Samsung i7500 Galaxy, The Samsung’s Android First Phone Support AMOLED

First time announced about May 2009 ago, Samsung i7500 Galaxy comes with camera 5 megapixel, Android 1.5 and sports a 3.2-inch AMOLED touchscreen.
The first Samsung phone which runs Google Android mobile OS has hit several country such as UK and Germany.
The price of Samsung i7500 Galaxy is about £499 or $808 or €580, however some said that the i7500 Galaxy Unlock Version is just about $800.
Here the specification of the Galaxy:
* General: GSM 850/900/1800/1900 MHz, HSDPA 7.2Mbps, HSUPA 5.76Mbps
* OS and CPU: 528MHz CPU with 128MB RAM running latest Android OS v1.5
* Form factor: Touchscreen bar, no keypad
* Dimensions: 115.0 x 56.0 x 11.9 mm, 119 g.
* Display: 3.2″ capacitive OLED touchscreen, HVGA resolution (320 x 480 pixels)
* Storage: 8GB, hot-swappable microSD card slot (up to 16GB)
* Camera: 5 megapixel autofocus camera with LED flash and geotagging
* Connectivity: Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP, microUSB v.2.0, 3.5mm audio jack
* Misc: Accelerometer sensor, Gesture lock
* Battery: 1440 mAh battery

Samsung Electronics HK. Co.Ltd., a leading mobile phone provider, today announced the launch of the first Samsung tablet devices with Android Operating System 2.2–Samsung GALAXY Tab Mobile Tablet. With the advanced electronic and communications technology, Samsung marks a milestone for entering the new market and makes the dream of mobility life come true.

Samsung GALAXY Tab brings together all of Samsung’s leading innovations to provide a perfectly sized 7-inch display for users’ pocket, browse internet and enjoy all forms of multimedia content on-the-go. With the intuitive interface, multimedia function as well as the software from Android Market, Samsung GALAXY Tab provides the best mobile entertainment to users. They can continuously enjoy their mobility life via e-book, web-browsing, playing video and music, e-mail, voice and video call, SMS/MMS or social network.

“Samsung has closely monitored the development of the market, and we recognize that multimedia tablet device is the trend of the market. Samsung GALAXY Tab has been designed to ensure that consumers’ demands on table device are being satisfied, and it will definitely become the spotlight in the market. We believe that Samsung GALAXY Tab is going to push the market to a new phase and will divert the trend of the mobile market into a brand new direction,” said Alex Chung, Director, Samsung Electronics HK Ltd.

Perfect 7-inch display
Samsung GALAXY TAB is meticulously designed in the hardware, software, outlook and the size. With 7” touch-screen display, Samsung GALAXY Tab only weights at 380g, which makes it easy to grip and use by one hand, and allows consumers to enjoy perfect on-the-move experience. The 7” inch display delivers exciting mobile experience for browsing, watching films, viewing pictures, e-reading or sharing documents which deliver high performance wherever you are. Samsung GALAXY TAB also features with Adobe Flash Player 10.1 to bring the PC-Like web-browsing experience to users. Supporting Multi-Tasking, Samsung GALAXY TAB allows mutli-operation to enhance user experience and support up to 32GB microSDHCTM.

Powerful, always-on communication
With 3.5G HSDPA connectivity, WiFi, and Bluetooth® , Samsung GALAXY Tab enhanced user’s mobile communication to a whole new level. Video conferencing and push email on the large 7-inch display make communication more smooth and efficient. Samsung GALAXY Tab also equips with perfect speakerphone which support Bluetooth headsetthat makes two-way communication more effective, and it also provides the perfect solution to consumers under this information technology era.
Samsung GALAXY Tab is powered by Cortex 1.0GHz application processor to deliver the best performance whenever and wherever you are. Meanwhile, HD video are supported by a wide range of multimedia formats （DivX、XviD、MPEG4、H.263、H.264 and more）, which maximizes the joy of entertainment. With the front-facing camera, it allows face-to-face 3G video call, while the rear-facing camera captures still images and video for editing, uploading and sharing.

Clear Motion Rate Defines the New Standard of Image Quality
Samsung leads the trend of technology, which provides an all-rounded 3D AV solution to users, including 3D LED/ LCD TV, 3D home theatre system, 3D blu-ray player and 3D glasses for both adult and children. HT-C9950W adopts Samsung exclusive chipset, which provides smoother and clearer image. With the vivid colour and effective noise control, the unbelievable 3D images are delivered. Besides, HT-C9950W also supports Audio Return Channel, which users can use one HDMI for 3D AV output conveniently.

Powered by Android operating system2.2
Samsung GALAXY Tab features with Android operating system 2.2, which improves over-all performance by including Adobe Flash player 10.1 for flash video and installing the application to memory card etc.

Portable Reading World
The 7-inch LCD display of Samsung GALAXY Tab makes reading more fun and easy. The ‘Readers Hub’ - Samsung’s unique e-book application, provides easy access to different kinds of digital book, newspaper, magazine or document. ‘Reader Hub’ has a simple interface design which makes e-reading as easy and funny as traditional reading.
‘Readers Hub’ has already cooperated with various global e-book publishers including Kobo, PressDisplay* and Zinio* which provide more than 2-million e-books, magazines and newspapers among them, 1.8 millions e-books will be free for downloading. And the publishers will frequently update and expand the content in the future.

Moreover, Samsung will also cooperate with several local publishers including Ming Pao Group, Crystal Window Books, Cultural Communication Press, Joint Publishing (H.K.), , GuangBo Media Limited, Ming’s Reader, Chung Hwa Book Co andCup etc. There are different types of books, such as magazine, novel, investment, travel, numerology, cultural etc. During the launching date, over a 400 books will be available for download (free or paid), written by famous local writer such asIn this famous writer Ni Kuang, young scholar Ong Yi Hing, famous metaphysicians Mak Ling Ling and travelers Kam Ling etc.

Samsung Anycall Warranty Service in Mainland China
Samsung Anycall offers country-wide warranty service in mainland China. For every purchase of all official Samsung Anycall handsets (accessories not applicable) in Hong Kong and Macau’s authorized dealers with recognized invoice and warranty card (customer receipts), customers are entitled to 1-year of free standard warranty dated from the date of purchase issued in Hong Kong, Macau or Mainland China, enjoying services at “Samsung Electronics Service Center” across major provinces and cities. For the details of terms and conditions of the warranty service in mainland China, please visit: www.samsungmobile.com.hk/ChinaWarranty

About Samsung Electronics
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a global leader in semiconductor, telecommunication, digital media and digital convergence technologies with 2009 consolidated sales of US$116.8 billion. Employing approximately 188,000 people in 185 offices across 65 countries, the company consists of eight independently operated business units: Visual Display, Mobile Communications, Telecommunication Systems, Digital Appliances, IT Solutions, Digital Imaging, Semiconductor and LCD. Recognized as one of the fastest growing global brands, Samsung Electronics is a leading producer of digital TVs, memory chips, mobile phones and TFT-LCDs.
For more information, please visit www.samsung.com, or contact the Customer Service Hotline of Samsung Electronics at

The moment that smartphone geeks have been waiting for is finally here: Apple has just unveiled the fourth generation iPhone at today’s WWDC conference in San Francisco. At a diminutive 9.3 mm thick, the svelte new device is 25% thinner than the 3GS, significantly lighter, and it boasts a long-lasting battery that boosts call time up to 7 hours

Read more: Apple's New iPhone 4 is Ultra Thin, Light - But is it Green? | Inhabitat - Green Design Will Save the World

The iPhone 4 has some impressive specs, including six-axis motion sensing, a 4x overall pixel count increase compared to the iPhone 3, a 5 megapixel camera with 5X digital zoom, the capability to record HD video at 720p / 30fp, and — perhaps most impressively — a larger battery that provides 7 hours of 3G talk, 6 hours of 3G browsing, 10 hours of WiFi browsing, 10 hours of video, and 40 hours of music. That larger battery means users don’t need to plug the phone in as much, which in turn means less overall power use.

Apple‘s new phone also offers the ability to use more than one application at once. It’s a feature that has been unique the Android operating system up until now, and while it’s certainly useful, it’s not all that green. That’s because using more than one app at the same time sucks up battery life — effectively canceling out the benefits of the iPhone 4′s larger battery. Still, users don’t have to use the feature, and it’s a helpful option to have.

