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| SAMSUNG SGH-P300: THIN IS IN! |
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By Annalyn S. Jusay
SAMSUNG's SGH-P300 is a handsome phone which you would definitely like to have if you disdain lugging around bulky PDAs and would like to possess something that looks different from all the rest. Unique is the word to describe the Samsung SGH-P300 because it is shaped every inch like a calculator. Weighing only 85 g. and with ultra-handy dimensions of 86 x 54 x 8.9 mm, this mobile wonder is perfect for holding in your hands or fitting into your jeans pocket. We can just imagine what a convenient decoy this phone is if you're a student and using cellular phones is banned in your classroom.You can just tell dear teacher you are solving a mathematical equation when in fact you are texting your pals for a planned night-out.
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| The Samsung SGH-P300 | | In this world of clamshells, candy bars and slider phones, a gadget like the Samsung SGH-P300 lets us take a peek at how diverse the designs of our handsets might be in the very near future. Sized like a credit card, this phone is not like any Samsung model you've seen. Not that this is an innovation from the Korean brand. If we recall, this writer also reviewed a calculator -looking, super-thin phone from another company last year. I remember fully well how I fell in love with it at first sight and how it earned raves from my friends who saw it.
Because it's very slim, the SIM card compartment of the Samsung SGH-P300 is not like what's usually found in other phones; I had to attempt inserting my SIM a couple of times to get it right. But when the phone opened, I was impressed with the quality of the 262K color screen which seemed to be more bright and vivid than the usual. The volume button is on the left while the one-touch key for the camera is on the right. The port for the headset and the charger, on the other hand, is on the upper right side, above the camera button.
A close inspection of the Samsung SGH-P300 revealed that even a first-time user of the phone wouldn't have a hard time because of its easy, convenient interface. There is a shortcut for accessing the main menu and the task is made even easier with a four way navigation key in the middle. There is also an MP3 button on the keypad which makes playing your favorite music possible with just one click.
It is a pity that there's no card slot for the Samsung SGH-P300. This means you will have to subsist on the 80MB memory for storing your contacts, photos, videos and music. This is not enough, if you ask me and it's good that the phone can at least accommodate close to 200 short messages.
Texting didn't prove to be a problem, even though the phone was smaller than normal. When writing a message, for example, I was given a variety of options related to the text size, save & send or send only, insert, attach and add animation or melody.You have to be warned though. The "add" option only works on compatible phones, most probably not when you're trying to send something to a cellular model belonging to another brand.
In terms of connectivity, the Samsung SGH-P300 has Bluetooth and USB connector which makes up for the absence of EDGE, 3G and WLAN technologies. There is also a WAP and xHTML browser but we weren't able to try this due to some limitations. People on the move would like the fact that this phone is triband, has fun Java games like Freekick and Bobby Carrot, world time, converter and other add-ons.
The phone has a 1.3 megapixel camera which is also capable of shooting videos and using flash. It was neat that when turned on to "permanent," the flash can double as a flashlight. One can choose from several shooting modes and there also various effects and frames one can choose from when taking or composing your photos. I found out though that it was easier to use the camera from the main menu and just press "OK.". Somehow, the pictures I took were not clear when I used the one-click camera button on the right side.
Sound quality and the clarity of the calls I received on the Samsung SGH-P300 was definitely good. Talk time for this phone is pegged at three hours and as what normally happens, battery life can be short if you are heavy on the usage of the camera, MP3 and voice calls. Overall, we have no major complaints about the P300 even though a friend claimed this is just a "prototype" model (read: not yet geared for mass production). Overall, this Samsung credit card-cum-calculator phone is one gadget you would certainly like to have if you want to be a trendsetter and would like to earn points for having that extra pogi and ganda factor.
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