http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-reviews/default.aspx?utm_source=Rss&utm_medium=CellPhoneReviewsIn-depth expert cell phone reviews on the latest cell phones on the market.(c) 2008, PhoneDog, LLC. All rights reserved.What's Good: Great voice quality; fast 3G data speeds; good GPS system; mobiTV compatibility; sleek, attractive design; clean menus and UI; solid build; easy to hold and use What's Not Good: Rather large for a sliderphone; some may not like tiny buttons; heavy Bottom Line: MOTO's Z9 is a top-notch featurephone that provides access to nearly all of AT&T's data and multimedia services in an attractive form factor.  The phone is rather large and pretty hefty, which is either kind of nice or really annoying depending on your perspective.  If you don't mind - or even like - the Z9's size and heft, you'll be sure to enjoy its big bright display, fast 3G data access, and integrated GPS chip with onboard navigation. Specs: Make/Model: Motorola Z9 Network: GSM 850/900/1800/1900 (Quad-Band) Data: HSDPA (3G), EDGE Carrier: AT&T Mobility Size: 114 x 54 x 14 mm Weight: 140 g Form Factor: Slider Display: 2.4" Color LCD Touchscreen, 240 x 320 (QVGA) - read full review]]>http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-reviews/motorola-z9/at-a-glance-102435.aspx?utm_source=Rss&utm_medium=CellPhoneReviews5/11/2008What's Good: Touchscreen and Full QWERTY Keyboard in Compact Body; Clean Menus and "Croix" User Interface; 2MP Camera with Autofocus and Flash; GPS with VZ Navigator; Full HTML Browser; Good Sound Quality What's Not Good: Touchscreen Can Be Difficult to Use, Especially Around Edges and Using Web Browser; Slightly Thick Profile; No D-Pad Bottom Line: Samsung shrunk the F700 down to a cool, compact size in making the Glyde.  The slide-out QWERTY board is handy and surprisingly comfortable given its small size, and the finger-friendly touchscreen is generally quite good (with a few consistently frustrating quirks).  Glyde brings much of Voyager's flash to a smaller, simpler device, and is a fun new option in Verizon's messaging phone lineup. Specs: Make/Model: Samsung Glyde (SCH-u940) Network: CDMA 800/1900 Data: 1xRTT/1xEVDO rev.0 Carrier: Verizon Wireless Size: 103.8 x 50 x 17.8 mm Weight: 117 g Form Factor: Candybar with Slide-Out Keyboard Display: 2.8" - read full review]]>http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-reviews/samsung-glyde/at-a-glance-102435.aspx?utm_source=Rss&utm_medium=CellPhoneReviews5/8/2008What's Good: Incredible Camera w/Xenon Flash; Full VGA Video Capture; Excellent Web Browser; WiFi; Extendable Operating System; 3.5mm Headphone Jack What's Not Good: Cheap-Feeling and Plasticky; Small Keys; Music File Sort Issues; S60 OS Too Complex for Average User; Device is Bulky; Very Expensive Bottom Line: Nokia's N82 may be the best camera phone on the market right now, but it's a bulky, complicated, expensive device for geeks and not the average consumer.  You want features?  N82's got ‘em and then some.  You want a stylish phone that's fun to use?  Look elsewhere. Specs: Make/Model: Nokia N82 Network: GSM (Quad-Band) Data: EDGE, WiFi (802.11 b/g); 3G (WCDMA 2100 - not for U.S. market) Carrier: Unlocked GSM Size: 112 x 50 x 17.3 mm Weight: 114 g Form Factor: Candybar Display: 2.4" Color LCD, 320 x 240 (QVGA) resolution, 16.7 Million Colors Memory:  100 MB built-in, microSD card slot Notable Features: 5MP Camera with Auto-Focus - read full review]]>http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-reviews/nokia-n82/at-a-glance-102435.aspx?utm_source=Rss&utm_medium=CellPhoneReviews5/6/2008What's Good: Integrated WiFi for Web, Email, and HotSpot@Home UMA Calling; Trackball is easy to use; Integrated IM Clients; Second-to-None Push Email; 2MP Camera with Flash; 3.5 mm Headphone Jack; Compact Size What's Not Good: OS Menus and Fonts Remind me of 1989; SureType QWERTY board will be too small for some; Video capture quality is mediocre Bottom Line: T-Mobile's new Pearl takes a good thing and makes it better by way of integrated Wi-Fi networking for data access and T-Mob's HotSpot@Home service.  A few other minor improvements make the handset's media player and keyboard a little bit better.  Pearl's still too small for my hands, but it packs smartphone functionality and money saving features into a great device that looks and feels like a phone — not a brick.  RIM's gotta overhaul their user interface soon, though.  The icons and fonts feel more and more dated every day. Specs: Make/Model: RIM BlackBerry Pearl 8120 Network: GSM Data: - read full review]]>http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-reviews/blackberry-rim-pearl-8120-titanium/at-a-glance-102435.aspx?utm_source=Rss&utm_medium=CellPhoneReviews4/30/2008What's Good: Beautiful display; Context-sensitive menus; Extensive feature set; VZ Navigation works very well What's Not Good: Half a touchscreen sometimes feels gimmicky and frustrating; Touch controls sometimes unresponsive; Poor voice quality with unacceptable hiss on some calls; Somewhat bulky overall Bottom Line: Venus' half-touch/half-not display is an interesting idea that ultimately frustrated me more than it charmed me.  