The iPhone 4′s “retinal display” of 326 pixels per inch (ppi) makes it ideal for reading books — the human eye can’t differentiate between digital displays and print above 300 ppi. It’s unlikely that most people will use the handset instead of larger resource-heavy e-readers or printed books, but we imagine that certain users might read newspapers on their iPhone instead of on paper.

Another practical and green benefit of the new iPhone: it’s 9.3mm thick — 25% thinner than the iPhone 3GS. A thinner phone means fewer resources go into making the product.

Is the iPhone 4 more sustainable than the iPhone 3? Yes. But it’s still not nearly as sustainable as, say Samsung’s recyclable bio-plastic Reclaim phone. We’re hoping that Apple continues to make strides in battery life and resource use — it still has a long way to go.

Read more: Apple's New iPhone 4 is Ultra Thin, Light - But is it Green? | Inhabitat - Green Design Will Save the World

No two phones are hotter right now than the latest Apple handset and Motorola’s new Android phone. We compared both in hands-on tests in seven categories to crown an overall winner.

Retina display! 8-megapixel camera! Video calls! HDMI port! The last few days have seen lots of shouting from proponents of the hot phones of the minute, the Apple iPhone 4 and the Motorola Droid X. Which phone really delivers the best experience? We got our hands on both and tested them in seven categories: cost of ownership, storage, connection speeds, still and video image capture, display and resolution, operating system, and multitasking and media playback.

The iPhone 4 won the majority of our battles--but barely. Both phones are incredibly fast, have superb displays, and come loaded with multimedia features. Some of our tests, such as OS and media playback, come down to personal preference. On the other hand, our display, still camera, and camcorder tests clearly prove that the iPhone 4 is stronger in those categories. And the iPhone 4 won our data-speed and voice-quality tests, though they were confined to San Francisco; the results could be different in other parts of the country.

Soon, we'll be putting the HTC EVO 4G and the Samsung Galaxy S through the same testing, so check back for those results.
Meet the Contenders

At this point, you've probably become pretty familiar with the iPhone 4 (available now on AT&T; $299 for 32GB, $199 for 16GB, both with a two-year contract) and the Motorola Droid X (available July 15 for $200 on Verizon, also with a two-year contract), but here's a quick refresher. The Droid X's standout features include a 4.3-inch display, an 8-megapixel camera, HDMI and DLNS connectivity, and a 1GHz TI OMAP processor. The iPhone 4's headlining features include its "Retina display," an improved 5-megapixel camera and a front-facing video camera for video calls, and HD (720p) video capture. To see how the specs stack up against each other, take a look at our comparison chart

Connectivity: Data Speeds and Voice Quality

The Stats: In the connectivity department, the Droid X and the iPhone 4 both come with Wi-Fi, GPS, and Bluetooth. What the Droid X can do and the iPhone 4 can't is to act as a mobile hotspot. For an extra $20 per month, the Droid X allows you to connect up to five compatible Wi-Fi devices, such as your laptop, your iPad, or other gadgets, to Verizon's network.

Both phones boast noise-cancellation technology, which is supposed to improve call quality by blocking sounds around you, leaving only your voice.

Testing Methodology: We tested the iPhone 4 and the Droid X in five San Francisco locations and used the same testing methodology we use for our 3G speed tests. We used the FCC-endorsed Ookla testing app on both the iPhone 4 and the Droid X to measure upload speeds and download speeds. The Ookla test sends a stream of packets from the phone to a network server and back, and then measures the average speeds at which the packets make the round trip. We ran three consecutive speed tests on each phone at each location and then picked the best upload and download speeds of the three. Our voice-call tests were more subjective; we placed calls to a common local number, listening for static, jitter, delay, dropped calls, or a failure to connect, and then assigned a score to each call.

Data Speed Winner: iPhone 4
In our informal performance testing in San Francisco, the AT&T-connected iPhone 4 registered far faster download speeds than the Verizon-connected Droid X did. The iPhone 4 showed an average download speed of 1958 kbps (almost 2 mbps) across our five testing locations in the city. The Droid X had an average download speed of 1130 kbps--still more than enough speed for reasonably fast Web browsing and standard-definition video watching. The two new devices posted similar average upload speeds; the iPhone4 registered 434 kbps and the Droid X averaged 564 kbps. Those upload speeds are fast enough to support basic file sharing but not enough to make fat-pipe apps such as multiplayer gaming or videoconferencing run well.

Voice Quality Winner: iPhone 4

The iPhone 4 showed an even greater advantage over the Droid X in our voice-call quality tests. In almost all the test calls we placed around the city, calls on the iPhone 4 sounded better than the Droid X. Calls sounded more natural, and were more pleasing to listen to on the other end of the line. We recorded no dropped calls on AT&T.

In test calls using the Droid X, the audio coming out of the earphone was usually clear enough, but it didn't sound as full and pleasing as that coming out of the iPhone 4. On the other end, I'm told, my voice sounded loud enough, but not as dynamic and even a bit shrill. We also noted some minor static on some calls, as well as a warbling sound in other calls. We recorded only one dropped call using the Droid X.

Obviously, you can't generalize too much from these tests. We were able to test in only one city, and testing over wireless networks is inherently unpredictable--weather and network traffic can affect the results in unknown ways.
Total Cost of Ownership, Plus Storage

Let's break down the cost of owning the phones. We looked at the most inexpensive voice and data plans as well as at the priciest plans for each phone to see how they compare

Our conclusion: With the cheapest options, Droid X costs about $360 more over two years than the 16GB iPhone 4 does, but the Droid X plan includes unlimited data, compared with 200MB for the iPhone 4.

With the high-end plan options for both smartphones, the Droid X costs $120 more over two years. The Droid X plan includes unlimited data, while the iPhone 4's data is capped at 2GB per month (though, to be fair, few users will exceed the 2GB limit).

You should also consider how much storage you're getting for your money. The iPhone 4 comes in only 16GB and 32GB models, as the previous 3GS generation did. As we all know too well, the iPhone 4 does not have expandable storage. The Droid X, on the other hand, has 8GB of storage built in, and comes with a 16GB MicroSD card in the box. And because the Droid X supports MicroSD cards up to 32GB, you can extend its storage up to 40GB.

Winner: Droid X

The total cost of ownership is not significantly more, and you get a larger data allowance and the potential for more storage capacity.
Still Camera

The Specs: The iPhone 4 sports a 5-megapixel camera sensor with an LED flash, which is a nice upgrade from the iPhone 3GS's 3-megapixel camera with no flash. The camera supports tap-to-focus in shooting mode, as well as photo geotagging.

On paper, the Droid X's camera seems a bit stronger. It has an 8-megapixel display with a dual-LED flash. The Droid X offers no tap-to-focus, but it does have a face-detection feature that will automatically focus on a (human) subject. In addition to an Auto mode, the Droid X has a handful of basic scene modes that you can adjust based on the shooting environment: Landscape, Portrait, Macro, Sports, Steady Shot, Sunset, and Night Portrait.

Testing Methodology: PCWorld's testing methodology for the iPhone 4 and Droid X cameras was a truncated version of our regular testing methodology for point-and-shoot cameras. We affixed each phone to a tripod and shot two images with the flash turned off:

1. One still-life scene with a color chart and delightful random objects to rate exposure quality and color accuracy.

2. A target chart and printed text to evaluate sharpness and distortion levels.

Here are the still-life shots from the iPhone 4 (left) and Droid X
Winner: iPhone 4

Here's evidence that megapixel counts rarely matter: Apple's 5-megapixel iPhone 4 beat out the Droid X for overall image quality in our tests, serving up well-exposed, brightly colored images in our lab tests. However, the iPhone 4's image quality did lag behind the competition in two categories: sharpness and visible distortion. The 8-megapixel Droid X scored closely behind the iPhone 4 in all tests, however, and even beat the iPhone 4 in our sharpness tests.

Samsung S7070 Diva with its quilted back is in UK stores now. While the diamond-shaped center key on the front tries to reinforce the feel of luxury, the social networking integration and the Wish List application aim to keep ladies occupied.














