > (Option) Insert PHB (Phone Book) Number
2.1.3.6 - Messages > SMS > Create Message > (Option) Insert PHB (Phone Book) Name
2.1.3.7 - Messages > SMS > Create Message > (Option) Insert Bookmark
2.1.3.8 - Messages > SMS > Create Message > (Option) Input Method

The onscreen keyboard is too small to read, but you can use handwriting instead. If you need to set pen speed and color, use the following menus:

Settings > Pen input settings > Handwriting > Pen Speed
Settings > Pen input settings > Handwriting > Pen Color


delete SMS messages

2.1.4 - Messages > SMS > Delete Messages




SMS templates

2.1.5 - Messages > SMS > Saved Items (select one of 10 template messages)




SMS settings

2.1.6.1 - Messages > SMS > Message Settings > Profile Setting (select / edit one of two SMS profiles)
2.1.6.2 - Messages > SMS > Message Settings > Memory Status (check SMS memory status for SIM and phone)
2.1.6.3 - Messages > SMS > Message Settings > Preferred Storage (default SMS storage location: SIM or phone)


E-mail

2.2.1 - Messages > E-mail > Write Message
2.2.2 - Messages > E-mail > Inbox
2.2.3 - Messages > E-mail > Outbox
2.2.4 - Messages > E-mail > Draft
2.2.5 - Messages > E-mail > Template
2.2.6 - Messages > E-mail > Message Settings




delivery report and reply path

2.3.1 - Messages > Delivery Reports > Delivery Report
2.3.2 - Messages > Delivery Reports > Reply Path




chat

2.4.1 - Messages > IMs > Chat Room1
2.4.2 - Messages > IMs > Chat Room2




voice messages

2.5.1 - Messages > Voice messages > (Option) > Edit (Name / Number)
2.5.1 - Messages > Voice messages > (Option) > Connect to Voice



info messages

2.6.1 - Messages > Info Messages > Receive Mode
2.6.2 - Messages > Info Messages > Read Message
2.6.3 - Messages > Info Messages > Languages
2.6.4 - Messages > Info Messages > Channel Setting





Call History menus



call history

3.1.1 - Call History > Call History > All Calls
3.1.2 - Call History > Call History > Missed Calls
3.1.3 - Call History > Call History > Received Calls
3.1.4 - Call History > Call History > Dialled Numbers
3.1.5 - Call History > Call History > Clear Call Lists
3.1.6 - Call History > Call History > Call Duration
3.1.7 - Call History > Call History > Data Counter
3.1.8 - Call History > Call History > Message log
3.1.9 - Call History > Call History > Sync log


call

3.2.1 - Call History > Call > Call Setup
3.2.2 - Call History > Call > Auto Redial
3.2.3 - Call History > Call > IP Number
3.2.4 - Call History > Call > More...



Fun & Games menus



games

4.1.1.1 - Fun & Games > Games > Mahjong > Resume
4.1.1.2 - Fun & Games > Games > Mahjong > Start Game
4.1.1.3 - Fun & Games > Games > Mahjong > Game Level (Easy, Normal, Hard)
4.1.1.4 - Fun & Games > Games > Mahjong > Best Grades
4.1.1.5 - Fun & Games > Games > Mahjong > Game Help

4.1.2.1 - Fun & Games > Games > Puzzle > Resume
4.1.2.2 - Fun & Games > Games > Puzzle > Start Game
4.1.2.3 - Fun & Games > Games > Puzzle > Game Level (Easy, Normal, Hard)
4.1.2.4 - Fun & Games > Games > Puzzle > Best Grades
4.1.2.5 - Fun & Games > Games > Puzzle > Game Help


4.1.3.1 - Fun & Games > Games > Game Setting > BGM (On / Off)
4.1.3.1 - Fun & Games > Games > Game Setting > Sound Effect (On / Off)
4.1.3.1 - Fun & Games > Games > Game Setting > Game Vibration (On / Off)

puzzle (level easy)


extra utilities

4.2.1 - Fun & Games > Extra > Compass
4.2.2 - Fun & Games > Extra > Currency Converter
4.2.3 - Fun & Games > Extra > E-book Reader
 
'E-book Reader' can also be accessed from menu 'Gallery', see description.

compass



Multimedia menus



camera (stills)

5.1 - Multimedia > Camera

Options:

5.1.1.1 - Multimedia > Camera (option) > Camera Settings > Shutter Sound
5.1.1.2 - Multimedia > Camera (option) > Camera Settings > EV (-4 till +4)
5.1.1.3 - Multimedia > Camera (option) > Camera Settings > Banding (50 Hz / 60 Hz)
5.1.1.4 - Multimedia > Camera (option) > Camera Settings > Delay timer (5 sec / 10 sec / 15 sec / off)
5.1.1.5 - Multimedia > Camera (option) > Camera Settings > Cont Shot (3 shot / 5 shot / off)

5.1.2.1 - Multimedia > Camera (option) > Image Settings > Image Size (176 x 220 / 80 x 60 / 160 x 120 / 320 x 240 / 640 x 480)
5.1.2.2 - Multimedia > Camera (option) > Image Settings > Image Quality (Low / Normal / High)
5.1.2.3 - Multimedia > Camera (option) > Image Settings > White Balance (Auto / Daylight / Tungsten / Fluorescent / Cloud / Incandescence)
5.1.2.4 - Multimedia > Camera (option) > Image Settings > Scene Mode (Auto / Night)

5.1.3 - Multimedia > Camera (option) > Image Settings > Effect Settings (Normal / Grayscale / Sepia / Sepia Green / Sepia Blue / Color Invert)

5.1.4 - Multimedia > Camera (option) > Image Settings > Add Frame (on / off, wallpaper frame)

5.1.5 - Multimedia > Camera (option) > Image Settings > Storage (Phone / Memory Card)

5.1.6 - Multimedia > Camera (option) > Image Settings > Restore Defaults

More comments on the stills camera can be found at the page bottom.



