Samsung S5260 Star II preview: First look

Introduction

A sequel to a bestseller, the Samsung S5260 Star II has good genes and a lot to live up to. Building on a successful recipe is a shortcut to success and that’s exactly what Samsung have done with the Star follow-up.

Samsung S5260 Star II official photos

The latest TouchWiz interface puts users in control of the Samsung S5260 Star II. It’s the feature phone variety of TouchWiz rather than the Bada OS but, with added multitasking and improved homescreen, Bada won’t be badly missed.

There are always ups and downs to buying a phone in this class – here’s the list of pros and cons for the Samsung S5260 Star II.

Samsung S5260 Star II at a glance:

• General: GSM 850/900/1800/1900 MHz, GPRS/EDGE class 12
• Form factor: Touchscreen bar phone
• Dimensions: 107.4 x 54.0 x 12.5 mm, 93.9 g
• Display: 3" capacitive TFT touchscreen, WQVGA resolution (240 x 400 pixels)
• Platform: Latest TouchWiz UI with multitasking
• Memory: 30MB user available storage, hot-swappable microSD card slot (up to 16GB)
• Camera: 3 megapixel fixed focus camera with smile detection, QVGA video recording
• Connectivity: Wi-Fi b/g/n; Bluetooth 2.1 (A2DP); standard microUSB port; 3.5mm audio jack
• Misc: FM radio with RDS; accelerometer sensor; Facebook and Twitter integration; DNSe sound enhancement; Find Music recognition service

The lack of 3G connectivity isn’t a surprise on the Star II – Samsung wanted it to be as affordable as possible. The lack of multitouch though is a disappointment – it’s one of the major points of a capacitive screen. We should note perhaps that the unit we tested wasn’t completely finalized.

Samsung S5260 live shots

Still, the basic package is good and the new software ticking inside the S5260 Star II can make all the difference. Wi-Fi will make up for the lack of 3G – after all, it’s not common to buy an affordable phone and use it with an unlimited data plan.

In the hand, the Samsung S5260 leaves a positive impression. It is well put together and the materials are pleasant to the touch – “affordable” doesn’t feel “cheap” here.

So, will the Samsung S5260 get its own star on the Walk of Fame? Let’s hope our walkthrough of hardware and software will give us a better idea. Step right up...