Available in either pink or purple, Motorola's U9 is not going to attract shy and retiring people. The quad-band clamshell handset is definitely designed for those with more outgoing personality types.

Its key feature is not the colour, though. The thing that immediately draws attention to this handset is that the front of the clamshell contains a large OLED screen. OLED is not a new idea by any means, but the technology is used to its best effect here.

When the screen is not active you would not know it is present. But when a call comes in, or some other activity kicks it into action, its 128 x 160 pixels pretty much fill the front fascia with information.

And it is not just about information display: there are some touch controls too. For example, when you are listening to music the front screen displays track information and you can tap at it to move forwards and backwards between songs, and pause or play music.

You can also do some SMS-related activities without opening the phone. When a text comes in it is displayed on the front screen. You can use the side-mounted volume rocker and select keys to choose one of a number of pre-defined replies and send it off.

This is a comfortable phone to hold, being designed in Motorola's classic PEBL style. Its ‘bar of soap' shape and smooth finish means it feels good in the hand when closed. Size-wise the U9 is hand friendly at 90mm tall, 49mm wide and 16mm thick when closed, and it is a light weight for the pocket at 87g. Open the flip and the characteristic flat numberpad pops into view, as well as a sharp and bright main screen.

Despite its flashy front screen, this is a mid-range mobile phone in terms of its general specifications. There is just 256MB of built-in memory, though an SD card slot lies under the battery cover if you want to add more storage. The camera shoots at resolutions up to 2 megapixels. The lens is mounted on the front of the phone and you can use the front screen as a viewfinder for taking photos that include yourself, which is handy. However, during testing we found the quality of images to be average at best.

The U9 has a Web browser, but with no 3G support, looking at Web sites can be a slow business. Other features include a calendar, alarms, calculator and notepad, but there is nothing especially eye-catching or different in the features list.

The U9's front screen and bright colours are its outstanding features. Look deeper and you'll find a mid-range set of features inside the pretty casing.