176 x 220 pix images from S9120


view images

5.2 - Multimedia > Images

Options:

5.2.1 - Multimedia > Images > (Option) View
5.2.2 - Multimedia > Images > (Option) Browse Style (List Style / Matrix Style)
5.2.3 - Multimedia > Images > (Option) Forward (To Wallpaper / To Power On Display / To Power Off Display / To MMS / To Bluetooth)
5.2.4 - Multimedia > Images > (Option) Rename
5.2.5 - Multimedia > Images > (Option) Delete
5.2.6 - Multimedia > Images > (Option) Delete All Files
5.2.7 - Multimedia > Images > (Option) Sort
5.2.8 - Multimedia > Images > (Option) Storage (Phone / Memory Card)

matrix style browser with thumbnails




zoom buttons
full screen button


video recorder

5.3 - Multimedia > Video Recorder

Options:

5.3.1.1 - Multimedia > Video Recorder > (Option) Camcorder Setting > White Balance (Auto / Daylight / Tungsten / Fluorescent / Cloud / Incandescence)
5.3.1.2 - Multimedia > Video Recorder > (Option) Camcorder Setting > EV (-4 till +4)
5.3.1.3 - Multimedia > Video Recorder > (Option) Camcorder Setting > Night Mode (on / off)
5.3.1.4 - Multimedia > Video Recorder > (Option) Camcorder Setting > Banding ( 50 Hz / 60 Hz)

5.3.2 - Multimedia > Video Recorder > (Option) Video Setting > Video Quality (Low / Normal / High)

5.3.3 - Multimedia > Video Recorder > (Option) Effect Setting (Normal / Grayscale / Sepia / Sepia Green / Sepia Blue / Color Invert)

5.3.4 - Multimedia > Video Recorder > (Option) Storage (Phone / Memory Card)

5.3.5 - Multimedia > Video Recorder > (Option) Restore Default


Remark: the video recorder may stop early when memory is too slow.



exposure value buttons (-4 till +4)
digital zoom buttons (up till 3x)


audio player

5.4 - Multimedia > Audio Player

You can play MP3 files which are preferably stored on T-flash memory card (phone internal memory is minimal). Dump MP3 files in directory 'My Music'. In Audio Player, click 'List' to select an audio file for playback. From each title, the following options can be accessed or viewed:

5.4.1 - Multimedia > Audio Player > (List) Play
5.4.2 - Multimedia > Audio Player > (List) Detail (title / channels / bitrate and frequency / filesize / duration)
5.4.3 - Multimedia > Audio Player > (List) Add To Rings
5.4.4 - Multimedia > Audio Player > (List) Refresh List

5.4.5.1 - Multimedia > Audio Player > (List) Settings > Preferred Play List (Phone / Memory Card)
5.4.5.2 - Multimedia > Audio Player > (List) Settings > List Auto Gen (On / Off)
5.4.5.3 - Multimedia > Audio Player > (List) Settings > Repeat (On / Off)
5.4.5.4 - Multimedia > Audio Player > (List) Settings > Shuffle (On / Off)
5.4.5.5 - Multimedia > Audio Player > (List) Settings > Background Play (On / Off)
5.4.5.6 - Multimedia > Audio Player > (List) Settings > Bluetooth Stereo Output (On / Off)
5.4.5.7 - Multimedia > Audio Player > (List) Settings > Bluetooth Stereo Headset (On / Off)
5.4.5.6 - Multimedia > Audio Player > (List) Settings > Equalizer (Normal / Bass / Dance / Classical / Treble / Party / Pop / Rock / Off)

Upper hardware button: select next file
Middle hardware button: play / stop
Bottom hardware button: exit

Remark: if Background Play is on, music can play while you exit the player and perform other tasks.

Remark 2: the volume plus and minus buttons are extremely difficult to operate.


video clip player

5.5 - Multimedia > Video Clips

The video player window has the following buttons:

shuttle
snapshot
play full screen (horizontally)
playback speed
audio volume
option (Video Settings > Auto Repeat On / Off)
play
stop

Options:

5.5.1 - Multimedia > Video Clips > (Option) Play
5.5.2 - Multimedia > Video Clips > (Option) Forward (To MMS / To Bluetooth)
5.5.3 - Multimedia > Video Clips > (Option) Rename
5.5.4 - Multimedia > Video Clips > (Option) Delete
5.5.5 - Multimedia > Video Clips > (Option) Delete All Files
5.5.6 - Multimedia > Video Clips > (Option) Sort
5.5.7 - Multimedia > Video Clips > (Option) Storage (play from Phone or from Memory Card)




snapshot 176 x 144 pix


radio

5.6 - Multimedia > Radio

Options:

5.6.1 - Multimedia > Radio > (Option) Channel List (9 channels, Channel Name and Frequency)
5.6.2 - Multimedia > Radio > (Option) Manual Input (frequency MHz)
5.6.3 - Multimedia > Radio > (Option) Preset Auto Search
5.6.4 - Multimedia > Radio > (Option) Settings (Background Play On / Off,  Loud Speaker On / Off)

Remark: the radio in my unit does not work.


voice recording

5.7 - Multimedia > Recordings

Options:

