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I bought this tablet-phone as a toy to try out as a dual screen device. The short of it is that I found I really do like it. Because I have a DroidX, I really didn't need or want another cell phone. So for the past month or so, I have been carrying it with me and using it as a part-time tablet. For $37, it serves the purposes I had in mind--field-testing a dual screen tablet, surfing the Web with a split screen, and checking email. I did purchase a new battery when I saw how poor battery life was using the one that came with the device. While battery life was extended some, it is obvious that the battery is the Kyocera Echo's Achilles heel. Having had an overall positive experience with the dual screen Echo, I am now in the market for a 7" double-screen tablet--perhaps the Toshiba Libretto W105 or the promised NEC Cloud Communicator or one of the Windows 8 dual screen tablet expected down the line. Thanks, Kyocera! Your Echo has served me well!Read full review
UPDATE: I had originally rated this phone 3 stars, because of 3rd party application support for both screens. However, I learned that Kyocera has an app in the Play Store called "Tablet Extension" which allows apps to take advantage of both screens. This phone is the only phone of its type, and it is a very interesting concept. It unfolds into two screens, allowing for you to even run two stock apps at the same time. However, using both screens really hurts battery life, so I usually only use two screens when watching videos. Another thing to take into consideration is the heavy weight and bulky design of the Echo. It is quite a bit heavier than the average Android phone. So be aware that this is quite hefty to lug around all day. Also be aware the camera on this phone is perhaps the worst I have ever used. It has terrible focus, and can't capture any photo if the target is moving. Finally, performance wise this phone falls short. The processor isn't fast enough to take full advantage of the dual screens, and 512MB of RAM isn't enough to keep this phone from lagging. Battery life is bad, I am only getting about 4 1/2 hours on a full charge (using one screen). Speaker quality is good, and music quality also sounds alright. Data speeds seem normal for a 3G phone. So in summary, this phone is a cool concept, it just doesn't seem polished. The phone is very bulky, and it has average hardware. Battery life is really bad. But if you can get it cheap, it's still a hard deal to pass up. I reccomend you decide the pros and cons before you make a decision, because this isn't the phone for everyone.Read full review
Very nice phone have yet to have any major issues.. occassionally turns itself off and back on? doesnt happen very often sometimes i barely even notice it did it. other then that nothing major.. much better than my previous phone.. definetly drains the battery with the dual screen and honestly it hardly gets used but its pretty nifty and fun to show off =D with the single screen running seems to drain the same as my previous 3g touchscreen/smartphone, best smart phone ive got so far.. much better than the last one i had. the extra battery and charger stand is almost a must but it came with it and was all around still the best 3g smart phone ive used.. very nice..
I bought this phone as an upgrade from my first smart phone. It's dual screen seemed a great idea, and, they are. There are not as many apps or games as I hoped that you can use both screens on and the middle when the screens are put together and be distracting. The battery life is fair, Not as long as a regular smart phone, you'll recharge it every day. Browsing is fast, download speeds are great. It has Flash which is perfect. I use Pandora a lot and the sound is clear. I can watch movies easily from HBO Go and Netflix. I'd say, i'm pretty happy with it. I'll upgrade later on, but for now, It's a pretty decent phone.
The battery life isn't much different than that of my Samsung Epic 4G. I have been able to watch a couple hours of YouTube while browsing the internet and was till able to text and instant message for a few hours more before I needed to plug it in. The extra battery put that off for another several hours! I bought this in order to see what the potential of a dual screened phone and I have to say that it is a pretty awesome phone! The line across the screen is a little annoying but easily ignored. It could benefit from having 4G, more energy efficient OLED screens, and a 1.25G Tegra 2 dual core processor would create an awesome phone capable of multi-tasking like no other device on the market. Even though this phone was conceived back before the Tegra 2 processors hit the market and OLED screens were commonplace, it still handles very well wit a decent battery life. I suggest rooting with z4root and installing and SD Booster and overclocking app to have it run even better!Read full review