The Samsung S7070 Diva runs the traditional Samsung TouchWiz on its 2.8″ QVGA touchscreen, but its fashion-conscious design sets it apart from the usual suspects. The S7070 Diva supports microSD cards up to 8GB, has DNSe (though there’s no 3.5 mm audio jack) and a 3.2MP camera that focuses on arty effects (beauty shot, lomo, etc) rather than high-resolution image quality.


Since this phone is something of a fashion accessory, Carphone Warehouse are offering a limited number of gift bags with each Samsung S7070 Diva – the bags are stuffed with goodies from Benefit, like cream-to-powder finish foundations and portable kits of mini concealers. O2 on the other hand are offering a 12 month subscription to iSUBSCRIBE with the first 8000 Divas sold.


From Carphone Warehouse, the S7070 Diva is available for T-Mobile (free, 15 pounds a month on a 2-year contract) and Orange (again free, 20 pounds/mo, 2-year contract) or 130 pounds for a pay as you go service for T-Mobile, Orange, O2 or Vodafone.

The camera phone is 12.7mm thick and has a 3 x 4 slider keypad. The finish is brushed metal. The screen is anti smudge and anti scratch which is a big bonus. The 8 MP camera is feature rich with a dual power LED flash and smile shot. The TouchWiz user interface permits browsing of photographs and maps and makes surfing the Internet a breeze.

The camera enables geo tagging thus permitting the storage of pictures by location. It can record at 30fps, 720 x 480 resolution. You can also automatically upload pictures from Flickr, Picasa, and Facebook.

A host of 3G services can be accessed with the phone. Video streaming, video telephony and high speed Internet access are a few to name. The camera supports DivX video player. The phone is being marketed for Rs 27,500 which is competitive considering the features of the phone.

SAMSUNG INDIA launched its UltraTouch smart-phone in the Indian market on Wednesday (March 1).

The device features a wide touch-screen and 8 megapixel camera. Presently, Samsung India has collaborated with Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL) to provide its users the 3G services. It also offers hi-speed Internet access, video telephony, streaming and multimedia services.

While speaking to the media, Samsung India President and CEO Jung Soo Shin said, “Samsung ‘UltraTouch’ leads the portfolio of our high-end phone and it will further enhance our leadership in the premium full-touch market.”

Sunil Dutt, the country head of Samsung Telecom Division said, “With this latest offering, we now have four touch-screen phones in the Indian market.

Dutt further added, “We will be further strengthening our touch-screen portfolio in the coming months with more innovative launches. Based on the enhancement of our touch-screen and the multimedia phone portfolio, we hope multimedia phone segment to contribute 40-45 per cent of our total sales in 2009.”

Samsung offers a special package to its BSNL subscribers on some selected handsets. The mobile giant allows its users to enjoy the full benefit of 3G services.

Dutt also announced that the special offer on the selected handsets of Samsung (F480, L700 J800 and S7330) for the BSNL subscribers include SIM card, airtime and data downloads free of cost for both pre-paid and post-paid customers.

4 May 2007 - Samsung continuing its "Every phone we make has to be thinner than a piece of paper" route has released what it's claiming is the world's thinnest slider phone - the SGH-U600.

At only 10.9mm thick it's pretty thin and it's amazing to think that only 10 years ago phones were about 5 times the size and only made calls.

A cross between the LG chocolate phone and the Motorola RAZR the new handset's design is dominated by a 2.2-inch screen and a series of touch sensitive buttons - hence the Chocolate reference.

Slide it open and the phone comes to life with Samsung's time sensitive, location changing wallpaper. Features of merit include a 3.2 megapixel camera and dedicated music player.

When it comes to using the phone, the interface is virtually identical to other Samsung Ultra Edition models in the range and it's fairly easy to navigate your way around the interface regardless of what phone you've used before.

Picture quality whether it's video or still photos is very good and easily equal to Sony Ericsson's K800 series, however the U600 doesn’t come with the same focus on design.

The camera for example, is only revealed once the slider is open - very similar to their D600 from all those years ago and the digital camera does take some time to boot up once you've pressed the token shutter button on the side of the handset.

Other features we especially liked is a SmartSearch feature that automatically starts offering phone numbers as you dial them in, whether they are in your contacts list or not saving you that few seconds on making the call.

In use when it came to making calls - surely the most important element - we got good caller feedback with some callers believing we were on a landline phone in a quiet office when actually we were in the back of a cab on the way to a meeting.

Samsung's SGH-U600 set a world record for thinnest slider handset on the market, a record that Samsung itself had set. The new U600 is thin - thinner than many of the thinnest candy bar shaped handsets available today. The danger of miniaturization, such as we see in the U600, is often compromised ergonomics and usability. In this review we'll see if Samsung can avoid those issues with their latest and greatest slider phone.

Take note that the review model is a Hong Kong market SGH-U608. Minor differences in firmware can be expected when compared with versions of the U600 sold in other markets, such as in Europe.

Physical Aspects

Compared with its predecessor, the D900, the U600 looks a lot more streamlined. All three color schemes look very attractive. Few could find fault with our Sapphire Blue review model. The material used in the body is mainly plastic, but it doesn't feel cheap at all thanks to its metallic finishing and coloring.

At 103.5mm x 49.3mm x 10.9mm (4.1" x 1.9" x .43"), the U600 feels very sleek and smooth in the hand. Its 81g weight is about right, and the build quality feels very solid. Users should have no problem sliding the device into a shirt pocket.

The front of the phone is almost completely flat. The d-pad is slightly raised in the middle, making it very comfortable to access. Unlike the d-pad, the soft keys and dial/hang-up keys are all touch-sensitive, making it possible to have them mounted on a completely flat surface. The clear plastic used on the front of the phone is much stronger than that of the D900 - pressing on the hard surface won't result in any distortion of the screen image.

The dial/hang-up buttons are not backlighted, whereas the softkeys and d-pad have a very attractive white backlight behind them. Since these buttons are touch-sensitive, they are not the most reliable in use. Samsung added in the function of having the softkeys blink when accessed. This doesn't rectify the fundamental problem with touch keys, but it might allow users to be more confident with these non-mechanical buttons. All touch sensitive keys are automatically locked during phone conversations, so they shouldn't pose a problem when the user's face touches them.

The design of the U600 is very clean. The volume keys, ports, and shutter buttons can be found on the sides. One addition would be the new power button at the top, which also serves as a keypad lock key. This is a useful feature, but being as the power button is located on the top, it is not as accessible as it could be for such a common function.

Users will appreciate the slightly raised d-pad for its ability to make sliding open the phone simpler. The half-auto mechanism feels less well-constructed than on previous models, though. It is stiffer and not as smooth in action. Together with the glossy surface, sliding open the phone with one hand is not really all that easy. The alphanumeric keypad is engraved on a single piece of metal, and thankfully are appropriately spaced, and offer great tactile feedback.

In terms of its physical aspects, I am quite pleased with the U600, with the exception of the touch sensitive keys and slightly tricky slider. The design is really conservative, meaning that not a lot of people should find reason to complain. On the other hand, not a lot of people are going to be wildly impressed, either. Unlike the Motorola RAZR, for example, the U600 doesn't stand out when seen from afar.

Multimedia

The U600 has a full 2.2" QVGA 262K TFT. Color rendering on the display is great, but the photos here in this review simply won't do it justice; you have to see it for yourself in person to really appreciate it. Unfortunately, taking the screen outside the house is a completely different story, as screen readability in sunlight is markedly lower than on other similar sliders Samsung has made in the past. This has to do more with the contoured design of the U600's face. This makes the phone look curvier and reflective, but it also makes the screen a lot harder to read under direct sunlight. Apparently Samsung is also aware of the problem. They addressed it with a new Sunlight Mode setting that will increase the screen contrast a bit. As you can see from the screen shots, the two built in themes are already well-contrasted (black and white), thus this function only has a limited effect on usability.

The U600's 64 voice polyphonic ringtones come out from the same grille holes as the earpiece. Volume is on the soft side, but better than that found in the D900. The new ICEpower Mobile Chip co-developed with Bang&Olufsen may be partly responsible for the difference in volume. Quality wise it has also improved, especially when it comes to the mid-range sounds.

