CELL PHONES
» Coming soon
» Top 15
» Best-rated
» TV: Phones
LAPTOPS
» Coming soon
» Top 15
» Best-rated
» TV: Laptops
CAMERAS
» Coming soon
» Top 15
» Best-rated
» TV: Cameras
» infoSync TV » Review Center
» Special reports » Expert guides
» RSS & Alerts » Ask The Editors
Home / Cell phones
Hands-on with the Samsung SGH-F700 Ultra Smart phoneBy Philip Berne, 18 October 2007
GALLERY
Samsung SGH-F700
Enlarge
Samsung SGH-F700
Enlarge
Samsung SGH-F700
Enlarge
Samsung SGH-F700
Enlarge
Samsung SGH-F700
Enlarge
Samsung SGH-F700
Enlarge
Samsung SGH-F700
Enlarge
Samsung SGH-F700
Enlarge
Samsung SGH-F700
Enlarge
We finally get a hands-on look at Samsung's Ultra Smart flagship phone, the F700. With a touch screen, sliding keypad and a unique interface, does it belong at the head of the class?

The Samsung Ultra Smart SGH-F700 was announced at the beginning of this year, close enough to the iPhone announcement that we were a little suspicious at first. Was this a reactionary announcement, or a real product that had been through a full development cycle. At Samsung's design headquarters in Korea, on an all-expense paid trip, the design team behind the phone assured us that the device is the logical culmination of growing trends: large screens, touch interfaces and QWERTY keypads being just a few of these.

The phone is certainly feature-rich, with a large, 3.2-inch screen, which is only a quarter-inch or so smaller than the iPhone's screen. On that wide, 432 by 240 pixel display, you can watch h.264 video, or take pictures with the 3-megapixel camera. HSDPA networking means that video calling should be an option on Vodafone's network, thanks also to the front-facing camera.

Having played with the phone a bit, we can say that in many good ways, it breaks out of the cell phone mold in the same way that the iPhone did. The touch interface is the deliciously stylish "cross" interface that we also played with on the Armani phone. Basically, the menu is a three by four grid with a band of color each across a row and a column. Where these intersect is where you just tapped your finger, your selection, though the phone's touch screen wasn't quite perfect. The color scheme and the detail on the phone's icons are superb, but, having spent serious time with a graphically powerful touch screen phone, we're a bit disappointed that this flagship didn't take the touch paradigm to its extreme.

We would have liked an interface that followed our finger, and that animated a bit more at our touch. We would have liked some snappier scrolling, and perhaps snappier response all around. Samsung has a winner in the interface design, but we'd like to see them use it as a starting point, and not the final draft.

The phone is much thinner than other QWERTY sliders we've used. It isn't as thin as the iPhone, but it also isn't as thick as one of HTC's QWERTY sliders, like the Mogul on Sprint. Samsung's designers referred to this phone as the "Q-Bowl." Q stood for QWERTY, and the bowl comes from the idea of touching the surface of a bowl of water with your fingertips. It's a nice visual image, and we especially like the tranquil audio effects that accompany actions and gave feedback to our input. Very classy, and clearly very high quality.

Still, something is missing. The phone lacks a "wow" factor, and stands now as a compelling alternative to the iPhone, when it should stand on its own.
Best Multimedia smartphones
Name Score Price Carrier
C
Nokia N95 8GB NAM 85% $650 Unlocked
Nokia N95 80% $530 Unlocked
Apple iPhone 75% $400 AT&T
Helio Ocean 72% $200 Helio
RIM Blackberry Curve 64% $200 AT&T
Nokia N76 60% $500 Unlocked
Motorola Q9m (Verizon Wireless) 58% $250 Verizon Wireless
Nokia N75 55% $200 AT&T
HTC Touch (Sprint) 55% $250 Sprint
HTC Touch 50% $530 Unlocked
Click here to see full and advanced chart »
 
 
RECOMMENDED
Samsung Glyde vs. Apple iPhone vs. LG Voyager
 
HTC adds Diamond to its Touch line
 
Hot new touchscreen phones
TOP STORIES
Top 10 smartphones of the week
 
Top 10 multimedia cell phones of the week
 
New QWERTY phones in stores this week
5 cool phones that are available now
 
New 5-megapixel camera phones that are coming soon
 
Wi-Fi phones that are coming soon
CELL PHONE RESOURCE CENTER
Search & Compare
 
Expert guides
 
Ask the Editors
Cell phones coming in May
 
Best-rated cell phones
 
TV: 10 best cell phones
» Manual comparison
Select up to 4 cell phones side-by-side
» By release
Q4 2007, Q1 2008, Q2 2008, Q3 2008
» Top 15 by carrier
AT&T, Sprint, Verizon Wireless, T-Mobile, Helio
» Top 15 by brand
Apple, HTC, LG, Motorola, Nokia, BlackBerry, Samsung, Sony Ericsson
» Top 15 by platform
Palm OS, Symbian S60, Symbian UIQ, Windows Mobile
» Top 15 by cell phone type
Business smartphones, Multimedia smartphones
Consumer QWERTY phones, Multimedia phones
» By usage type
Mainstream, Calling, TV streaming, More...
NOW IN PHONES
Top 10 smartphones of the week
 
Top 10 multimedia cell phones of the week
 
Samsung Access multimedia phone video review
 
Samsung Access multimedia phone review
 
New QWERTY phones in stores this week
5 cool phones that are available now
Samsung Glyde multimedia phone review
Samsung Glyde multimedia phone video review
Next 25 stories
MUST READ
CELL PHONES
» Coming soon
» Top 15
» Best-rated
LAPTOPS
» Coming soon
» Top 15
» Best-rated
CAMERAS
» Coming soon
» Top 15
» Best-rated
PORTABLE MEDIA
» Coming soon
» Top 15
» Best-rated
INTERNET TABLETS
» Coming soon
» Top 15
» Best-rated
CAR TECH
HDTVs
CAMCORDERS
About us | How to advertise | Feedback | RSS Feeds | | Archive
Copyright 1999-2008 © infoSync World