Hands-on with the Lucky Dragon phone
(Credit: Crave Asia)Finally, we got ourselves a set of M1's Lillian Too Lucky Dragon phones. For the uninitiated, Too is a best-selling author on the topic of feng shui. She hails from Malaysia and is an astute businesswoman, as well as a well-known follower of the ancient Chinese practice, so it makes a lot of sense that she conceived this idea. It's one of those things we carry around with us all the time, so having it as your lucky charm also is a logical step.
Just looking at pictures of this mobile phone doesn't quite prepare you to handle it physically. When we opened the box, it looked pretty standard. Screen, keypad and shortcut buttons, all in an unexciting candybar form. Though we knew about the dragon on the back, we were still amused by it. That's actually an understatement--we really burst out laughing. It doesn't help that the start-up tone, with its clanging cymbals and an overly enthusiastic rhythm, gives you the feeling that you're in Chinatown during Chinese New Year.
The pasted-on silver dragon is far thicker than we imagined it to be. The scales on the creature are all clearly defined, thanks to the 288 little zirconia gems (read: faux diamonds) on it. There's one big red one, too, where the dragon's eye is. A pearl is also found here, near the mouth of the dragon. Below all that is Too's seal, with her name in both Chinese and English characters.
Other design elements of the Lillian Too Lucky Dragon phone include a lanyard with a number "8" trinket (signifying wealth in Chinese). The phone comes only in red, giving it a "fire element to ensure financial success." There aren't any geomancy tools available in the software, but you can choose among 12 wallpapers that correspond with animals of the Chinese Zodiac.
As a mobile phone, this one's pretty standard. The interface is simple but effective. The screen isn't all that fantastic, given its 176 x 220 resolution, and the camera's laggy. It has 6MB of built-in user memory, but that can be augmented thanks to its microSD card slot. Overall, we'd have to say it gets things done without hassle and should be sufficient for ordinary use.
There is nothing subtle about this phone's back portion, so unless you are really into feng shui, we doubt most users will appreciate its design. This model is an M1 exclusive and is available from the Singapore operator at S$168 with a 2-year contract or S$668 without.
An explanation on the Lucky Dragon phone's box says that it was designed to "generate auspicious energy every time you hold and use it", and that you can "activate good chi every time you make or receive a phone call." I personally will be carrying this phone around for the day and will report back here with an update if I pick up any thousand-dollar notes on the street.
(Source: Crave Asia)