5.7.1 - Multimedia > Recordings > (Option) Record
5.7.2 - Multimedia > Recordings > (Option) Play
5.7.3 - Multimedia > Recordings > (Option) Append
5.7.4 - Multimedia > Recordings > (Option) Rename
5.7.5 - Multimedia > Recordings > (Option) Delete
5.7.6 - Multimedia > Recordings > (Option) Delete All

5.7.7.1 - Multimedia > Recordings > (Option) Settings >  Pref. Storage (Phone / Memory Card)
5.7.7.2 - Multimedia > Recordings > (Option) Settings >  File Format ( AMR / WAV / AWB)
5.7.7.3 - Multimedia > Recordings > (Option) Settings > Audio Quality (Low / High)

Remark: voice recordings tend to be very low in volume.


equalizer

Select equalizer type:

5.8.1 - Settings > Enhancements > Equaliser (Normal / Bass / Dance / Classical / Treble / Party / Pop / Rock / Off)

Options:

5.8.1.1 - Settings > Enhancements > Equaliser (Option) > Select (click to select)
5.8.1.2 - Settings > Enhancements > Equaliser (Option) > Edit (set graphic equalizer sliders)
5.8.1.3 - Settings > Enhancements > Equaliser (Option) > Rename Setting (enter new name)
5.8.1.4 - Settings > Enhancements > Equaliser (Option) > Restore Factory Default (click to effectuate)




Gallery menus



audio gallery

6.1.1 - Gallery > Phone > Audio
6.2.1 - Gallery > Memory Card > Audio

Voice recordings are stored in one of these places (depending on recording storage setting). Options:

6.1.1.1.1 - Gallery > Phone > Audio > Open (option) > Play
6.1.1.1.2 - Gallery > Phone > Audio > Open (option) > Forward
6.1.1.1.3 - Gallery > Phone > Audio > Open (option) > Detail (Date and Size)
6.1.1.1.4 - Gallery > Phone > Audio > Open (option) > Rename
6.1.1.1.5 - Gallery > Phone > Audio > Open (option) > Copy
6.1.1.1.6 - Gallery > Phone > Audio > Open (option) > Move
6.1.1.1.7 - Gallery > Phone > Audio > Open (option) > Delete
6.1.1.1.8 - Gallery > Phone > Audio > Open (option) > Delete All Files

6.1.1.2 - Gallery > Phone > Audio > Create Folder
6.1.1.3 - Gallery > Phone > Audio > Rename
6.1.1.4 - Gallery > Phone > Audio > Delete
6.1.1.5 - Gallery > Phone > Audio > Sort

For Memory Card gallery items the menus are equivalent:

6.2.1.1.1 - Gallery > Memory Card > Audio > Open (option) > Play
6.2.1.1.2 - Gallery > Memory Card > Audio > Open (option) > Forward
6.2.1.1.3 - Gallery > Memory Card > Audio > Open (option) > Detail (Date and Size)
6.2.1.1.4 - Gallery > Memory Card > Audio > Open (option) > Rename
6.2.1.1.5 - Gallery > Memory Card > Audio > Open (option) > Copy
6.2.1.1.6 - Gallery > Memory Card > Audio > Open (option) > Move
6.2.1.1.7 - Gallery > Memory Card > Audio > Open (option) > Delete
6.2.1.1.8 - Gallery > Memory Card > Audio > Open (option) > Delete All Files

6.2.1.2 - Gallery > Memory Card > Audio > Create Folder
6.2.1.3 - Gallery > Memory Card > Audio > Rename
6.2.1.4 - Gallery > Memory Card > Audio > Delete
6.2.1.5 - Gallery > Memory Card > Audio > Sort


E-book gallery

6.1.2 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook
6.2.2 - Gallery > Memory Card > Ebook

Select an 'E-book' for display. Notice that this is not an E-book in the regular sense, like a PDF file or Java E-book. The S9120 phone can only display a plain .txt file. Options:

6.1.2.1.1 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Read > (Option) > Find
6.1.2.1.2 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Read > (Option) > Jump To
6.1.2.1.3 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Read > (Option) > Go To Bookmark
6.1.2.1.4 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Read > (Option) > Add Bookmark
6.1.2.1.5 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Read > (Option) > Delete Bookmark
6.1.2.1.6 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Read > (Option) > Book Info

6.1.2.1.7.1 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Read > (Option) > Settings > Font Style (Italic / Normal / Bold)
6.1.2.1.7.2 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Read > (Option) > Settings > Font Size (Small / Medium / Large)
6.1.2.1.7.3 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Read > (Option) > Settings > Scroll By (Line / Page)
6.1.2.1.7.4 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Read > (Option) > Settings > Auto Scroll (On / Off)
6.1.2.1.7.5 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Read > (Option) > Settings > Scroll Speed (1 - 4)
6.1.2.1.7.6 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Read > (Option) > Settings > Full Screen (On / Off)
6.1.2.1.7.7 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Read > (Option) > Settings > Encoding (ASCII Western Windows / UCS2 Unicode / UTF8)

6.1.2.1.8 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Read > (Option) > Settings > Apply Global Settings
6.1.2.1.9 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Read > (Option) > Settings > Print
6.1.2.1.10 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Read > (Option) > Settings > Help
6.1.2.1.11 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Read > (Option) > Settings > Close

6.1.2.2 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Forward
6.1.2.3 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Detail (Date and Size)
6.1.2.4 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Rename
6.1.2.5 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Copy
6.1.2.6 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Move
6.1.2.7 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Delete
6.1.2.8 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Delete All Files
6.1.2.9 - Gallery > Phone > Ebook > (Option) Sort

For Memory Card gallery items the menus are equivalent. Shortcurt keys under the Ebook text have the following functions:

