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Tiny and beautiful, the new Onyx Phone

Isn't it good-looking? This new phone is a bit like Posh and Becks; drop dead gorgeous, good for only a couple of things and a bit simple in the head. You will, however, get a decent conversation out of the Liscio; the first phone from new brand Onyx.

The Onyx Liscio - first review

It’s a lifestyle phone which doubles as an MP3 player; not a feature-packed gizmo that whizzes and bangs but a basic phone that does what a phone used to do. Casting off all the additional functions of today’s handsets makes life more simple, but it does feel a bit like going back in time.

This is the kind of phone you might buy if you find yourself pulling out a ridiculous sized blackberry when you've gone out clubbing. The Liscio is small, sleek and refined. It's the kind of thing you'd fit easily into a dinner jacket or a micro clutch-bag; maybe even a bra. It works well as a secondary phone but isn't so good for everyday life.

There's no room for a camera, the Liscio can't handle picture messages and won't let you check email or the web. It does handle calls with real clarity, has Bluetooth and all the basics you'd expect from an everyday telephone. You aren't paying for a super-smart gadget here; you're paying for style and convenience.

While the Liscio is the size of a lipstick, it passes as a unisex phone. It feels as good as it looks, and while it's tiny, is still ergonomic enough for male hands. When you pull the phone out in public, expect admiring glances and everyone wanting to play with it; though you may want to let them look but not touch…

Not so beautiful inside

The phone’s badly designed interface lets it down. Some of the basic functions are incredibly annoying; it takes several menus to get to text messaging (even when you programme a shortcut); adding a number to an address book is ridiculously tough and most of the menus have been oddly placed. Like most phone manufacturers reacting to its customers, Onyx will probably correct these flaws in the next version of the phone.

There are a lot of good things to say about the Liscio. The MP3 player is easy to get your head around; loading tunes via USB makes it painless and you can store as much music as you want because it all sits on a memory card (1GB is included). The phone takes any normal earphones so you can crack out your posh earpieces instead of some crappy proprietary number which leaves your phone music-less if you lose them. There is also an FM radio player if you feel like listening to some pirate stations.

Like a lot of fashion accessories, this one needs looking after. It's far too shiny and scratchable to go in your pocket with loose change and you wouldn't want to drop it. It even comes with a special polishing cloth.

Is it worth it? At £129 (SIM free) it’s only for dedicated followers of fashion, but if you’re looking for something very compact and stylish to coordinate with a designer wardrobe, this could be for you.

www.onyxinnovation.com

Tiny and beautiful, the new Onyx Phone

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