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The Samsung i330 is one of the standouts emerging from a breed of smartphones that are cropping up to fill the market niche for a single pocket-sized device for dialing and computing. Samsung’s second foray into the handheld market, the i330 runs on the Palm OS platform and replaces the i300 with a slimmer profile, a boost in power, and some additional options.
Sized halfway between a PDA and phone (measuring 4.9 by 2.4 by .7 inches), the i330 is light and slim enough to hold during a marathon phone conversation and has curved, rubberized sides for a comfortable grip. Additionally, the 256-color,160-by-240 graphic LCD screen is large enough to perform computing tasks easily with the included stylus.
Running on the Palm OS 3.5.3, the icon-based layout is familiar, and shows 12 icons (out of 18) at a time. Two central buttons on the lower end of the phone offer manual scrolling up or down through icons and four other buttons take you directly to your memos, to-do list, address book, and calendar. Additional preset icons at the bottom of the screen take you to the main menu, phone book, calculator, and find button. We found the speakerphone function in particular was quite handy, for it let us access PDA functions while continuing our conversation.
Calls made from our home and our car were clear, but the ringer on the i330 was a little bit quiet on its loudest setting and was a bit muffled when the phone rang from a handbag. The voice-activated dialing feature, however, recognized our voice, even with a loud TV blaring in the background, and put our call through immediately. The phone keypad on the i330 is on the touchscreen, and we found that error-free dialing was much more likely with the stylus than with our fingers. However, the i330 does have hot keys so you can dial directly from the phone book without the stylus if you choose. Additional icons at the bottom of the phone screen access a list of the last 10 outgoing calls, turn on the mute button, activate speed dial, and control the keyguard.
The i330 comes with a fast 66 mHz Dragonball processor designed to get the most out of CDMA 1XRTT wireless networks, allowing an average speed of 144 kbps for data transfer. The large screen made it a pleasure to download Web content – everything from news sites to flight information.
The i330 comes with a cradle that dually works for charging the smartphone and synchronizing its data with Microsoft Outlook on a desktop computer. Loaded with 16 MB of RAM, the phone has enough memory to hold data for the average user. Other available features for the i330 include a digital camera and a keyboard for enhancing the phone’s capabilities.
Overall, we recommend this phone to business users who are looking for a PDA/phone unit in a smaller size than usual but that still allows for loads of usability. --Cristina Vaamonde
Pros:
- Offers complete business solution
- Sized for comfortable phone or PDA use
- Intuitive Palm OS platform
- Additional accessories include digital camera, keyboard
Cons:
- Touchscreen a tad sticky at times
- Quiet ringer
How We Tested Battery Talk/Standby Time
When reading our reviews, you should view the test results of mobile-phone battery talk time and standby time as relative information only. Many variables, including carrier signal strength at your location, signal consistency (including incoming and outgoing calls), display and ringer settings, and battery charging methods and history, will affect performance. When handset manufacturers and mobile phone carriers list talk-time and standby-time ratings, they usually include disclaimers about variable performance and often refer to the times they publish as maximum times. Some quote expected battery life ranges, and in this case you're probably safe to assume you'll experience at least the minimum rated range. Note that manufacturers of dual-mode digital and analog handsets publish battery-life rates for both digital and analog modes, as analog mode consumes much more power than digital mode.
Our Tests: We tested digital-mode talk and standby times with each phone. Prior to each test, we fully charged the phone's battery according to the manufacturer's directions. To test digital-phone talk time, we turned the phone on, established a digital carrier signal, dialed a number in our test lab, and, when the call rang through, took the receiving phone's handset off the hook. When all went well, we didn't do anything else except record the time when the phone died. In a couple of cases, the phones lost the signal and dropped the calls. If we were right there and could redial, we did so immediately and continued running the test. Otherwise, we halted the test, recharged the battery, and started the test over. Assuming consistent carrier-signal strength, this test should represent best-case talk time. And it's worth noting that several phones' talk-time performance significantly exceeded the manufacturers' ratings.
To test digital-phone standby time, we turned the phone on, established a carrier signal, and left the phone in standby mode. We checked the phone every few hours (for what was often days on end) until the phone finally cut out. Since no outgoing or incoming calls occurred during testing and because the phone was not moved, this method should represent best-case standby time, again assuming consistent carrier signal strength.
PCS Phone Samsung I330 (Sprint) Reviews
PCS Phone Samsung I330 (Sprint) Reviews
| 20 of 20 people found the following review helpful  Great Device with a few drawbacks, By This review is from: PCS Phone Samsung I330 (Sprint) (Wireless Phone) I recently purchased an i330 for my wife and have been putting it through its paces for the last week. I've owned dozens of PDAs and mobile phones, and currently use a T-Mobile SideKick (a/k/a Danger HipTop) as my personal mobile phone. I use the Sidekick as a point of reference for my review of the i330.First, here's what I like about the i330: * Familiar OS: Despite its relative age, the Palm OS still has of the fastest, most efficient user interfaces of any PDA. The folks at Samsung have done a good job integrating the phone functionality into the Palm OS. * Sleek Form Factor: The shape, size, and weight of the i330 feel great. It's a nice compromise between portability and screen size. The heft lends a nice, dense feel to the phone, and the construction is top-rate. This thing could have been built by Apple. * Button Layout: The buttons are well placed and function intuitively. * Application Availability: You can download and install thousands of different applications... Read more 10 of 11 people found the following review helpful  Sublime Smart Phone, By This review is from: PCS Phone Samsung I330 (Sprint) (Wireless Phone) The first thing you need to know about the i330 is that it is more svelte than it looks in pictures. This is a slender, beautiful machine, an impression I did not get from the photos I've seen in various places on the net.The second thing you need to know is that if you're a mac user, you're going to need the Missing Sync for Samsung. Search for it on Google. Otherwise, you'll have no Hot Sync, and thus, no Mojo. Also one should note that the connection seems a bit on the slow time during Hot Sync. Perhaps due to some manner of translation? That said, I'd reccomend the phone. A color screen is not essential in life, but it sure is nice. It's hard to put my finger on what the advantage is, but it certainly feels better when in use. And games, of course, are vastly improved. I've used a lot of Palms: a Palm IIIe, a Handspring Visor, a Palm M105 (gift), and a Sony Clié SJ20. All are worthy devices, but the Samsung takes the cake. Smart Phones have come a long way since the... Read more 5 of 5 people found the following review helpful Best PDA-phone available, By This review is from: PCS Phone Samsung I330 (Sprint) (Wireless Phone) Early this year, I took the plunge and purchased the Samsung I330 PDA/Phone. After researching the various PDA/Phones out there, I came to the conclusion that this was the one I wanted. Overall I'm happy with my decision. Most of the PDA/Phones that I looked at seemed to come up short. Most appeared to be a phone with some PDA functions added as an afterthought or the other way around (one PocketPC/cell phone required a headpiece or you would not be able to place a call). The I330 is a usable PDA and a phone. The LCD is bright and readable, although somewhat dim in direct sunlight. However, there are some deficiencies. You cannot upgrade the version of Palm OS; You cannot download any customized ring tones; The case is awkward and opens up. Also, the hot sync utility sometimes goes CPU-bound and I have to kill it and restart to resync with Outlook. Even with those annoyances, it is great to get rid of my pager, cell phone and personal organizer. The phone quality... Read more |
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