0 - Go to Book Settings
1 - Help
2 - Add a bookmark
3 - Go to Find Screen
4 - Go to Jump to Screen
5 - Go to Bookmark
6 - Find Next
7 - Toggle Autoscroll
8 - Remove Bookmark
9 - Toggle Full Screen Mode


image gallery

6.1.3.1 - Gallery > Phone > Images > View

6.1.3.2.1 - Gallery > Phone > Images (option) > Forward > To Wallpaper
6.1.3.2.2 - Gallery > Phone > Images (option) > Forward > To Power On Display
6.1.3.2.3 - Gallery > Phone > Images (option) > Forward > To Power Off Display
6.1.3.2.4 - Gallery > Phone > Images (option) > Forward > To MMS
6.1.3.2.5 - Gallery > Phone > Images (option) > Forward > To Bluetooth

6.1.3.3.1 - Gallery > Phone > Images (option) > Print > To PictBridge
6.1.3.3.2 - Gallery > Phone > Images (option) > Print > To Bluetooth

6.1.3.4 - Gallery > Phone > Images (option) > Detail (view date and size)
6.1.3.5 - Gallery > Phone > Images (option) > Rename
6.1.3.6 - Gallery > Phone > Images (option) > Copy
6.1.3.7 - Gallery > Phone > Images (option) > Move
6.1.3.8 - Gallery > Phone > Images (option) > Delete
6.1.3.9 - Gallery > Phone > Images (option) > Delete All Files
6.1.3.10 - Gallery > Phone > Images (option) > Sort

Remark 1: phone memory is very small (819 KB), better not use it for images except wallpapers.
Remark 2: image gallery does not provide a thumbnail overview, and images can not be viewed full screen or zoomed. Use 'Multimedia > Images' instead, if you want these features.


my music gallery

6.1.4 - Gallery > Phone > My Music
6.2.4 - Gallery > Memory Card > My Music

From these menus it is possible to access audio files. Options for selected files:

6.1.4.1 - Gallery > Phone > My Music > Play

6.1.4.2.1 - Gallery > Phone > My Music > (Option) To User Profile
6.1.4.2.2 - Gallery > Phone > My Music > (Option) To MMS
6.1.4.2.3 - Gallery > Phone > My Music > (Option) To Bluetooth

6.1.4.3 - Gallery > Phone > My Music > (Option) Detail (Date and Size)
6.1.4.4 - Gallery > Phone > My Music > (Option) Rename
6.1.4.5 - Gallery > Phone > My Music > (Option) Copy
6.1.4.6 - Gallery > Phone> My Music > (Option) Delete
6.1.4.7 - Gallery > Phone > My Music > (Option) Delete All Files
6.1.4.8 - Gallery > Phone > My Music > (Option) Sort

Options for Memory Card are equivalent:

6.2.4.2 - Gallery > Memory Card > My Music > Play

6.2.4.2.1 - Gallery > Memory Card > My Music > (Option) To User Profile
6.2.4.2.2 - Gallery > Memory Card > My Music > (Option) To MMS
6.2.4.2.3 - Gallery > Memory Card > My Music > (Option) To Bluetooth

6.2.4.3 - Gallery > Memory Card > My Music > (Option) Detail (Date and Size)
6.2.4.4 - Gallery > Memory Card > My Music > (Option) Rename
6.2.4.5 - Gallery > Memory Card > My Music > (Option) Copy
6.2.4.6 - Gallery > Memory Card > My Music > (Option) Delete
6.2.4.7 - Gallery > Memory Card > My Music > (Option) Delete All Files
6.2.4.8 - Gallery > Memory Card > My Music > (Option) Sort


photos gallery

6.1.5.1 - Gallery > Memory Card > Photos > (Option) View

6.1.5.2.1 - Gallery > Memory Card > Photos (Option) > Forward > To Wallpaper
6.1.5.2.2 - Gallery > Memory Card > Photos (Option) > Forward > To Power On Display
6.1.5.2.3 - Gallery > Memory Card > Photos (Option) > Forward > To Power Off Display
6.1.5.2.4 - Gallery > Memory Card > Photos (Option) > Forward > To MMS
6.1.5.2.5 - Gallery > Memory Card > Photos (Option) > Forward > To Bluetooth

6.1.5.3.1 - Gallery > Memory Card > Photos (Option) > Print > To PictBridge
6.1.5.3.2 - Gallery > Memory Card > Photos (Option) > Print > To Bluetooth

6.1.5.4 - Gallery > Memory Card > Photos (Option) > Detail (view date and size)
6.1.5.5 - Gallery > Memory Card > Photos (Option) > Rename
6.1.5.6 - Gallery > Memory Card > Photos (Option) > Copy
6.1.5.7 - Gallery > Memory Card > Photos (Option) > Move
6.1.5.8 - Gallery > Memory Card > Photos (Option) > Delete
6.1.5.9 - Gallery > Memory Card > Photos (Option) > Delete All Files
6.1.5.10 - Gallery > Memory Card > Photos (Option) > Sort

Remark: image gallery does not provide a thumbnail overview, and images can not be viewed full screen or zoomed. Use 'Multimedia > Images' instead, if you want these features.


video gallery

6.1.6 - Gallery > Phone > Video
6.2.7 - Gallery > Memory Card > Video

Same as '5.5 Multimedia > Video Clips'.


animations gallery

6.1.7 - Gallery > Phone > pwranimation.dat




received items gallery

6.2.6 - Gallery > Memory Card > Received




Services menus


services

7.1.1 - Services > <your provider>

7.2.1 - Services > WAP > Homepage
7.2.2 - Services > WAP > Bookmarks
7.2.3 - Services > WAP > Recent Pages
7.2.4 - Services > WAP > Offline Pages
7.2.5 - Services > WAP > Enter Address
7.2.6 - Services > WAP > Service Inbox
7.2.7 - Services > WAP > Settings