The ICEpower Mobile Chip, which is an amplifier, not a DSP, has more effect when you listen to music with the headphones. With all the equalizers off, we noticed that the sound quality is actually on par with that of the Sony Ericsson W810i. The maximum volume is also louder. The problem with the U600 is that users are not given the choice of using their own earphones, since the phone lacks a 3.5mm headphone jack. Never the less, the U600 can still read most music file formats, including AAC, eAAC+, MP3 as well as WMA. Other essential features such as playlists, flight mode, background play, A2DP and a microSD expansion slot are also in place. The music UI is the same as found in the F300, and looks a lot more attractive now. Users can even rate songs on the phone, and mark them as favorites.

Just like its predecessor, Samsung still managed to squeeze a decent 3.2 megapixel CMOS camera with autofocus lens and LED flash into this super slim phone. A self-portrait mirror is also in place in case you need it. According to our source, the camera module on U600 is different than that on the D900 (and the U700). In actual testing, we thought the difference in image quality was minimal, though we didn't have the 2 phones side by side to run tests. Night shots on the U600 are quite clean by phone standards, colors are accurate in bright daylight, and macro shots are still amongst the best in the mobile phone market.

You can start up the camera from the 3x4 icon main menu or by long pressing the camera shutter key on the side. The camera takes about 2 seconds to start up. The improved viewfinder user interface is worth mentioning. Similar to digital cameras in the market, options now are customizable and sorted into a row of icons along the bottom. This means users don't have to dig into the menu structure for common functions and settings. The viewfinder refresh rate is fast, but the menu is a big slow.

The U600 offers all of the settings you would expect to find in an dedicated entry-level digital camera. ISO, White Balance, exposure metering, exposure compensation, color effects, night mode, scene mode, macro focus, and self-timer options are all present. It is a pity that they have removed the choice of a Pan-focus mode, which is very handy in low light situations. What they have added, though, is a focus lock when you half-press the shutter key so that you can recompose the photo after focusing on the subject. The only problem is that the shutter key is quite stiff, so this might increase the chance of shaking the camera. The shutter lag is just under a second, and saving a full 3MP picture takes about a second, which is not bad for a phone.

The U600 is able to record video clips at resolutions up to 352x288 pixels in MP4 format. Videos can also be set as wallpapers or caller ID videos as long as they are recorded in 132x176/3GPP format. Video wallpapers look a bit small on the QVGA screen, but are a fun feature nonetheless. Users can always encode videos on a computer, transfer them over to the phone, and then watch them full-screen.

Unlike the D900, videos and pictures can be directly saved onto the external memory card, saving the hassle of moving those files manually. Internal memory is approximately 50MB and can be expanded with a microSD card of up to 2GB in capacity.

The U600 is not a weak multimedia device at all. In fact, Samsung has given it much potential in terms of its hardware, but the company has left out some obvious things. The great audio quality is hindered by the lack of a 3.5mm earphone jack or adaptor, and the screen is very hard to view in sunlight due to its glossy, curvy surface

With the ubiquity of ultra-thin devices, consumers are looking for new ways to differentiate themselves from the general public. Much of the appeal of the Motorola RAZR was its unorthodox design, released when much of the market was using Nokia-designed candybars.

reating the SGH-D807, Samsung put a spin on the popular RAZR. Rather than the familiar clamshell design, the D807 is slim slider, with similarly appealing features packed into a 15 mm profile.

Not just looks and no function, the D807 offers an impressive array of multimedia features, such as a high-resolution 262K-color LCD, integrated 1.3-megapixel camera and MP3 player, and Bluetooth wireless connectivity. An external microSD memory slot in addition to the D807's 18.0 MB internal memory, allows users to take advantage of the phone's

Placing the primary focus on design, Samsung engineers managed to create a sleek futuristic slider that turns heads whenever it's revealed. The D807 has an attractive matte-black housing that features a chrome accents around thee outer edge, contributing the quality feel. Preventing any interruptions in the smooth lines, an internal antenna is positioned underneath.

Slim enough to match up with the RAZR, the D807 measures 97 x 52 x 15 mm and weighs in at just 98 grams, rather thin and lightweight, but not impressive with the influx of similarly slim devices.

The Samsung D807's most dramatic feature is its large 176 x 220 px 262K-color screen. Offering exceptional resolution with vivid imaging, the state-of-the-art LCD is the centerpiece to the D807's impressive design.

Below, 4-Way Keypad with Select Key, Connect and Disconnect, and Left and Right Keys allow users to navigate without having to open the D807. But the arrow buttons are quite small, make functionality a bit difficult.

The multi-function port for Headsets, Accessories, and the Charger can be found along the left side near the Volume Keys. But with an irregular connection port for the Headset, consumers will have to purchase special headphones for the D807. Along the right side, an expansion slot accepts microSD memory cards.

Located on the other side the screen, an integrated 1.3-megapixel camera is revealed when sliding open the D807, ensuring the lens protected when the slider is closed. Capturing pictures up to 1280 x 1024 px in resolution, the D807 provides good quality photos that can be used for printing, allowing consumers to leave the digital camera at home.

Easily opened with one hand, the spring-loaded slider reveals a slightly recessed keypad. With the buttons connected, the smooth appearance is a beautiful design element, but is rather difficult to type on, being unable to differentiate keys from each other by feel.

Overall the D807's obvious appeal is its stylish, sleek look with a vibrant LCD set off by the matte-black finish and chrome trim. Similar in dimensions to the RAZR, the D807 is as compact as any of the latest ultra-thin phones on the market, fitting tastefully in any pocket.

Out of the box, the Samsung SGH-D807 comes with a Standard 800 mAh Li-Ion Battery, Home Charger, and User Manual.

Since first being introduced in 2002, cameras have gone from a novelty on phones to an essential feature that allows the user to leave their standalone digital camera at home.

Compared to the market, the D807 is in the middle of the pack with a built in 1.3-megapixel camera. Falling short of the latest state-of-the-art phones that feature 2.0- and 3.2-megapixel cameras, the D807 is nonetheless a significant improvement over the old 0.3-megapixel VGA cameras still found on some phones released today.

With resolutions up to 1280 x 1024 px, the D807 captures photos that are suitable for making prints. At around 250 KB per photo at this setting, the camera's internal memory can store up after 70 photos, but an external microSD memory card provides extra storage space. Lower resolutions include MEGA (1152 x 864 px), SVGA (800 x 600 px), VGA (640 x 480), QVGA (320 x 240 px), and QCIF (176 x 144 px).

Located on the back of the screen, the camera is revealed when the D807 is slid up (protecting the lens when the slider is closed). Easily controlled using the center select button to take pictures, directional arrows adjust the Brightness Level (0-10) and 4X Digital Zoom (10 steps). The brightness adjustment helps compensate for some low light conditions, however it is still a poor replacement for a conventional flash.

With the LCD screen out of view during a self portrait, the D807 has a mirror next to the lens that gives an accurate depiction of what's in frame. Other features found on the phone include a Self-Timer (Off, 3, 5, and 10 Sec), Quality (Super Fine, Fine, Normal, and Economy), Effects (Grayscale, Negative, Sepia, Emboss, Sketch, Antique, and Moonlight), and Frames (25 different to choose from). More advanced options include Multi-Shot (6, 9, or 15 shots at normal or high speed) and Mosaic Shot (2x2 and 3x3, Auto or Manual).

Entering Camcorder Mode, videos can be captured in Normal Length or Limit for MMS modes. Effects and Quality options are available for the video camera. Shot at 176 x 144 px resolution, the video clips are grainy and choppy and remain a novelty feature rather than intended for actual usage.

The D807's 1.3-megapixel camera is solid as an occasional replacement for the standalone digital camera. It fares much better than the older VGA cameras but trails many dedicated camera phones that can be found from major carriers. The lack of a flash hurts it in comparison with other 1+ megapixel counterparts but the robust filters and functions are useful options and a nice bonus.

Released for Cingular Wireless, the Sansung D807 features GSM quad-band (850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 MHz) technology, permitting use of the handset on compatible GSM networks in North America, Europe, and Asia, provided it has been unlocked.


