Plenty of features and style to boot; we get to grips with Samsung's 3G-enabled SGH-Z540 slim clamshell.
Review summary of the Samsung SGH-Z540:
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 The Samsung SGH-Z540 comes with a laundry list of features, but with the exception of high marks in the departments of calling and messaging doesn't make much of an impression - if one disregards the stylish, slim design and the superb screen, that is. It also does well as a laptop sidekick, but mind the battery life; this one's more for show than for use, regardless of what it's used for. Release: July 2006. Price: $425.
Pros:
Cons:
| Poor |
Mediocre |
74%
GOOD |
Very good |
Excellent |
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Full review of the Samsung SGH-Z540:
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So thin you can use it to slice and dice in a pinch, samsung's SGH-Z540 hits the increasingly crowded market for slim clamshells with copious features and good looks, taking on motorola's RAZR V3x, the benq-siemens EF81 and more.
Calling - Very good
Excellent audio quality combines with good signal reception and a contacts library with the ability to store a good amount of information for enjoyable calling with the SGH-Z540. Solid bluetooth support further improves matters, while contacts are easily created, looked up and synchronized with a PC.
Still, there are drawbacks; we've seen better quality in video calls, the speakerphone is a bit so-so, voice dialing is entirely absent, and - perhaps most annoyingly - there's no vibrating alert.
Messaging - Very good
A texter's wet dream due to its spacious and backlit keypad, the SGH-Z540 handles SMS, MMS and e-mail messages with ease. Of particular note are the large letters, which - although only 130 or so of them fit on-screen - combine with the superb screen to render typing a joy for those who can't stand squinting at their handsets.
A good amount of storage unfortunately goes unexploited by the inability to archive messages in folders, but at least users can easily back up and synchronize messages with the bundled usb cable and software. the lack of a vibrating alert, however, is a bit of a disappointment.
Camera - Good
A bit shy of the resolution of its closest competitors, the 1.3 Megapixel camera of the SGH-Z540 still takes reasonably good photos. However, it's clear from the interface and options available that anything beyond the lightest of use would result in severe frustration - shutterbugs should looks elsewhere.
As for video, suffice to say this handset is every bit as crappy as the vast majority of its competition.
Music - Mediocre
Mostly a forgettable experience, the SGH-Z540's music player stores in the range of 40 MP3s in onboard memory, is bereft of memory expansion and produces bass-less audio through its bundled set of earphones.
Granted, file transfers are snappy and the combination of an external display and music controls quite handy, but these aspects are merely window dressing on a poor performance.
The most interesting feature is in fact the ability to exchange MP3 files with friends using bluetooth from within the player itself - quite ingenious, if you ask us.
Laptop sidekick - Very good
Equipped as it is with 3G and good signal reception, laptop users can easily get online either via Bluetooth or a bundled USB cable, catering to both wire-weary users and those who wish to maximize their download speeds going the wired route.
Multimedia - Mediocre
Light on mobile content options, the SGH-Z540 offers a decent browser which has no problems loading mobile optimized pages such as Google's personalized mobile home page. It also managed to load the New York Times' front page, but despite the exceptionally clear high-resolution screen is something of a chore to use with either kind of page due to the lack of simple page up/down functionality.
A couple of reasonably appalling games are also present; fortunately, users can add their own courtesy of the phone's java support.
Battery life - Mediocre
With a mere 1 hour and 45 minutes of talk time and 6 days of standby, it's clear samsung has sacrificed battery life on the altar of slimness. Furthermore, 6 hours of music is also paltry at best, and causes the final nail in the coffin for use of the SGH-Z540 as an MP3 player replacement.
Price and availability
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