MOTOROLA MOTOZINE ZN5

The Hi-Res Camera Phone Gets Affordable

Developed by Motorola and Kodak, MotoZINE ZN5 for T-Mobile succeeds admn ably at its two primary goals: to excel as both a camera phone and a voice phone This is the first 5-megapixel camera phone offered by a U.S. carrier, and with the contract price and mail-in rebate, it's a terrific deal. But to hit this price point, Motorola had to make some sacrifices, such as 3G capability and decent video recording. Still, if you just want to make calls, send text messages, and snap good pies, the ZN5 is the way to go.


From the front, the 4-ounce ZN5-4.65 by 2.0 by 0.6 inches (WD)—looks like your average high- class slab-style handset. It's got a large, bright, 2.4-inch, 320-by-240-pixel screen over a flat keypad with small tactile bumps on the number keys. Various parts of the keypad light up to activate special functions, such as photo reviewing or editing, when needed. With a combination of hard-and soft-touch plastic, the ZN5 feels comfortable. Call quality is excellent: Voices are clear even in extremely noisy locations. The speakerphone also sounds good. The phone's RF reception, on the other hand, didn't stand out from the crowd of 2G T-Mobile phones on my tests.

The ZN5's connected without a problem. As stated, the phone's camera is responsive and produces good shots, even in low light. You can store your photos in the 350MB of memory or on a microSD and download them via the included micro USB cable or over Bluetooth.



Overall, the Motorola MotoZINE ZN5 is a solid device, and its super-low price makes it an amazing value—the most affordable camera phone you'll find in the U.S , in fact. It fell just short of winning our Editors' Choice award; that prize still belongs to the Sony Ericsson TM506, which uses Jr-Mobile's new 3G network.—Sascha Segan

PC Magazine February 2009

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