7.3.1 - Services > Data account > GSM Data
7.3.2 - Services > Data account > GPRS



Organizer menus



alarm

Up till 5 repeating or non-repeating alarms can be set. For each alarm, individual settings can be made, like shown here for alarm 1:

8.1.1.1 - Organizer > Alarm > (alarm 1) > (edit) On / Off
8.1.1.2 - Organizer > Alarm > (alarm 1) > (edit) Time
8.1.1.3 - Organizer > Alarm > (alarm 1) > (edit) Repeat (Once, Everyday, Selected Days)
8.1.1.4 - Organizer > Alarm > (alarm 1) > (edit) Audio Options (select a Tone or Ringtone)
8.1.1.5 - Organizer > Alarm > (alarm 1) > (edit) Snooze (Default, 1 - 10 min)
8.1.1.6 - Organizer > Alarm > (alarm 1) > (edit) Alert Type (Ring, Vibration Only, Vibra and Ring)


calendar


8.2.1 - Organizer > Calendar (option) > View Tasks
8.2.2 - Organizer > Calendar (option) > Add Task
8.2.3 - Organizer > Calendar (option) > Jump to date
8.2.4 - Organizer > Calendar (option) > Go to weekly view
8.2.5 - Organizer > Calendar (option) > Print


month with weeks and days


week with days and hours


notes



Review and add tasks with date, time and alarm settings. Synchronized with Calendar menu.

8.3.1 - Organizer > Notes > (Option) View
8.3.2 - Organizer > Notes > (Option) Add (Meeting / Course / Date / Date / Call / Anniversary)
8.3.3 - Organizer > Notes > (Option) Edit
8.3.4 - Organizer > Notes > (Option) Delete
8.3.5 - Organizer > Notes > (Option) Delete All
8.3.6 - Organizer > Notes > (Option) Send vCalendar

For each added task you can set:

Starts (Date / Time)
Ends (Date / Time)
Note (text)
Alarm (On / Off)
Repeat (Once / Everyday / Selected Days)
Reminder  > Location (text)
Priority (Low / Medium / High)

Remark: to add tasks, it is faster to do it from the calender menu because start and end date are already filled.


calculator

8.4.1 - Organizer > Calculator


stopwatch


8.5.1 - Organizer > Stopwatch > Typical Stopwatch
8.5.1 - Organizer > Stopwatch > nWay Stopwatch




bluetooth


8.6.1 - Organizer > Bluetooth > Power
8.6.2 - Organizer > Bluetooth > Inquiry Audio Device
8.6.3 - Organizer > Bluetooth > Remote Control
8.6.4 - Organizer > Bluetooth > My Device
8.6.5 - Organizer > Bluetooth > Active Device
8.6.6 - Organizer > Bluetooth > Setting
8.6.7 - Organizer > Bluetooth > About





Settings menus



ringtone profiles

Activate general tone profile:

9.1.1.1 - Settings > User Profiles > General > Activate

To customize general profile:

9.1.1.2.1.1 -  Settings > User Profiles > General > Customize > Tone Setup > Incoming Call (select a ringtone)
9.1.1.2.1.2 -  Settings > User Profiles > General > Customize > Tone Setup > Power On (select a tone or silence)
9.1.1.2.1.3 -  Settings > User Profiles > General > Customize > Tone Setup > Power Off (select a tone or silence)
9.1.1.2.1.4 -  Settings > User Profiles > General > Customize > Tone Setup > Message Tone (select a tone or silence)
9.1.1.2.1.5 -  Settings > User Profiles > General > Customize > Tone Setup > Keypad Tone (select a tone or silence for hardware keys)

9.1.1.2.2.1 - Settings > User Profiles > General > Customize > Volume > Ring Tone (adjust ring tone volume)
9.1.1.2.2.2 - Settings > User Profiles > General > Customize > Volume > Key Tone (adjust hardware key volume)

9.1.1.2.3 - Settings > User Profiles > General > Customize > Alert Type (ring and / or vibration)
9.1.1.2.4 - Settings > User Profiles > General > Customize > Ring Type (Single / Repeat / Ascending)
9.1.1.2.5 - Settings > User Profiles > General > Customize > Extra Tone (Warning / Error / Camp on / Connect)
9.1.1.2.6 - Settings > User Profiles > General > Customize > Answer Mode (disable / enable Any Key)


User profiles Meeting, Outdoor, Indoor, Headset and Bluetooth have similar submenus as the general profile:

9.1.2 - Settings > User Profiles > Meeting (activate / customize)
9.1.3 - Settings > User Profiles > Outdoor (activate / customize)
9.1.4 - Settings > User Profiles > Indoor (activate / customize)
9.1.5 - Settings > User Profiles > Headset (activate / customize)
9.1.6 - Settings > User Profiles > Bluetooth (activate / customize)




date and time

9.2.1.1 - Settings > Phone > Date and time > Set Home City
9.2.1.2 - Settings > Phone > Date and time > Set Time/Date (HH:MM, YYYY:MM/DD and Daylight Saving)
9.2.1.3 - Settings > Phone > Date and time > Time Format (12/24 and date format)


power schedule

9.2.2 - Settings > Phone > Schedule Power on/off

Timer with four settings to switch the S9120 on or off automatically.


language

9.2.3 - Settings > Phone > Language

English
Français
Español
Portuguẽs
Italiano
Deutsch
Bahasa Indonesia
Türkçe
Russian
Arabic


keyboard input methods

9.2.4 - Settings > Phone > Preferred Input Methods

Selectable options:

