Motorola Defy Plus – An Unusually Resilient Phone With a Wide Array of Features

Whether you're particularly accident prone or you simply feel more secure using a phone that can stand up to the everyday wear and tear of life, the Motorola Defy is a mobile that simply dares the world to give it a pounding. Waterproof, dust resistant, and built like a tank, it's more than ready to take on any potential tragedy. Unlike many phones that are built tough, it also has plenty of features going for it as well, including an Android operating system, wi-fi, a five megapixel camera, a 3.7 inch touchscreen, and much more. Is it for everyone? Read on to find out.

Seeing the Defy for the first time, we were surprised by its good looks. A majority of mobiles marketed as being built to last tend to have all the aesthetic appeal of a brick. However, we were pleased with its vivid 3.7 inch Gorilla Glass TFT capacitive sixteen million colour touchscreen. Scratch resistant, bright, and beautiful, its screen is gorgeous and responsive to boot. While many users weren't fond of its rubber port covers sticking out unattractively, they do manage to do a good job of keeping dust and water out of those nooks and crannies.

We were delighted to find the phone had the 2.2 Android operating system as well. While not the most updated version by any means, it nevertheless works smoothly and quickly, providing you with a simple array of menus and navigational commands. We also like that it provides you with easy access to the Android Market, allowing you the opportunity to beef up your mobile behemoth with all the latest apps and widgets.

Its 3.5 mm headphone jack means you'll be able to listen to music using whatever set of headphones or earbuds you like. Combine this with a stellar music player, a loudspeaker, a variety of ringtones available for download, and an FM radio RDS and you have a pretty desirable array of sound related features. Sound quality is great for both music and calls—everything comes in clear and loud.

The five megapixel camera is surprisingly well equipped, featuring a LED flash, autofocus, image stabilisation, and a VGA video recorder that can capture up to 30fps. It's nothing you'll want to replace your digital camera with, but it has what it takes to get the job done.

Its internet connectivity is surprisingly well rounded as well, featuring wi-fi, Bluetooth, 3G, HDSPA, GPRS, EDGE, and more. As with any Android mobile, you also get a variety of Google related features, including Gmail and Google Maps. Other features include a decent email client, an HTML browser, and a rocking GPS system. Combine this with social networking integration and a document viewer and you have the ideal phone for keeping in touch online. It even has Flash support.

Would be remiss if we didn't expound on its rough and tough features as well. Along with being waterproof, scratch resistant, and dust resistant, you'll find it has a a digital compass and voice commands as well, making it a great phone for taking on hikes or bike rides as well as everyday activities.

Alas, its battery life could be better, with approximately six hours of talk time and 238 hours of standby. Its memory is decent, though, with 2GB of internal memory and 32GB of external memory.