This multimedia clamshell features Alltel's Celltop menu interface, Bluetooth and a 1.3-megapixel camera, but will you flip for its features or will it leaving you wanting more?
Review summary of the Samsung SCH-U520:
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 The Samsung SCH-U520 is a bulky, boxy phone by Samsung's standards, but is attractively enrobed in a rich chocolate paint. However, the real distinguishing feature is its Celltop technology, which brings widget-like cells to the handset's screen that conveniently provides updated information on news, sports, the weather, your messages and the call log. The rest of the phone wasn't as compelling, with mediocre call quality, spotty reception (though, we were roaming off of Alltel's network) and a lack of conference calling. The clamshell does redeem itself a little with its comfortable, large keypad that makes typing a breeze, but the lack of messaging extras, such as instant messaging was a bit of a disappointment. Release: December 2006. Price: $100.
Pros: Comforatable keypad; Celltop messaging interface is attractive and convenient; loud speakerphone; camera takes decent pictures.
Cons: Mediocre call quality; lacks conference calling and instant messaging; low resolution display; bulky design
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64%
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Full Samsung SCH-U520 Review:
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Design
The Samsung SCH-U520 is a bit of a departure from the manufacturer's wafer-thin handsets. At 0.7 inches thick, the U520 isn't svelte, and compared to the ultra-slim Samsung SGH-M610, it looks and feels plus-sized. The U520 does feature a unique, dark chocolate-hued shell that has a nice metallic sheen to it, even though it's made of plastic. The flip phone also features dedicated music controls on its face, and a bright external and internal display, but the internal screen is pretty low-resolution and suffers a bit from the screendoor effect.
Call Quality - Good
Call quality on the SCH-U520 was just about average, with the occasional bouts of static, and the handset gave a tinny quality to our voices that our pals complained about. However, it's important to note that we were roaming off Alltel's network, since the carrier doesn't offer service to New York City or the surrounding Jersey suburbs. Our signal was often very spotty and would shift, in our office, from one or two bars to full signal. The U520 includes Bluetooth, voice tagging and a speakerphone that was nice and loud, but a little tough to activate as it shares a side button with the camera. However, we were disappointed by the lack of conference calling. The clamshells contact list is simple but features a nice selection of entry fields and supports while-you-type searching. Similar to call quality, talk time on the handset wasn't anything to write home about, coming in at about three hours, which is about 30 minutes shy of the manufacturer's claims.
Messaging - Good
The Samsung SCH-U520 does a decent job at messaging, fitting 111 characters on the screen at once for outgoing messages and 108 characters for incoming messages, but it's still short of the standard 160 character text message. Typing on the flip phone's keypad was quite comfortable despite the flat shape of the keys. However, the buttons are nice and large with enough space between them to avoid typos. Messaging incorporates the phonebook nicely, with support for while-you-type searching. Still, the lack of instant messaging was disappointing.
Interface design
The Samsung SCH-U520 features a new interface service from Alltel called Celltop, which divides the phone's display into a series of attractive “cells” that provide details about news, weather, sports, your messages and your call log. However, you're only allowed to view two cells at a time, but scrolling through up to 10 cells is easy. This convenient technology was built on the Brew platform and is exclusive to Alltel. Currently, the Samsung SCH-U520 is one of the few phones in Alltel's lineup to support it. Celltop is not an entirely new concept. Helio has its Helio On Top (H.O.T.) service that offers live content feeds to its handset's screens as well (like the Drift). Both services offer similar news, weather and sports updates, but Alltel's Celltop allows you keep track of your calling and messaging and fills the screen, making it easier to read. However, we were annoyed that we had to sign into the service each time we wanted to activate it. Since there is a bit of a wait each time you sign in, we can see Celltop being a nice addition to phones, but not a necessity. While the Celltop application is free, each update of your Celltop info will cost you a minute of airtime, and future cells may cost extra as well.
Odds and ends
Though the U520 is a 3G multimedia phone, we are outside Alltel's coverage area, so we were unable to access Alltel's Axcess EV-DO network while roaming. As a result, we were unable to test its multimedia capabilities, including its MP3 player. However, Alltel's Axcess service offers XM Radio, more than 25 channels of TV, including MobiTV, which is similar to what we've seen on Sprint's Power Vision. We also tested the 1.3-megapixel camera, which took some pretty clear shots with nice color balance and clarity.
Editor's note: The text of this review has been changed to correct an error about Celltop pricing; the application is free, although each update of Celltop's news and info costs a minute of airtime.
Related phones: Handsets on Alltel
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Samsung SCH-U420
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Score: 53% When: September 2006 Worth: $50 - $220 Carrier: Alltel
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The thin-and-light slider arrives with Bluetooth, a VGA camera, impressive calling features, and killer looks. Philip Berne puts the SCH-U420 through its paces.
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