ABC, abc
Smart ABC, Smart abc
Multitap ABC, Multitap abc
Numeric
Multitap ES, es, FR, fr, DE, de, IT, it, RU, ru, TR, tr, PR, pt, ID, id, Arabic
Arabic Numeric

Only ABC, abc, numeric and Arabic numeric work correctly. For characters there is always a full qwerty, azerty or equivalent keyboard. Multitap keyboard does not appear on screen, even when selected.


display

9.2.5.1.1 - Settings > Phone > Display > Themes > Wallpaper (Image1 / Image2 / Image3 / Theme Image)
9.2.5.1.2 - Settings > Phone > Display > Themes > User Define (select image from phone or memory card)

9.2.5.2.1 - Settings > Phone > Display > Power On Display > System (Animation1 / Animation2 / Animation3)
9.2.5.2.2 - Settings > Phone > Display > Power On Display > User Define (select from phone or memory card)

9.2.5.3.1 - Settings > Phone > Display > Power Off Display > System (Animation1 / Animation2 / Animation3)
9.2.5.3.2 - Settings > Phone > Display > Power Off Display > User Define (select from phone or memory card)

9.2.5.4 - Settings > Phone > Display > Show Date and Time (on / off)


auto update date and time

9.2.6 - Settings > Phone > Auto Update of Date and Time (on / off)


flight mode

9.2.7 - Settings > Phone > Flight Mode (select Normal Mode or Flight Mode)




handwriting

9.3.1.1 - Settings > Pen Input Set > Handwriting > Pen Speed (Fast / Medium / Slow)
9.3.1.2 - Settings > Pen Input Set > Handwriting > Pen Color (yellow / pink / orange / blue / black / light blue / red / green)

Remark: the background color for handwriting is always black, so do not set black pen or you will think that handwriting does not work.


touch screen calibration

9.3.2 - Settings > Pen Input Set > Pen Calibration (calibrate touch screen)




display backlight time

9.4 - Settings > Lights (display backlight, 5 till 60 seconds)


sync

9.5 - Settings > Sync and backup


connectivity

9.6 - Settings > Connectivity

equalizer

Enable / disable equalizer:

9.7.1 - Settings > Enhancements > Equaliser (Normal / Bass / Dance / Classical / Treble / Party / Pop / Rock / Off)

Click 'Options' to make settings:

9.7.1.1 - Settings > Enhancements > Equaliser (options) > Select (click to select)
9.7.1.2 - Settings > Enhancements > Equaliser (options) > Edit (set graphic equalizer sliders)
9.7.1.3 - Settings > Enhancements > Equaliser (options) > Rename Setting (enter new name)
9.7.1.4 - Settings > Enhancements > Equaliser (options) > Restore Factory Default (click to effectuate)


network configuration

9.8.1.1 - Settings > Configuration > Configuration > New Search
9.8.1.2 - Settings > Configuration > Configuration > Select Network
9.8.1.3 - Settings > Configuration > Configuration > Selection Mode (Automatic / Manual)

9.8.2.1 - Settings > Configuration > Preferred Networks (option) > Add From List
9.8.2.2 - Settings > Configuration > Preferred Networks (option) > Create New
9.8.2.3 - Settings > Configuration > Preferred Networks (option) > Change Priority
9.8.2.4 - Settings > Configuration > Preferred Networks (option) > Delete

9.8.3.1 - Settings > Configuration > Data Account > GSM Data

Up till 10 GSM data accounts can be defined with the following fields:

Account Name
Number
User Name
Password
Line Type
Speed
DNS

9.8.3.1 - Settings > Configuration > Data Account > GPRS

Up till 10 GPRS accounts can be defined with the following fields:

Account Name
APN
User Name
Password
Authentication Type


security

9.9.1 - Settings > Security > SIM lock (on / off,  enter PIN)
9.9.2 - Settings > Security > Phone lock (on / off, enter password) (default is 1122)
9.9.3 - Settings > Security > Auto Keypad Lock (select wait time)
9.9.4 - Settings > Security > Fixed Dial (on / off, edit fixed dial list)
9.9.5 - Settings > Security > Barred Dial
9.9.6 - Settings > Security > Change Password (PIN, PIN2)


reset settings

(Which settings?)

9.10 - Reset Factory Sett. (enter password)





tips



storage location for pics and video's

Set storage location for photos, video and voice recordings to a T-flash card rightaway. Default storage location is phone internal memory, which is only 819 KB. That's less than a megabyte, next to nothing! Menus:

5.1.5 - Multimedia > Camera (option) > Image Settings > Storage (Phone / Memory Card)
5.3.4 - Multimedia > Video Recorder > (Option) Storage (Phone / Memory Card)
5.7.7.1 - Multimedia > Recordings > (Option) Settings >  Pref. Storage (Phone / Memory Card)

MP3 ringtones

The S9120 comes with over a dozen midi ringtones, but they are all very annoying. Here is how to use your own MP3 ringtones:

Load your MP3 ringtones into directory 'My Music' in phone memory or T-flash card (whichever you have set as preferred memory for the audio player).
Then go to menu: 'Multimedia > Audio Player > List'. Select your file and click 'Option > Add To Rings'.
Then go to 'Settings > User Profiles > General > Customize > Tone Setup > Incoming Call'. You will see your MP3 file in the ringtone list.
Select the file and set as ringtone in the submenu.

How to set your background image for the unlocked start screen? Load a JPEG image onto directory 'Images' in the phone memory. Then go to menu 'Settings > Phone > Display > Themes > User Define' and select 'Phone > Open'. Go to folder 'Images' and select your image.