Locking phones is a common carrier practice to keep customers from purchasing phones at a discounted rate with a service plan and bringing them to other carriers. Since the D807 is a Cingular exclusive, it's locked by default. But good-standing customers can usually request the unlock code after 90 days of service. Only after the handset has been unlocked can users take it to other networks.

Samsung offers a straightforward 3 x 3 menu that can be easily navigated with the four-way directional button or by entering the 1-9 keys that correspond to each item. To get a custom look, the D807 gives the user the option of changing wallpapers, ringtones, and skins but the menu can not be altered.

Essential for the business user, the phone features a clear and easy to use speaker phone. To enable the speakerphone, users simply press the middle select button in the center of the directional button when answering or during a call. The sound on both the speakerphone and the earpiece is low. Loud environments can be troublesome for D807 users, who may struggle to hear the other party they are speaking with whether they are holding it up to their ear or have it on speakerphone.

Samsung rated the D807's 880 mAh Li-Ion battery at 5.0 and 250 hours (10.4 days) of talk and standby times respectively. However, these times are under optimal conditions and testing suggested it may yield a lower performance. Moderate to high users may find it necessary to charge the phone nightly to avoid battery troubles. While charging, the LCD remains lit so users who are not interested in having a night light will need to lay the phone on its face.

Screen

The centerpiece of the D807's sleek design is the vibrant 262K-color LCD screen that offers 176 x 220 px resolution. Built from TFT (Thin Film Transistor) technology, the D807's high resolution LCD offers bright and vivid colors that allow the screen to remain visible even in direct sunlight.

With TFT technology, circuit transistors placed directly on the glass provide fast refresh rates because each pixel location does not have to be scanned. This allows for noticeably faster response times for games or for use as a viewfinder and brighter, more distinct colors. The drawback with TFT is its significant power consumption and the resulting reduced battery life.

To conserve battery life, the D807's screen can be set for different intervals to fade out and turn off (15 sec, 30 sec, 1 min, and 3 min). To see the time or check the phone's static information, the user must slide the phone up or press the left softkey. With Samsung's knowledge and expertise in flat panel displays, the D807's 262K-color screen offers an optimal balance of performance and battery life economy

Featuring a user-friendly MP3 Player, the D807 is bolstered by a microSD expansion slot, allowing for sufficient music storage. Settings for the MP3 Player include Repeat, Shuffle, two different visualization modes, and a backlight (always on or normal). It lacks an equalizer but a nice feature is that the volume can be set independently of the phone's ringer or speaker volume.

An audio recorder is also among the D807's features. Using the microphone to record, the handset must be held close to the subject in order to be picked up by the recorder.

Cingular's MEdia Net service provides a convenient way to download MP3 ringtones for a fee - starting at $1.99 each - but does not offer full versions of songs. Other carriers such as Verizon and Sprint offer MP3 downloads to their customers but at a fee of around $2 per song, users may be better off transferring them from their PC anyway using a data cable (not included) or Bluetooth.

The audio features of the D807 are basic with a functional, but simple MP3 Player and a limited audio recorder. While MP3 downloads directly to the phone are not as simple as with other services, there are several options for transferring songs from another device.

The D807 comes complete with all of the standard text messaging options while offering T9 predictive text for faster typing. The handset features SMS (Short Messaging Service) for sending text, EMS (Enhanced Messaging Service) for positioning layouts, and MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service) for sending photos, sound, or video clips.

Instant messaging on the D807 allows the user to stay in contact via the most popular services. AOL Instant Messenger (AIM), MSN Messenger, ICQ, and Yahoo are all pre-installed on the D807 and can be used to send and receive messages.

Not just limited to text messaging, the D807 offers easy access to Yahoo, MSN Hotmail, and AOL e-mail accounts. Users can also send and receive emails from 3rd party email accounts through POP3, IMAP4, and SMTP protocols.

The D807 makes it easy to access the most popular instant messaging and email services. T9 makes typing easier and faster, but some users may find the keypad difficult to use. With the phone's buttons undersized and connected in a row, it can be difficult to differentiate between them.

Entertainment

Essential applications come preinstalled on the D807. Alarm, World Time Clock, Timer, Stopwatch, Calendar, Scheduler with Alerts, Notepad, Voice Recorder and a Calculator are all included. The D807 also features a useful Converter Tool for Currency, Temperature, Length, Weight, Volume, and Area.

An impressive feature is the D807's use of voice commands through VoiceSignal 2.0 technology, a popular and innovative voice recognition software program. A helpful way to get around using the phone's difficult keypad, VoiceSignal can be used for one-step name and digit dialing, as well as to start programs, address a message, and get contact information. The program's settings allow for adjustment of the recognition sensitivity and the digits can be customized for the user's voice.

The D807 comes preinstalled with just two games, Tetris, the popular puzzle game, and Midnight Pool, a billiards game, which are both trial versions and very limited. However, users can download and install more applications through J2ME (Java 2 Micro Edition). As the most popular platform for mobile devices, developers have already created mobile versions of popular video games and work-supportive programs. Cingular's MEdia Net also offers games - including the full versions of Tetris and Midnight Pool - that can be easily downloaded for a fee.

The D807 comes with a solid group of applications pre-installed and the ability to easily expand on them. Voice recognition is an impressive feature that allows the user to avoid the directional arrows and keypad that may be difficult to navigate.

The D807 uses EDGE Class 10 technology and supports the GPRS protocol, as well as the popular high speed EDGE data protocol. With its Bluetooth capability and a Cingular data plan, the D807 can also be used as a wireless modem for laptops and PDAs. The phone features a built-in browser for MEdia Net downloads and mobile web browsing.

EDGE, Cingular's 3G network, allows data transfers two to three times faster than traditional GPRS networks. Averaging speeds from 70 to 135 kbps, the EDGE network has expanded to over 13,000 U.S. cities and towns and more than 39,000 miles of U.S. highways. International EDGE and GPRS roaming are also available in more than 80 countries, allowing access to more than 253 million people worldwide.

While the D807 has EDGE and GPRS, Cingular just released its first HSDPA (High-Speed Downlink Packet Access) phone in July. While consumers may be content with EDGE, HSDPA will have 400-700 Kbps data rates to start and promises eventual speeds of up to 10 Mbps.

As Cingular plays catch-up with EV-DO, EDGE is fast becoming replaced. Regardless it still provides modest speeds to a far-reaching, almost nationwide network.

With 18.0 MB of internal memory, the D807 has ample storage space for photos, videos, ringtones, and text messages. However, more memory is needed to use the built-in MP3 player so the D807 features a microSD expansion slot along the right side of the handset.

While the phone does not come with a memory card in the box, they can be purchased separately in sizes of up to 2 GB.

Connectivity

Featuring Bluetooth technology, the D807 allows users to connect wirelessly to Bluetooth-compatible accessories within a 10 meter (30 foot) range. Compatible with several popular Bluetooth profiles, users are able to pair with a variety of devices.

The D807 supports Headset Profile (HSP) to connect with popular Bluetooth headsets, Hands-free Profile (HFP) to use hands-free car kits, Serial Port Profile (SPP) to emulate a serial port, File Transfer Profile (FTP) to send files from phone-to-phone, Object Push Profile (OPP) to send a vCard, and Dial-Up Networking (DUN) Profile to allow consumers to connect their laptops to go online over Bluetooth.

Unfortunately, A2DP (Advanced Audio Distribution Profile) is not supported on the D807. A new technology, A2DP allows users to listen to stereo music on A2DP-compatible Bluetooth headphones. However, with all the devices that it is able to connect to, plus its ability to be used as a wireless modem, few users will be disappointed with the D807's Bluetooth connectivity.

With its sleek, modern look, compact size, and capable features, the Samsung D807 offers an impressive combination of style and performance that will make it a popular RAZR alternative.

Set off by the D807's chrome-framed, black matte finish, the 262K-color LCD screen is among the best on the market and is the centerpiece of the phone's distinctive look. At 176 x 220 px, the screen presents impressive size to go along with bright, vivid images.

Not limited to just good looks, the D807 delivers solid multimedia offerings. Capable of print-quality photos, the 1.3-megapixel camera is a nice feature but the lack of a flash prevents it from being a full replacement for a standalone camera. The MP3 Player has a simple, user-friendly design and the external memory card allows the user to keep an impressive array of songs stored on the phone as well as pictures, videos, and ringtones.

