March 2022

The Wiko F200 model is a phone designed to simplify the daily life of its users thanks to its simple functionality.

When opening the phone case for the first time, we notice that everything is placed in a very compact way. The contents of the box are the device itself, the battery separately, a fixed charging station, a micro USB charging cable that can be connected to the phone or to the station, a pair of earbuds, a quick operation guide and a safety manual

The first aspect that we have found when interacting with the terminal is some difficulty when trying to open the back cover of the phone to insert the SIM card and the battery. This is due to the fact that some force is necessary and also because the design of the opening slot does not facilitate the process. In addition, it is also necessary to check that the cover is well placed since there is the possibility that it is not fixed on one side due to not making the correct contact between the cover and the phone.

Buttons and physical appearance

The phone has an alphanumeric keyboard with large keys with high contrast and a good separation between them, facilitating the identification of each one and thus avoiding possible erroneous keystrokes. The keys are also backlit allowing them to be seen in low light situations. If there is something negative to be noted, it is that the hang-up and pick-up keys do not have their characteristic red and green colors, respectively. We point this out because that color arrangement of those buttons is something that is very established in society and that serves as a basic identifier for many people.

A very useful function of the navigation button that is not very well indicated and that can be somewhat complex to modify, is the possibility of configuring said button so that it serves as quick access to some features of the device. In total four shortcuts can be set, one for each direction of the navigation button.

As for specific buttons designed to simplify the use of the phone for the elderly, we have a red SOS button on the back of the phone and a flashlight button on the front. It is also important to note that this WIKO model, the F200, does not have buttons on the side, whether they are the typical ones to raise or lower the volume or to lock and unlock the keyboard.

On the other hand, the phone has a 2,8-inch screen, which is larger than most similar terminals. In addition, its compact size makes it easy to use with one hand.

Menu and texts

The Wiko F200 has a small font size, being in proportions very similar to the standard font size of a smartphone today. To this, we must add that the font size is not configurable.

Another aspect to emphasize about the text is its contrast in the menus. In most cases it is correct as it is white font on a dark background. However, in some submenus the phone uses black font to reflect which option/configuration has been chosen, making it difficult to see what it says on the screen unless the phone is placed in certain positions.

On the other hand, the phone allows you to choose the style of the menu between two options.

• Matrix: In this option when entering the menu you have all the categories with their corresponding icons on the same page. This means that the size of the icons is small but that with a first glance you can have all the sections on the screen.

• Page: This option divides the menu into a page by category along with its corresponding icon. This makes the icons larger and easier to identify.

Generally speaking, the icons allow you to recognize most of the menu categories. However, it can create some confusion when switching from one style to another as the icons change.

The initial operation of the menu is easy and intuitive since the sections are arranged in the form of a list. This does not mean that problems can arise when trying to perform some specific operations. This is because some subsection titles are very general, especially in the settings section. In addition, there are many operations that are not indicated correctly on the phone or in the manual, such as increasing the volume of the ringtone.

It should also be added that a category that is called extras and only has the calendar available does not make much sense.

Finally, it is necessary to mention a very recurring problem in these types of mobiles, especially those that do not have a volume up and down button. This problem is the fact that the volume configuration has to be done from different sections and subsections and they are not unified in a specific section.

SOS button

The terminal has a red SOS button located on the back of the phone just below the camera. Visually it is easy to identify, but the physical interaction is not so good as it does not have a very differentiating relief with respect to the rest of the cover.

This phone feature allows you to save up to five contacts or phone numbers in order of importance. Once the button is pressed, the "hands-free" functionality is activated and one saved number is dialed after another until someone answers for as long as necessary and following the previously established priority.

Another function of the SOS button is the possibility of sending a personalized emergency SMS to the five contacts when pressing the button. It is recommended to configure the message beforehand since the basic one is in English and does not give much information.

In addition to dialing and sending SMS, it also sounds an alarm tone to try to attract the attention of people around you.

The configuration of the SOS button is simple, but finding from which section it is done can be a bit difficult as it is not well indicated. In the case of this phone, it is done from the organization section of the menu.

Calls and SMS

In general terms, the sound quality is good and the maximum sound that can be obtained is high. In addition, the phone offers the possibility of activating the hands-free mode during the call by pressing the button located above the hang-up button.

The action of modifying the call volume can be a bit complicated as there is no specific button to perform the action. In the case of this phone, you can only set the volume during the call itself. For that it is necessary to open the options menu by pressing the key that is located above the pick up button.

Another aspect to take into account is the ringtone. The phone allows you to configure the type of melody that sounds and modify its volume level, reaching this model a quite acceptable maximum sound level. The problem arises when configuring all these parameters since it is necessary to open many menus and the phone does not provide much guidance on what process to follow.

Sending and receiving SMS is simple and intuitive and is notified correctly both on screen and by sound.

Connectivity

The phone is dual SIM, that is, there are slots to place 2 different SIM cards. This aspect can come in handy in the case of wanting to use SIM from different operators or use an additional SIM for when we travel to other places. The type of SIM used is the Mini.

On the other hand, the terminal in terms of connectivity has Stereo Bluetooth version 2.1 and WAP Browser through mobile data. However, the WIKO F200 does not have the possibility to connect to WI FI.

The WAP browser included in the phone is somewhat slow and inconvenient since most of the current web pages are not compatible. In addition, using the keyboard of this type of device is not very pleasant. Another negative point is that the font size is small and not modifiable.

