Hong Kong Phooey
10-30-2007, 06:12 AM
The much anticipated Samsung i608 (the 3G blackjack with video call capability) is finally launched in Hong Kong and I got to play with it for a bit today. My first feeling towards the phone, ubber-plastic. The phone have the most awful plastic feel to it (maybe that’s why it’s so light, @ 105g). It is very thin, @ 11.8mm and it fits nicely when tuck into my front shirt pocket. Apart from that real plastic feel, the other major bum factor (trust me, there’s a few) is the what Samsung does so well, and that is not incorporating the industry standard mini USB adapter. Instead, one is stuck with their proprietary USB charging cable and that means you probably need another one if you are planning to have one at home and one in the office and trust me, you need an extra one as reviews on local forum indicated that the i608 is a battery hungry master.
“Battery is really a problem of Samsung, the standard battery can’t last for 2 days if you use if frequently. Yesterday I use it for ~30mins voice call, ~30mins WiFi, 15mins game….then it is down to 50% by 8PM….”
(RingHK.com i608 user forum)
The biggest bum factor regarding the i608 is that when used as a HSDPA (1.8 Mbps) modem connected to the notebook via the USB, the phone would not be charged up like the HTC’s phone (that I think is a major design flaw), imagine how long it would take to drain the i608 when used as a modem.
Well, so much for the bumming factors. During the promotion launch , you’ll get a free Executive Pack which includes a Plantronics Explorer 220 Bluetooth Headset, a Plantronics Designer Case, and a 1GB microSD™ memory card. Still not too bad a deal if you’re really looking for a WM6 smartphone, with a nice keypad and all the freebies. The going price is HK$4,280. For more info and full specification, check out Samsung’s press release here.
For more, please see the post on my blog, http://hongkongphooey.wordpress.com/2007/10/30/my-take-samsung-i608/
Hong Kong Phooey
http://hongkongphooey.wordpress.com
http://asia.cnet.com/blogs/hktechphooey
“Battery is really a problem of Samsung, the standard battery can’t last for 2 days if you use if frequently. Yesterday I use it for ~30mins voice call, ~30mins WiFi, 15mins game….then it is down to 50% by 8PM….”
(RingHK.com i608 user forum)
The biggest bum factor regarding the i608 is that when used as a HSDPA (1.8 Mbps) modem connected to the notebook via the USB, the phone would not be charged up like the HTC’s phone (that I think is a major design flaw), imagine how long it would take to drain the i608 when used as a modem.
Well, so much for the bumming factors. During the promotion launch , you’ll get a free Executive Pack which includes a Plantronics Explorer 220 Bluetooth Headset, a Plantronics Designer Case, and a 1GB microSD™ memory card. Still not too bad a deal if you’re really looking for a WM6 smartphone, with a nice keypad and all the freebies. The going price is HK$4,280. For more info and full specification, check out Samsung’s press release here.
For more, please see the post on my blog, http://hongkongphooey.wordpress.com/2007/10/30/my-take-samsung-i608/
Hong Kong Phooey
http://hongkongphooey.wordpress.com
http://asia.cnet.com/blogs/hktechphooey