EDGE capability allows the phone to connect to the internet and download data, applications, games, and media for the phone. Already lagging behind the offerings of Verizon and Sprint, EDGE is being replaced by HSDPA. However, its does provide one of the farthest-reaching networks even if it is at modest speeds.

Extensive Bluetooth connectivity enables wireless communication for data transfer as well as the use of popular headset and hands-free devices.

Excellent voice recognition software mitigates a keypad that may lead some to misdial. Other concerns with the D807 are the low earpiece / speakerphone volume and short battery life which may be troublesome for some users.

Overall, the D807 offers a distinctive, compact phone with well-thought out, capable features. Consumers who buy this phone for its unique look will be pleased with what they find on the inside.

As luck would have it, it turns out I’m the Crazy BlackBerry Addict! When mention of the eBay 9000s came up in the forums, there was plenty of discussion as to whether the devices were legit or not. The images accompanying the auction seemed too good to be photoshopped and were unlike any other leaked 9000 pictures I had encountered previously, so it only took a few minutes to make the decision to click the Buy it Now button and PayPal over the funds. At £399.99GBP + £19.99GBP shipping (~ $828USD) it was a gamble, but potentially a good deal considering previously reported rumors that the 9000 could carry an MSRP in the $900-$1,000 range. Worst case scenario if things went south I’d eat KD for a month and have a good story to tell.

As for these particular BlackBerry 9000s, the image above says it all. 100% the real deal. It was delivered to my house yesterday afternoon and I’ve been playing with my eBay-purchased toy ever since. You’ll want to keep it locked to CrackBerry.com. I was planning on writing up one super review, but there's simply WAY too much info to put into one post. Part I (this post) will cover the unboxing and initial impressions/comparisons and after getting a few more hours facetime with the device Part II will get into the device features and OS4.6. I'll follow that up with an in-depth video walk through and we are also going to record a Special Edition BlackBerry 9000 podcast. Craig and I will record the show Friday evening, so if the posts and video leave you with any unanswered questions be sure to call them in to our Podcast Hotline at 1-866-904-5772 ext. 222 and we will answer them on the show. My fridge is stocked with Red Bull, I have a BlackBerry 9000 in hand and I don't plan on sleeping until every feature has been tested and menu option explored. Let the FUN begin!

Unboxing the BlackBerry 9000

I made the eBay purchase on April 27th and it arrived a week later. The seller didn’t offer any alternative shipping options so I was stuck with 5 Business Day International delivery. The last couple of days I was beginning to think my BlackBerry 9000 would wind up meeting the same fate as did the O2 8300 Curve I had tried to buy from the UK when it wasn’t yet available from AT&T. Apparently it left Europe but got lost in transit and never made it to Canada. I like to think it’s lying at the bottom of the ocean, waiting to be discovered by a worthy individual. That image is more pleasant than the unfortunate truth (thief!).

The 9000 arrived in a well wrapped package that contained an even better well-wrapped package. No fancy BlackBerry box, but inside were the goods that mattered:

* Wall charger (European connector – thanks, but no help to me!)
* USB cable
* Black rubber skin case – unbranded and stinky (the whole box smelled like rubber)
* Battery
* & last but not least, one BLACKBERRY 9000 Smartphone

Once unpacked, I pulled the back cover off the device (you push in the button at the bottom and the entire back side of the phone essentially comes off) and inserted the battery. Now for the moment of truth. After a few seconds the red LED lit up (blindingly bright LED light I might add) and a few seconds later the display lit up and from there the 9000 took a leisurely 1m49s to boot up.

BlackBerrys always take a long time too start up – it’s a smartphone law of nature - but I thought maybe the 9000’s mighty processor would cut down on that time. And it did, but not by much. I conducted a quick boot-up race with my BlackBerry 8320 Curve clocking in at 1m59s and BlackBerry 8830 at 2m13s. There’s a good chance the 9000 will be snappier come its full commercial release, as I’m sure this pre-production 9000 is running a lot of “diagnostic stuff” in the background. Regardless, boot up time really isn’t an issue, as unlike so many other smartphones

On the initial loading sequence a warning message came up (I haven’t been able to get it to pop up again) that contained a bunch of legalese. I clicked OK to the message before reading any of it. What I don't know can't hurt me right? I’m thinking maybe the eBay Seller had the same thought process – is it breaking the rules if you never see the message?!

Initial Impressions Surprises

From the images I had previously seen online of the BlackBerry 9000, I already had a good idea of what to expect when my package arrived in the mail. Since the original leaked photos of the BlackBerry 9000 emerged, I have remained adamant about reserving my final judgment on the 9000 until I actually got to lay my hands on the device. That said, my initial impressions were not observations, rather, the details which immediately caught me by surprise:

Surprise # 1 - the metallic band around the perimeter of the phone is not metal. Based on the photos I had seen to date, I just assumed it was metal. But plastic she be! At least on this particular phone. Think back to the most recent post on BlackBerry 9000 Final Specs and you’ll remember the hokey line that read “High quality material, high-end finish”. Maybe that means the final-spec 9000 will ship with a metal band, though I doubt it. To be honest, plastic trim is probably better - it saves on weight and is not as cold to the touch.

Surprise # 2 – keyboard seems pretty good! I’ve never been a fan of typing on the 8800 series, preferring the small keys with spaces between approach offered by the 8700 and Curve series. But I only had to thumb the keys for a few seconds while the phone was still booting up to realize I could quickly get used to the 9000’s keyboard. Maybe this is just me being overly enthusiastic about a new device (and never fully giving the 8800 a chance before as I had the Curve), but I think maybe the very slight changes to the 9000's buttons (compared to the 88xx’s keyboard) have made a big difference.

Surprise # 3 – Screw waiting for OS4.5, OS4.6 is WHERE IT IS AT! They say looks don’t matter, but when it comes to your mobile companion that’s simply not the case. The leaked images of 4.6 have looked good – seeing it in person is SO MUCH BETTER. It’s smooth, it’s fast, it’s pretty. We’ll talk a lot more about 4.6 in Part II.

Surprise #4 – the display is AWESOME. I knew it would be an improved display, but I wasn’t expecting it to be as bright and crisp as it is. The 480 by 320 HVDA Color LCD delivers. For the 88xx, Curve and Pearl users reading this who shunned the notion of upgrading to the 9000 when it comes out, let me just say this display alone will make you want to reconsider.

Surprise #5 – 3G logo?! Seeing the 3G logo on a BlackBerry for the first time…now that’s just special. It nearly brought a tear to my eye.

At this point I realized I did not have my SIM card yet installed in the 9000. I rebooted and to my relief quickly discovered my BlackBerry 9000 was in fact completely and fully usable (I had a feeling that since the eBay auction was pulled maybe the device would be remotely locked out somehow). With SIM card installed,the device Registered on the Rogers Network. I logged into my BIS account online where it detected the new PIN and asked me if I wanted to switch to this device. I did, sent the Service Books and was up and running. Last thing left to do was sync my contacts over (yup, BlackBerry Desktop Manager 4.3 seemed to work fine for me with the 9000) and insert my Media Card into the externally accessible slot. The BlackBerry 9000 is officially now my daily driver!

Form Factor & Comparison

The BlackBerry 9000 has a familiar form factor. Within the BlackBerry family, I’d argue it most closely resembles the BlackBerry 8800 Series – both in terms of physical dimensions and general appearance, with the 9000 delivering an overall sleeker and more modern package. Outside of the BlackBerry family, while the “chrome” band provides an iPhone-esque appearance, I think the 9000 more closely resembles other recent entrants into the smartphone arena, such as the Motorola Q9H.

The BlackBerry 9000 features a full-QWERTY keyboard that is similar to that of the 8800 Series, standard issue trackball, and oversized central navigation/phone buttons which are smooth, look great and seem pretty easy to locate and press. Around the perimeter of the device the 9000 features left and right side convenience keys, volume controls and mute/standby button. Generally speaking, the phone feels solidly built, deceptively light for its size (from looking at photos I expected it to be heavy, and it's not!) and you can just tell RIM put great care into the overall visual package. Between holding the 9000 in my hand, and seeing the recently leaked images of the BlackBerry KickStart, I think its safe to say the days of a function before fashion are gone for RIM.