If you want to review your photos in zoom view, use 'Multimedia > Images'. Also, it has a file browser which can be set to thumbnails matrix. In 'Gallery > Photos' thumbnails matrix and zooming are not available.


bluetooth filesharing on OSX

I could not mount the phone memory or T-flash card on my MacBook over the USB cable. However the phone can be paired using Bluetooth. File sharing over Bluetooth must be explicitly enabled on OSX in System Preferences > Internet & Network > Sharing (it is disabled by default). Notice that the default location for files shared over Bluetooth is 'Downloads', and it can be changed.




Further, if you click 'Bluetooth Preferences', you get a list with Bluetooth devices and their services. The phone is connected as 'SINOE67' in the screenshot below:





Now I can finally send a phone picture to my MacBook, from the phone's menu 'Multimedia > Images > (Option) Forward > To Bluetooth'. The MacBook responds with a message, asking for approval. When the picture is sent, I get a report like this:






With OSX utility 'Bluetooth File Exchange' it should be possible to browse the phone memory. It seems that I can only browse the 'received' folder on the phone's T-flash card. It is also possible to send files to that folder. To inspect received items, go to 'Gallery > Memory Card > Received'.




camera comments

The stills camera can be set to a maximum image size of 640 x 480 pixels (VGA). I suspect that this size is not the sensor's resolution, but the result of extrapolation instead. By way of test I took pictures with different size settings and compared them unedited at scale 1:1 (see below). JPEG artifacts in the VGA picture are larger than pixel size, as you can see in comparison with the QVGA picture. Look at the shoe string on the left side for example. It looks like the VGA picture is a blown up version of the QVGA.

Update: Dr. Lex explained to me why it looks like this. The sensor resolution is 640 x 480 pixels, however each pixel can only do one color.  Color information must be interpolated, and sharp color contrasts show that this does not work so perfectly.





640 x 480 pix (VGA)





320 x 240 pix (QVGA)


176 x 220 pix
native resolution of S9120 touch screen


Daylight pictures at QVGA format can be sharp, bright and realistic, if you manage to keep the camera still. Automatic white balance works well mostly. If the colors seem to be wrong, just give it another try after reopening the camera or after pointing the camera to a white surface. Artificial light will only give acceptable results in controlled conditions. The lens is extremely small and shutter times must be long, so nothing should move when you take the picture. It is not quite suited to capture 'your favorite moments' (parties, sports events...), but for inanimate objects it does well. Here is a small gallery of unedited pictures taken with the S9120:




bright sunlight

bright sunlight

cloudy
cloudy

indoor with daylight
indoor with daylight

indoor with daylight
indoor with daylight

low artificial light, night mode
artificial light, night mode


The S9120 video camera produces clips with 176 x 144 pix at 13 frames per second. The format is Motion JPEG codec in AVI container.  Below you can see a scale 1:1 screenshot from a video clip. Here again, the colors are all right. But the size is so small, I can not think of any use for it. Also, with the low framerate and long exposure time it suffers from severe jello effect when camera or subject moves. I will probably forget about having a video camcorder on my wrist.




screenshot from S9120 video clip, 176 x 144 pix



carrying the fashion S9120 around


It is hard to estimate a watch phone's size from pictures, because you don't know the size of the person who wears it. Moreover, the picture can be gimped to simulate a different size and look. Below you can see some amateur pictures from different perspectives which are not manipulated. It's me (130 pound female) carrying the S9120. Now it's easy to understand why watch phones are advertised as men's wrist watches. They are twice as large as the clunkiest regular watches. As of today (2012), the S9120 is even the thinnest of them all, 13 millimeter. To be honest, I find the watch phone not very fashionable. It could just as well be a medical analysis instrument, like a blood pressure meter. Thinking about it this way, I feel no longer so cyber with this futuristic communications tool.





Even though the S9120 is a huge eye-catcher on the wrist, it is minuscule compared to old fashioned and modern regular cell phones. There have been times when cell phones were sized down every year. One of the smallest was the Ericsson T100 in 2003 with only 74 grams. But then came the camera cell phone, and sizes started to grow again. Sony Ericsson introduced the excellent Cybershot camera with optical zoom. Other innovations where introduced, ultimately leading to the powerful Android and iPhone 3G platforms. Reportedly, the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 mini was the smallest Android phone, but it was soon replaced by the larger Xperia mini because the 2.5 inch screen was considered too small for browsing. If you do not wish to carry a bulky internet computer in your pocket anno 2012, the alternative is a no-media cell phone like Samsung still makes them, or one of the many Chinese watch phones.



Comparison of S9120 with my first cell phone, a Bosch 739, which I aquired in 1999. The Bosch weighs 189 grams, mainly because of it's 650 mAh NiMH battery.



Comparison of S9120 with my friend's htc Explorer. The htc is a 2012 Android phone, immensely more powerful than the watch phone. You'll have to stick it's 110 grams somewhere in a not too small pocket.




a long list of gripes


Frankly, I have a load of critical comments about the S9120. After sorting out the menu structure, I'm still not comfortable with it in daily life.  Here's why:


flaws which may be specific to my unit or context:


The GUI programmer could have done a better job on the S9120, and the menu programmer too.  But the fatal flaw is in the signal processing, with extremely low speaker and mic level. You can take the phone off the wrist and use it in regular handheld position, with the speaker close to your ear, but you'll have to speak really loud to make yourself clear. Handsfree through the built-in speaker produces distorted crackling sound, not intelligible speak, so this is not a useful option at all. In fact the 'best' way to make phone calls is by using a bluetooth headset. But who wants to wear a headset all day long?

