Samsung i320 review: Smart goes slim

Phonebook and calls

Samsung i320 will excite you with provided stand-by and smooth phonebook search. When the phone is on stand-by, you only need to start typing the name of the desired contact. The phone reacts lightning fast and runs filtering immediately. To start dialing, press the green receiver key. Should you dial a new, unknown number, use the silver and number keys. Samsung i320 will start filtering existing contacts anyway, but at the same time it will also display the entire phone number you have entered.

   
Phonebook; dialing; SIM card manager

As memory used by the phonebook is shared, the latter basically disposes of unlimited capacity. Each contact can be assigned 55 fields! I doubt anyone will ever manage to make use of all of them, but having the possibility to do so is delighting. All contacts together with the fields attached to them synchronize with Outlook seamlessly. Speaking about phone functions in particular, I have to confess that in Samsung i320 I miss call filtering by pre-selected profiles - a drawback, of which Windows Mobile has been suffering from the very beginning of its existence. Will Microsoft programmers ever manage to eliminate it?

  
More than 50 fields. Is anyone ever going to fill them all up?

The integrated main speaker is of good-quality except for the bass tones that - according to me - could have been a little bit more expressed. Samsung i320 works smoothly with Bluetooth, which I tested using a Nokia BH-200 earphone. You can also share calls with people around you thanks to the integrated loudspeaker. Incoming calls are alerted by vibration and ringing (standard polyphonic melody or MP3 file).

There is no problem to save a favorite song of yours and consequently use it as an alert of messages or calls. Speaking about MP3, it is quite a pity that Samsung i320's alarm clock does not work with MP3 files as alarm alternatives. Yet, there is a workaround solution: create an event in the calendar, assign it an alert in MP3 format and use it as an alarm.

Messages: email is the king

Text, multimedia and email messages are all covered by the application Inbox. Automatic synchronization of emails from Outlook as well as the creation of several separate email accounts is of course available. Samsung i320 is compatible with POP3 and IMAP protocols, including their secured versions. As usual, the email client provides automatic check of the mailbox in pre-set time intervals.

   
Applications for text, multimedia and email messages

Text messages are pretty standard. Selection of multiple addressees and typing longer messages are both available. As I mentioned above, the fact that the memory used for saving messages is shared, the phone is able to store hundreds of sent and received messages.

 
Creating a multimedia message

The MMS editor is a far more interesting application. Besides text and pictures it also permits you to insert into a MMS a voice note, a video, a favorite item from the Internet browser, a contact, and a reminder. It is fun, but make sure you arm yourself with patience if you need to set up data transfer settings.

Practical application of data transfers

Samsung i320 offers GPRS and EDGE data transfers, both in Class 10. Both serve well email transfers, communication via favorite messenger applications, Internet browsing, general file transfers via FTP, etc. In other words, there are plenty of fully competitive alternatives available compared to the applications offered by a standard PC.

   
Internet pages viewed on Samsung i320'display

Windows Mobile in its Smartphone version features a relatively good Internet Explorer. It opens graphic web pages and manages pretty successfully to redistribute information into one column. It is here, working with the Internet browser, where I most miss the touchpad display available in classic communicators. Samsung i320's Internet Explorer also opens WAP pages. Despite that, the manufacturer has additionally installed a special WAP browser - a decision I like a lot, as browsing WAP pages with Internet Explorer sometimes implies an unnecessary switch to respective Internet versions.

Samsung also offers a basic MSN Messenger. Should you decide not to make use of this chat application, feel free to install a multi-protocol application instead. Samsung i320's keypad is comfortable enough to make instant messaging quite a pleasant activity. What's more, it is cheaper than calling.

Any other alternatives for data transfers are related to additionally available applications, like RSS readers, FTP clients, applications for watching or listening to streaming media etc.