Unlike its other full-QWERTY BlackBerry siblings, the 9000 features an externally accessible microSD port which should be able to handle BIG Media cards. On the bottom left/right corners of the 9000 are two “indented silver buttons” – after a few minutes of pondering it dawned on me that these are not buttons, but are most likely charging leads (typically gold-colored on other BlackBerry models) for a to-be-released at a later date BlackBerry Desktop charger. The 9000 also receives the 3.5mm headphone jack.

Compared to the BlackBerry the 88xx, the 9000 is longer, appears to be a bit wider (though when you line them up they are the same) and is maybe a little thicker. But when it comes to holding the 9000 in the hand, compared to the 8800 it feels much thinner. Unlike the 8800’s straight sidewalls (think ‘Brick’), the BlackBerry 9000’s battery casing is 'set into the phone', reducing the bottom half of the device’s width, making it feel extremely thin when held in the hand. If you are currently a BlackBerry 88xx user, you will have no trouble transitioning over to the 9000.

The transition from a BlackBerry Curve to a BlackBerry 9000 may require more of an adjustment period for longtime users. RIM really got things right with the Curve. It’s small, lightweight, fits comfortably in the hand and is easy to type on. In comparison, the 9000 is quite a bit wider (I think that’s my only form factor gripe - it throws my grip slightly out of the totally "natural" feeling) and is a bit heavier - about 30 grams heavier than the 8320 according to my kitchen scale.

I’ll leave the BlackBerry Pearl out of the comparison, as that’s a completely different form factor altogether, but push come to shove while the Curve gets a slight edge for feeling good in the palm of the hand, the 9000 really does not give up that much to it. After using the 9000 for only a few hours, it's beginning to feel quite natural. And for that little bit the 9000 does give up in terms of feel, when it comes to hardware and features it seems the 9000 will leaves every other BlackBerry made to date in the dust.

Crackberry, the BlackBerry fan site, bought a BlackBerry 9000 off of eBay for $828 and reviewed it. Why's this notable? Because the phone doesn't go on sale until July or August. This fact doesn't stop them from throwing lots of praise on the phone now, however, saying that the "9000 will leaves [sic] every other BlackBerry made to date in the dust."

The 9000 still takes a long time to start up—Crackberry says the software should be updated before launch and that might speed it up a bit—but the keyboard is nice and OS 4.6 is also "smooth", "fast" and "pretty." The display is "bright and crisp", and 3G is definitely welcome. If you even have the smallest interest in BlackBerry, this is a phone to consider

RIM said "hello" to the iPhone this morning when it introduced the long-anticipated BlackBerry 9000, also known as the BlackBerry Bold. Aside from its dashing good looks, the Bold has tweaks under the hood that not only improve upon past BlackBerry offerings, but ensure that it stays a step ahead of the competition. For now, anyway.

The Bold is RIM's first BlackBerry to support tri-band HSDPA (3G) networks, which complements its built-in WiFi, Bluetooth, and GPS. The half-VGA screen features 480x320 resolution, which is twice the resolution of the most recent BlackBerry Curve. The Bold, of course, continues with RIM's commitment to the "real" QWERTY keyboard along with a trackball located just under the screen. The built-in 2MP camera has video recording capabilities, built-in camera flash that is common on BlackBerry devices, and 5x digital zoom.

Software-wise, the company revamped its menu icons to look a little more cutting edge, and the phone also boasts "desktop-style web pages." Users can choose to navigate through websites either with the full, desktop-style HTML pages or mobile-formatted versions. RIM also says that it has enhanced the Bold's media player to play video smoothly in fullscreen mode and manage a user's full music collection.

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that RIM has taken a few design tips from the iPhone this time around. The Bold's all-black enclosure with a chrome border, combined with the high-contrast screen make it indeed a very, er, bold-looking new BlackBerry. Physically, the resemblance is striking:

Of course, the iPhone currently lacks many of the features that the Bold has—namely 3G capabilities, integrated GPS, Bluetooth that actually works with something besides a Bluetooth headset, video recording capabilities, and camera zoom. However, many of these features are expected to be announced soon at WWDC for the next-gen iPhone. At the very least, a 3G iPhone is all but guaranteed, and GPS is widely-rumored to be included. And, of course, the iPhone already offers desktop-style web browsing in addition to a giant multi-touch screen that the Bold doesn't have.

On its own, however, the Bold is still a very attractive option for those in business who are married to things like the BlackBerry's handling of corporate e-mail and the non-touchscreen keyboard that many BlackBerry enthusiasts still love. On the flip side, Apple said at its SDK Roadmap event in February that the iPhone 2.0 software will introduce "real" Exchange support, push e-mail, and other enterprise features that it currently lacks, possibly bringing it up to speed with the BlackBerry in that regard.

Unfortunately for RIM, the Bold is not yet commercially available. The company says that it will be widely available this summer, and told CNet that it expects the price to be somewhere around $300-400. If it were available today, RIM might be able to capture more sales than it will after the next-gen iPhone is released. By then (whenever that may be), the two may be roughly on par in terms of features once again.

As stylish as it is powerful, the BlackBerry® 8800 smartphone is designed to let you do your best work from wherever you choose. It gives you phone, email, organizer, web browsing and instant messaging. And then it goes a step further, providing GPS for enhanced access to location-based applications and services, including the pre-loaded BlackBerry® Maps application. A media player for your video clips and music. Expandable memory to ensure you’ve got the room you need for your media files. And a high-capacity battery to allow you to make the most of it all.

Sleek and performance-driven, it’s the stylish way to get things done.

Earlier this month, we took a look at one of the newest phones in Blackberry's line up - the Pearl. This was one for the consumers - a Blackberry that came in a sleek, candy bar form factor, had a two-letters-per-key SureType keyboard and featured easy setup for web-based email, such as Google Mail.

The compadre to the 8100 Pearl is the new 8800. It has the same design stylings as the Pearl - the glossy piano black, the metal accents - but resembles the Blackberries of old far closer. It's the latest device for businesses, and its got a few tricks up its sleeve. But can it dethrone the 8700 as king of the pocket email devices?

Let's compare the new 8800 to the previous generation 8700. What's different? Well, the form factor has altered. The screen is still the same resolution - 320 x 240, the same as most Windows Smartphones - but the physical dimensions are a little smaller, making for a slightly crisper image. The smaller screen is one of the things that goes into making the 8800 significantly thinner than the previous gen, with a notable difference in thickness between the two (the 8800 is 14mm thick, the 8700 is 19.5mm). However, partly to ensure that all the electronics gubbins get squeezed in, the 8800 is slightly longer (114mm v 110mm), making it look more extruded compared to the chunky-monkey 8700.

Blackberry business devices have traditionally lacked cameras, since photo taking in a corporate environment is often a big no-no, for privacy and legal reasons. The 8800 is no different here, which is one of the major functional differences between it and the 8100, which was one of the first 'berries to have a camera. However, there is some big-time added functionality - GPS. Yes, you can now mount your phone on your dashboard and get driving directions from it, thanks to the included Blackberry Maps application.

Like the 8100 Pearl, the 8800 is also being pushed as a consumer and small business device, so the phone includes functionality for checking web-based email - either directly via IMAP/POP, or through a web-based forwarder to push mail to your provided @blackberry.com address. Traditional Blackberry users will find emails easier to answer on the 8800 than on the Pearl, thanks to the fact that this version reverts back to the full-size keyboard that has defined the device across its lifetime.

Finally, the 8800 borrows the eponymous 'Pearl' from the 8100, replacing the old-school scroll wheel on the side of the device with a roller wheel in the middle.

HP has done its homework. The 912c's pragmatic design is far from revolutionary, but the company has been smart enough to pinch a few good ideas from its competition. In addition to the standard menu navigation keys, there is an OK button used to close active windows, common to Palm smartphones, and on the right side of the handset HP has included a jogwheel reminiscent of the last generation of BlackBerrys. Both of these elements are simple inclusions but certainly make for faster navigation.