Camera

The phone has a 0,3 Megapixel camera, low quality, but in the line of terminals in this range. Also, it is possible to configure various parameters of the camera, zoom, add visual filters or modify the size of the photographs. In addition to taking photos, videos can be taken as long as an SD is inserted.

The operation of the camera is initially intuitive and to access it is only necessary to press the corresponding icon in the main menu. Although it is not clearly indicated, to take the photos it is necessary to press the OK/flashlight button.

On the other hand, complications can arise when one starts trying to configure the various parameters. This is due to the fact that there are several sections within the camera options menu with similar and unspecific names that can create some confusion.

Manual

The Wiko F200 box is accompanied by a very basic quick start guide that tries to reflect the steps to follow to get the terminal up and running. In addition, the box also includes a safety manual with excessively small print.

If you want more information about the phone's features, you can download the manual from the manufacturer's website mentioned above. However, it is necessary to highlight that this manual is very basic and does not include explanations of most of the operations.

FM radio and audio playback

The telephone has a Jack output for the use of headphones. In addition, in the box of the terminal there are earphones of correct quality.

The operation of the audio player and the radio is very similar since both are controlled with the navigation buttons. In both cases the sound level and the change of audio or station is done in the same way.

If we focus more on the radio, it should be noted that we can listen to it using headphones or through the phone's own speakers without any tuning problem. The sound quality in both cases is good and a high sound level can be achieved.

The only problem that has been found is the difficulty to turn it on or off and modify the volume level if it is listening in the background. This difficulty arises because it is necessary to go through the menu again to perform these tasks. However, to simplify this whole process, two solutions have been thought of. The first solution would be to disable the option to sound in the background so that when you leave the radio it turns off. The other solution is to set the radio as a navigation button shortcut so that you can enter from the home screen with the push of a button.

Charging base

The phone comes bundled with a micro USB charger and a fixed charging cradle. The charging station is single position and fits the phone well. To check that the terminal is charging correctly, it is necessary to check that the message “charger connected” appears on the screen and that a confirmation sound sounds.

Battery

The Wiko F200 has a 1200 mAh battery. This is equivalent to an autonomy of 450 hours in standby and 14 hours in call.

Additional storage

Your phone allows you to include additional storage via an SD card of up to 16 GB. This card is necessary in case you want to record videos or audios or surf the internet.

Flashlight, calendar and other extras

Your phone includes several features that can be very useful for everyday use.

First of all, the flashlight. This can be activated or deactivated from the initial screen by pressing the dedicated button located on the front or from the organization category. This button that has been mentioned in turn does the confirmation functions in the menus, so confusion may arise at some point. The light from the flashlight is sufficient for the most basic needs.

Other features included in the organization category are the calculator, alarm clock and e-book reader.

1. The calculator is intuitive to use with the numeric keypad and allows you to perform the four most basic mathematical operations.
2. The alarms are easy to program and allow you to set the number of repetitions and select the alarm tone.
3. The e-book reader allows you to read books that have been previously stored on your device. This functionality in itself does not seem very practical because the size of the screen is not ideal since the text is not very large and its size cannot be changed. In addition, it does not offer the possibility of activating some type of reader by voice.

On the other hand, you can use the camera as if it were a magnifying glass using the zoom. Although the idea may be fine in some specific cases, since the camera does not have a high quality, it is not recommended to use the phone for this.

The last feature to be mentioned is the ability to view the calendar in the extras category.

Games

The phone offers the possibility of buying the classic Tetris game for a price of 1,45 euros. If you are not sure of the purchase, the terminal offers a series of attempts to test the operation.

On the other hand, if you want to buy or get another type of game, the phone does not offer any possibility or additional information on the subject.

Accessibility

The charging base is very easy to use and the sound indicator as well as the message that pops up on the screen help a lot.

As has been mentioned many times, the font size is small and not configurable and the contrast of the text in some menus could be improved.

It does not have any screen reader features like iOS or Android mobiles.

There is no information on its compatibility with hearing aids.

Conclusions

The Wiko F200 is a low-end phone that may be interesting for people looking for a terminal with a long battery life and a simple alphanumeric keyboard. In addition, the maximum volume is quite acceptable and allows you to use the "hands-free" mode.

The phone, although it includes some features for the elderly, such as the SOS button or the charging base, falls somewhat short if people have any hearing or vision difficulties. It seems that these features included in the terminal have been added to try to compete with similar models that are dedicated to older people rather than to facilitate the person's daily use.

As a more negative point, the small size of the letter stands out. In addition, the fact that it cannot be configured makes the terminal waste the size of the screen.

Finally, we must point out the lack of information in the terminal about which button to press on many occasions to carry out an operation. And as if this were not enough, the manuals available in the box or on the website do not serve to clarify the operation of the phone either.

Highlights

• Screen size larger than most similar models.
• Includes an easy to use and configure SOS button.
• The base charges in a single position, easy fit and sound alerts to ensure that the phone is charging.
• A battery with great autonomy.
• A keyboard with large, independent buttons.
• High maximum volume level.

Improvement points

• The font size is small and there is no option to set it.
• There is no side button to control the volume. It is necessary to open different menus to level it.
• Information is missing both on the phone and in the manual on how to perform many operations. The manual offered on the manufacturer's website is more of a quick guide than an instruction.
• Internet service is not very intuitive to use and impractical.
• Some phone features are poorly laid out in the menu.
• There is a lack of indications about which button to press in many operations.
• While it is true that the phone has a dedicated flashlight button, it is not very practical as it can only be used on the home page.