I suspect that S9120 developers have set mic level so low deliberately, after they discovered that echo cancellation procedures did not work properly on the distorted handsfree sound coming from the tiny speaker. Distortion is a non-linear process which can not be eliminated by adaptive filtering. So, reducing mic level was the quick and dirty attempt to fight the echoes. But that does not work, and moreover it makes the phone pretty useless in practice! The S9120 is so far my first and only watch phone, but it may well be the case that other Chinese watch phones suffer from the same signal processing troubles. Remarks about insufficient speaker and mic levels pop up in many user reviews.

If the S9120 is typical for Chinese development in consumer electronics, I can see why well known Western and Japanese brands still maintain their leading role in industry, despite the immense Chinese labour force and intellectual resources. In this shape the S9120 would never survive the critical review community in the West. It is especially regretful because this particular watch phone is of very decent physical build. With better electronics and software design it might be successful on Western markets.


what is nice about the S9120


The S9120 electronics sit decently packed in an all-metal casing, like a tortoise in it's shell. It is sometimes advertised as stainless steel, but I rather think it is neatly painted cast aluminium.  The design is not as stylish as the Samsung S9110 after which it is modeled, or the LG GD910 (it does not follow the shape of a wrist), but it is certainly more elegant than most other Chinese watch phones.

The relatively large touchscreen (1.8 inch) with 176 X 220 pix resolution gives room to an elegant font. The designers have tried their best to diverge from the archaic cell phone style with it's Arial-like font. For some people, the characters will not be readable without glasses though.

The multimedia department has some functions which are rather sophisticated for a miniature cell phone. Video playback in particular has nice options, like shuttle, playback speed and taking snapshots. Not that it is very useful to make and play video's at 176 x 144 pixels, but the functions demonstrate how to get the most out of the limited hardware. It is just cute.

I'm happy with the stills camera, which can make small but beautifully colored pictures. It may sound odd in the age of megapixels, but the S9120 has the perfect 0.3 MP camera for weblog pictures.



a plea for watch phones


Considering the vast amount of Chinese watch phone models, they must be rather popular. Not in the West though: reviewers tend to be very skeptical about watch phones as being too big for a watch and too small for a phone. Indeed, the wrist may never be a good place for a complete multimedia center and internet computer, like modern phones pretend to be. But then, is the pocket a good place for that?

Personally, I would rather have a simple communications device on my wrist and a full blown computer at home or in my backpack, nothing inbetween. From my very first day of mobile calling, I have searched for a comfortable place to wear the phone. I have made holsters and even a few longsleeve shirts with dedicated communicator pockets. Trouser pockets are just a lousy place for a communications device. When sitting on a bike, in a car or any place where you can't stand up, it's cumbersome to get the phone out. Or, if it comes out easily, it may be quickly lost too, as it happened to me once with a very expensive Nokia.




communicator pocket with the Bosch 739


In my case, the wrist became a vacant place since the mobile phone can show the time. So what is more logical than mounting the phone on the wrist? I have desired a wrist phone for long, and it's funny how I completely missed it's actual introduction a few years ago. Being rather disappointed by the general tendency of increasing phone sizes (iPhone and Android phones) I had turned away from the mobile platform hypes.

Now imagine that the watch phone concept will grow more mature and shake off current implementation flaws, like being too big, too heavy, too ugly, and clumsy to operate. With clever design, watch phones could indeed be about the size of a regular watch. A phone screen need not be large if the user interface is well designed. We must not demand unrealistic capabilities, like full internet browsing. When made with strong synthetic materials, it need not be heavy too. Well then, what would be so cool about a tiny, comfortable and user friendly phone on the wrist? First of all, the phone is always within reach at a known place. You can not miss a phone call, cause you will always feel the vibra even if the ringtone gets lost in noise. And in the case where you can not answer a call immediately, you can at least quickly check who's calling. It is not likely that you will loose the phone, so that is one thing less to worry about. The phones will typically have music and organizer functions, so you have several devices in one: at least a watch, a phone, a music player, FM radio, a PDA. And you can bring all this stuff with you no matter what clothes you wear, so you can use it throughout the day during professional and leisure time activities. And when wearing a conspicuous device is not convenient in certain circumstances, you can always put the wrist phone in a purse or pocket after all.

For the watch phone to be a successful concept, it has to meet a few important requirements, apart from being small, lightweight and beautiful. Most important is the way how you can make phone calls. We are now used to hold a device in the hand near to our ears, or use an external handsfree device in certain situations. No one wants to wear a headset all day long, so a watch phone must be able to work without it. Though it is theoretically possible to hold your wrist next to your ear, this is a very uncomfortable position. I'm not even talking about the pathetic looks. When talking for more than a few seconds, you want to take the phone off your wrist and use in regular handheld position, or use a handsfree speakerphone in situations where we can't handle the phone. Here lie the crucial bottlenecks in current implementations. Hardly any model can be quickly detached from the strap. Moreover, it turns out that handsfree over the built-in speaker is not powerful enough to use it as such.  In contrast with regular handheld mobiles, there is actually only one speaker for handheld, handsfree and music playback, driven at different amplification levels. At handsfree level, the poor speaker is trying to perform beyond it's range, and distortion is the result. Apart from unintelligible speak, this introduces problems with echo cancellation. So here we have two major aspects calling for attention: easy detachment and speakerphone. Both aspects require space in a device which should be small as possible, and this may be a reason why it is not properly implemented. Until the day these problems are solved, watch phones can be no more than toys for people who wear them as decoration, or for geeks who find their own workarounds.





my S9120 with DIY quick lock strap