The 912c's dimensions (114mm tall, 54mm wide and 15mm deep) seems no bigger than other Windows Mobile (WM) devices we've seen, but its 154g weight is noticeably heavier, due in part to its enormous battery. The 912c also features a reasonably high spec camera compared to most WM smartphones; a 3-megapixel shooter with an LED flash and auto-focus.

The iPAQ 912c makes use of a full QWERTY keyboard for speedy text entry, similar to most other smartphones in the market. The keyboard is comprised of four rows of raised rounded keys. Raising the keys does give each button some definition, but overall we found this keypad hard to navigate at top speed, with two thumbs typing being next to impossible.

Above the QWERTY keyboard the 912c features a 2.4-inch colour TFT touchscreen display. We found that we didn't use the touchscreen much, the menus were often faster to navigate using the five-way nav button, but we do like to have the option to slap at the screen open to us, plus the 912c comes with an excellent telescopic stylus. We don't recommend relying on this display outside under natural light. While the screens on most phones lose clarity under sunlight, the 912c's display becomes completely unreadable.

Features
HP has employed Windows Mobile 6.1 professional on this latest iPAQ. Browsing through the iPAQ program folder is similar to browsing through the same folder on Palm's Treo Pro, with a few notable exceptions. HP has included several self-branded applications including the HP Photosmart Mobile used to view and modify photos taken with the phone's camera, with the ability to send the photos to a compatible printer via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth.

Following suit with most of its competitors HP has included all major connectivity features. Tri-band UMTS reception with HSDPA for fast Web access, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and A-GPS. Of course, just as important as the hardware is, the necessary software is where the iPAQ is lacking somewhat. Similar to the Palm Treo Pro we reviewed recently, the 912c lacks a dedicated navigation solution, rendering the A-GPS hardware almost entirely useless. HP has pre-installed Google Maps which will work with the built-in GPS, but it won't offer any sort of turn-by-turn voice-guided navigation.

Performance
Ladies and gentleman, welcome to the middle of the road. The HP iPAQ 912c fits neatly between the best performing smartphone we've reviewed and some of the worst. Its 412MHz ARM processor and 128MB RAM handle most basic tasks well, but lag spikes are evident, for example, opening the contacts menu, and navigating through the various phone settings. Once we had opened several applications we started to see the 912c struggle.

The most confusing part of reviewing the iPAQ 912c has been trying to ascertain its average battery life. Often this is a simple process, most phones show consistent battery cycles; however, the iPAQ has been considerably different. Firstly its 1940mAh battery capacity is enormous, most smartphone pack batteries around the 1200mAh mark, but even still we saw the battery drain in around 20 hours with extremely light use on the first and second day.

When we observed the phone closer we discovered that it was inexplicably bringing itself out of standby, powering the screen and seemingly performing a task in the background although we couldn't see what task this was. At times the iPAQ would chew through 10 per cent of the battery's charge in a single hour on standby. No sooner had we pinpointed the issue that it stopped, the third day the battery life was exponentially better and the device seemed to stop turning itself on and off. This seems to suggest a software instability rather than a dodgy battery, and it might be something worth keeping an eye on if you choose the iPAQ 912c to do your business.

The rest of our tests found garnered unremarkable results. The HSDPA hardware works well and Web browsing using the Internet Explorer browser was fine, but the touchscreen controls are far from the most intuitive. Making and receiving calls with the iPAQ, we found the speaker to be audible but quieter than we'd have liked at full volume.

Overall
Our problems with the battery have sullied an otherwise average smartphone experience, but at least it made testing the iPAQ 912c somewhat interesting. Like its average performance the 912c's RRP of AU$799 is halfway between the cheapest Windows Mobile devices, like the ASUS M530W at AU$650 and the AU$1,000 price tag on higher end models like the HTC Touch Diamond. As a bog-standard Windows Mobile device we'd recommend the 912c for business users, just be sure to keep an eye on that pesky battery life.

The Nokia N85 includes N-Gage gaming with 10 pre-loaded games and the whole gaming experience enhanced through the amazing OLED display and dedicated gaming keys that light up when in gaming mode. The Nokia N85 also comes with superb Hi-Fi quality sound and you can save up to 30 hours of music via the 8GB memory card.

The Nokia N85 comes with a superb 5 megapixel camera that incorporates Carl Zeiss optics, dual LED flash, autofocus and video capture, through its high-speed connectivity all images can also be shared in an instant. Another great feature is the Nokia Download! application which lets you pick and choose your favourite applications in making your Nokia N85 bespoke to your own needs.

Nokia N85 multimedia phone : Nokia unveiled the Nokia N85, the latest Nokia Nseries multimedia cell phone made to set new standards for mobile entertainment, gaming and sharing. Along with an eye-catching 2.6" OLED screen and smooth, sleek finish, the Nokia N85 cell phone redefines the mobile experience. It boasts Nokia NGage gaming, music with in-built FM transmitter, digital camera with Carl Zeiss optics and geotagging capabilities, three month integrated license for turn-by-turn voice navigation and high-speed internet connectivity, all in one mobile device. A 5 megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss optics and bright dual LED flash captures clear, sharp images as well as DVD-quality videos at 30 frames per second.

Nokia N85 mobile phone
Combined with A-GPS it is possible to geotag favorite photos to see where each picture was taken using the Nokia Maps phone application or online sites such as Share on Ovi or Flickr. With a strong lineup of multimedia features, the Nokia N85 is taking the world of mobile convergence to the next level. Gaming, photos, navigation and music blend together with the newest Ovi and third party services via 3.5G HSDPA and Wi-Fi connectivity to make discovering and sharing experiences on your N85 Nokia phone quick and seamless.

Mobile gaming phone
The Nokia N85 cell phone is pre-loaded with at least 10 made-for-mobile N-Gage gaming titles that jump off of the screen thanks to the dazzling OLED display and a voucher to activate one full game license. Dedicated gaming keys light up when the device is in landscape gaming mode to further enhance the action-packed experience. "The Nokia N85 multimedia cell phone was created to be more than the sum of its parts, offering a complete mobile entertainment package designed for connecting, sharing and discovering," said Juha-Pekka Sipponen, Director, Nokia Nseries.

Nokia mobile phone memory
Every Nokia N85 phone comes with an 8 GB microSD flash memory card, up to 30 hours of music playback time and its high-fidelity sound means favorite tracks can be enjoyed virtually anywhere. Build a personal music collection from the millions of tracks and playlists available from the Nokia Music Store or other online music vendors, or synchronize PC and mobile music libraries via USB cable. Alternatively, consumers can enjoy RDS radio or a wide selection of stations via the internet. The 3.5 mm audio jack makes connecting a top-quality headset simple and an in-built FM transmitter lets the Nokia N85 music phone play wirelessly through a car or home stereo to really crank up the sound.

Nokia N85 price & availability
While it comes out of the box with a multitude of powerful functionality, the pre-loaded Nokia Download! application makes the Nokia N85 mobile phone truly customizable by offering a wide range of bespoke content. This includes an outstanding selection of world-class branded entertainment content, the latest in mobile gaming and dynamic applications so users can really make their device their own. The Nokia N85 phone is expected to begin shipping in October 2008 with an estimated retail price of EUR 450, before taxes and subsidies.

This is a pretty simple deal: buy a Nokia N85 from somewhere*, complete an order form, include your receipt and phone box barcode, and get a $50 Visa Prepaid card.

*Some fine print: the rebate form does not state that you have to purchase the N85 from NokiaUSA, although it does mention that refurbished models do not qualify for the $50 back. Another question is whether the N85 needs to be the NAM (North American) version of just any ‘ol N85 - I don’t know, since the rebate form doesn’t specifically mention the NAM version. Finally, your purchase has to be made from March 9 to April 30, 2009.

Either way, if you were looking to purchase an N85 in the near future, a purchase that I heartily recommend, at least get yourself $50 bucks out of it.

And a Nokia N85 Deal For the Initiated

The fun doesn’t end there! Adorama via Buy.com is selling the N85 for $349.99. Throw in some MSN Live.com Cashback (1% I believe in this case), and you’re looking at $296 after your $50 Prepaid Visa card. Beats the NokiaUSA.com price of $449. Not too shabby!