BenQ-Siemens CF61

Available now
8th March 2006

The BenQ-Siemens CF61 is 99 gram clamshell phone with a 1.3 megapixel camera, microSD/TransFlash removable memory and Bluetooth. However, it only has a 128x160 pixel main display and the CF61's internal memory is limited to just 1.5Mb.

It's a pretty typically "BenQ" phone to look at, based roughly on the layout of the BenQ M580. To be honest, we thing that this is a very bland looking phone that lacks the character of the Siemens designed models, and given the so-so looks and the unremarkable feature set, the BenQ-Siemens CF61 might struggle to make an impact.

The CF61 is a mixed bag in terms of features. The camera looks decent enough, and it comes with a multishot feature that takes 9 pictures in a row so you can pick the best one, expandable memory is always useful with a 1.3 megapixel camera, and the BenQ-Siemens CF61 also has an MP3/AAC/WMA music player, WAP 2.0 browser, exchangeable covers, 3D surround sound and Bluetooth. On the negative side, the 128x160 pixel display is a bit of a throwback, and it doesn't seem to have an enmail client. The battery life is on the short side at just 3 hours talktime and 9 days standby too. 99 grams isn't particularly lightweight for a phone of this specification, either.

BenQ-Siemens have announced some promising looking handsets lately, but really we don't feel that the CF61 has anything to distinguish itself from the competition. It's also a pretty confusing thing to call the phone, as the Siemens CF62 came out a couple of years ago.

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