The screens are beautiful and the morphing menus great, but I found myself wanting to touch the entire screen and not just the lower portion.  Some won't mind this, though, and for those Venus may be a dream come true: it's a feature-rich slider with a beautiful high-res display and access to all of Verizon's multimedia offerings save VCAST TV. Specs: Make/Model: LG Venus (VX-8800) Network: CDMA Data: EV-DO (1x EV-DO r0) Carrier: Verizon Wireless (Locked) Size: 102 x 51 x 15.7 mm Weight: 107 g Form Factor: Slider with - read full review]]>http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-reviews/lg-venus/at-a-glance-102435.aspx?utm_source=Rss&utm_medium=CellPhoneReviews4/23/2008What's Good: Stylish, compact design with large touchscreen and full QWERTY keyboard; Excellent build quality; Extendable Linux-based operating system backed by Nokia-supported developer community; Ships with Skype and Rhapsody clients installed; Excellent Web browser supports Web 2.0 technologies; WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity; Great for mobile bloggers, early adopters/would-be hackers, and Linux fans What's Not Good: Touchscreen isn't responsive enough and can be hard to use even with stylus; Top row of QWERTY board is cramped, and all keys are mushy to type on; No Stereo Bluetooth support; Overall experience isn't ready for mainstream consumers; Pricey Bottom Line: Nokia's making steps to evolve the N-Series tablets from "strictly for geeks" to "consumer friendly gadgets."  The N810 - and newly launched N810 WiMax Edition - represent another step in that evolution, but this is still an Internet device for geeks and not mainstream consumers.  To be fair, it's those - read full review]]>http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-reviews/nokia-n810-silver/at-glance-102435.aspx?utm_source=Rss&utm_medium=CellPhoneReviews4/21/2008At a Glance: What's Good: Compact, rugged design with full QWERTY keyboard; Easy to use; Auto-rotating display; Good SMS, IM, and Email integration What's Not Good: Limited functionality beyond voice calling and messaging; No Power Vision access makes for slow Web browsing; Reports of laggy software and keyboard issues (I encountered none); Weak camera Bottom Line: Rumor is a basic candy bar phone with a focus on messaging, and in this regard it really shone in my tests.  I found the handset easy and fun to use so long as I kept to its strengths: Messaging and more messaging with voice calling and limited Web  and media functionality thrown in.  Rumor's comfy QWERTY board, rugged design and soft-grip finish, and auto-rotating display make it a solid choice for cell phone users who value texting as much (or more) as voice calling. Specs: Make/Model: LG Rumor Network: CDMA Data: EV-DO (1x RTT) Carrier: Sprint (Locked) Size: 109 x 51 x 17.8 mm Weight: - read full review]]>http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-reviews/lg-rumor-white/at-a-glance-102435.aspx?utm_source=Rss&utm_medium=CellPhoneReviews4/15/2008At a Glance: What's Good: All kinds of multimedia, Web, and location-based features; Super slim profile; Speedy EV-DO access; GPS; 106MB Internal Memory What's Not Good: Touch sensitive controls are very finicky; End key in an odd place; Call quality only so-so; Camera not as good as original U600 Bottom Line: Samsung brings their Ultra U600 sliderphone to the US in the form of the Helio Mysto.  While Mysto's thin profile is sexy and Helio's myriad features are excellent, this handset's electrostatic touch controls are more trouble than they're worth.  Helio fans may love Mysto as a companion to their Oceans, but others may look elsewhere. Specs: Make/Model: Samsung Mysto Network: CDMA Data: EV-DO (1x Rev. 0) Carrier: Helio (Locked) Size: 105 x 50 x 12.7 mm Weight: 95 g Form Factor: Slider Display: 2.2" Color LCD, 320 x 240 (QVGA) resolution, 262,000 Colors Memory:  106 MB built-in, microSD card slot Notable Features: Integrated GPS with - read full review]]>http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-reviews/samsung-mysto/at-a-glance-102435.aspx?utm_source=Rss&utm_medium=CellPhoneReviews3/25/2008At a Glance: What's Good: Full-featured, easy to use smartphone for entry-level price; Clear, bright, high-resolution touchscreen; Compact body with rounded edges; Zippy EV-DO data with access to Sprint TV service; A-GPS works with location-based services What's Not Good: QWERTY keys are small and cramped; Display is smallish (if still easy to read); Hardware and software design feels a bit dated; Noticeably thicker than comparable devices; No Music Store access (yet) Bottom Line: Get Centro in your hands.  