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The latest in the Ultra Edition series, the Samsung Ultra Touch was launched recently in Singapore. Once again trying to close the gap on other phones in the industry, the Samsung Ultra Touch tries to give consumers a slim handset that has the capability of touch screen technology. We had to touch one for ourselves and have a go at some of its features. So here it is, all tried and tested.
Likes : Slim, combines both touch screen and alpha-numeric keypads
Dislikes : Short battery life; lack of wi-fi capability; have to remove battery to get to memory card
Look
First look, the Samsung Ultra Touch's design is not too bad. The one that I have with me is matt black with a tinge of maroon colour. Samsung calls it platinum red and it looks rather classy. Despite it being anorexic and slim at 12.7mm, a keypad neatly slides out and offers users the choice of typing on a physical alpha-numeric keypad or on the touch screen . The keypad's buttons are flat to the touch and not curved out not in other phones with real buttons. There is no physical qwerty keypad though unlike the HTC Dream and that is probably why the Samsung Ultra Touch can actually stay so slim.
The case is metallic unlike those plastic ones that other phones have which helps to make the phone lighter. Call buttons and the back buttons sit level to each other. USB cable slots and the camera buttons are located at the side of the phone. Really neat, I must say.
Oh. I just spy an inconvenience. The Ultra Touch's mini SD slot seats at the battery compartment and you will have to power down and remove the battery just to get to it.
Navigation
The navigation is pretty much similar to Samsung handsets and you will still have to drag the widgets out to use on its desktop except for the calendar which can be accessed straight from the widget tool rack. You can download new widgets if you need, something Samsung has improved on. Having touch screen capabilities, you can actually touch and flick left or right to go on to the next or previous sms message, like what you will be able to do with the photos in the gallery.
I get a little lost when using the camera. After taking a photo, I exit through a short cut to view the shot. Once out and in the photo gallery, I couldn't get back in to continue using the camera. With the Samsung UltraTOUCH, users have to use the back key to get back to the previous screen to use the camera again.
Features
Although the navigation could get a little mazy at times, I am always a fan of Samsung phone's camera. The Samsung UltraTOUCH features a 8-megapixel camera with dual power LED flash and Samsung's smile shot mode While in Smile Shot mode, the camera helps you capture more smiles by shooting automatically when your subject laughs and smiles. I have tried it and it actually works, but your subject really needs to get those grins up and hold it there for a second longer.
Picture taken with Samsung UltraTOUCH
The high-quality 30fps@VGA video recording allows users to capture action smoothly, while the groovy music player lets users enjoy their favourite slick tracks anytime, anywhere. Samsung UltraTOUCH is also equipped with GPS capability and HSDPA 7.2 Mbps , offering speedy internet access on the go.
Its touch screen looks understated but the eco-friendly 2.8" AMOLED scratch-resistant full touch screen offers quite bright and vivid colours. The screen is anti-reflective and makes viewing your favourite pictures easy. Samsung has also upgraded the TouchWiz user interface (created using Samsung's very own inhouse operating system) making flicking through photos and surfing the web much better than before. The capacitive touch makes it even more sensitive to your fingers but will not work with a stylus. I could tell the difference when using it and it seems more responsive to the touch than the Samsung Omnia.
The high-quality 30fps@VGA video recording allows users to capture action smoothly, while the groovy music player lets users enjoy their favourite slick tracks.
Other features include GPS for finding your location and Find Music which allows you to record bits of songs that the app will find the names of the song.
Battery life is slightly short at 3 hours of talktime and slightly over eight days on standby.
Surfing the internet
Not to be mistaken for a smartphone, the Samsung UltraTOUCH comes with no wi-fi and the only way to connect to the internet is using your SIM card to connect through the telcos. That will explain the lack of a QWERTY keypad. Surfing the internet, it is nothing compared to doing it on a smartphone. Using it, I had some pages that were too big to squeeze into the browser and zooming in and out is a chore. it is just way too hard to surf the internet with one of these.
What's in the box
Earphones and cables that come with the set. Still no 3.5mm earphones in sight as you can see, although the phones comes with an adaptor.
Nutshell: Not to be mistaken for a smartphone, it is not too bad a buy especially with its 8 mega-pixel camera and touch screen capability in a 12.7mm slim case.
Samsung UltraTOUCH (S8300) (FULL SPECIFICATIONS) >>
RRP: S$838 without contract (available in Platinum Red)
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Comments
tomwest says on 12 Jun 2009 16:11 :
I can see the major weakness is the batt, only last 3 hours talk time is too short for a smart phone..
digimouze says on 07 Jun 2009 02:01 :
Have tried this phone too... and yes, definitely, it is not to be used as a smartphone. Just typing in the URL into the browser alone made me wanna jus quit. But the slimness, lightness & sleek design certainly makes it a phone ladies shld consider.