If you like the way it feels and if the buttons aren't too small for you, you might have found yourself the best value currently going in a full-featured smartphone built for consumers.  Palm OS is not slick, but it works well and Sprint's fast EV-DO data network and excellent music store add value to the device.  But the cramped buttons and small screen will be deal-breakers for some. Specs: Make/Model: Palm Centro (690) Network: CDMA Data: - read full review]]>http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-reviews/treo-by-palm-centro-onyx-red/at-a-glance-102435.aspx?utm_source=Rss&utm_medium=CellPhoneReviews3/20/2008At a Glance: What's Good: Excellent QWERTY keypad; WiFi for Email/Web and UMA voice calling; Legendary push Email system; Trackball navigation; Media player with 3.5mm headphone jack. What's Not Good: No 3G data; No GPS; Web browser not on par with best smartphones; Memory card hidden behind battery. Bottom Line: T-Mobile's version of the Curve is one of the best smartphones around.  It lacks high speed data access data but adds WiFi for data access and unlimited UMA calling, and the inclusion of a 2MP camera with flash and standard headphone jack make this the most consumer-oriented BlackBerry ever.  All in all it's an excellent smartphone that adds some entertainment value to BlackBerry's renowned push Email service, and is actually a hair more responsive than AT&T's version. Specs: Make/Model: RIM BlackBerry Curve (8320) Network: GSM Quad-Band Data: EDGE (2.5G), WiFi (802.11 b/g) with UMA support Carrier: T-Mobile USA (Locked) Size: 107 x 60 x - read full review]]>http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-reviews/blackberry-rim-curve-8320-pale-gold/at-a-glance-102435.aspx?utm_source=Rss&utm_medium=CellPhoneReviews3/7/2008At a Glance: What's Good: Compact, solid flip phone with front-mounted music controls/speaker, stereo Bluetooth support and straightforward music player; Includes 1GB memory card; Good IM support; Inexpensive. What's Not Good: Signal strength issues; Low-res display and less-than-pretty UI; Wired headphones require use of proprietary adapter. Bottom Line: Beat is a simple flip with a pretty good music player and low price tag.  The phone's design didn't do much for me, and the display is low-res, but for a basic phone with music player, Beat's not bad.  Just make sure you can get good reception with it where you live and work. Specs: Make/Model: Samsung Beat (SGH-T539) Network: GSM Quad-Band Data: EDGE (2.5G) Carrier: T-Mobile USA (Locked) Size: 90 x 46 x 17.8 mm Weight: 77 g Form Factor: Clamshell Display: (Main) Color LCD, 128 x 160 Resolution, 65,000 Colors; (External) Color LCD, 96 x 96 Resolution Memory:  18 MB built-in, microSD card slot, - read full review]]>http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-reviews/samsung-beat-sgh-t539/at-a-glance-102435.aspx?utm_source=Rss&utm_medium=CellPhoneReviews3/6/2008At a Glance:   What's Good: Compact, stylish Windows Mobile 6 smartphone; HSDPA (3G) high speed data; Improved battery life; GPS; Center mounted jog wheel What's Not Good: QWERTY keys are a little small and a little slippery; No touchscreen; Display is smallish for a smartphone Bottom Line: Blackjack II is a solid improvement over its predecessor.  There's nothing revolutionary here, but faster hardware, improved battery life, and speedy 3G data make this a worthy update to the popular original. Specs: Make/Model: Samsung Blackjack II (SGH-i617) Network: GSM Quad-Band Data: HSDPA (3G) Carrier: AT&T (Locked) Size: 114 x 61 x 13 mm Weight: 116 g Form Factor: Candybar Display: 2.4" Color LCD, 320 x 240 (QVGA) Resolution, 65,000 Colors Memory: 155 MB built-in, microSD card slot Notable Features: Windows Mobile 6 Standard OS; QWERTY thumbpad; Front-mounted jog dial navigation; Integrated GPS; 2-megapixel camera; Supports AT&T Video Share - read full review]]>http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-reviews/samsung-blackjack-2-sgh-617-black/at-a-glance-102435.aspx?utm_source=Rss&utm_medium=CellPhoneReviews2/29/2008At a Glance   What is Good: Shadow is a sleek slider with a custom interface and jog dial that make it easier to use than the average Windows Mobile smartphone.  The SureType keypad fits a QWERTY layout into the space of a regular numerical keypad but has larger buttons than the BlackBerry Pearl or Samsung Blast.  Built-in WiFi and myFaves compatibility. What's Not Good: Not everyone will like Shadow's keypad.  Wider than most slider phones.  Less powerful than many smartphones.  No touchscreen.  EDGE is slow for Web browsing. Bottom Line: If you're looking for a smartphone in a sleek disguise, Shadow is an interesting choice.  Though it runs Windows Mobile, it's really more like a souped-up messaging phone than a smartphone.  The custom UI is a great touch. Specs: Make/Model: HTC Shadow Network: GSM Quad-Band Data: EDGE and WiFi (802.11b/g) Carrier: T-Mobile USA (Locked) Size: 103 x 53 x 15 mm Weight: 150 - read full review]]>http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-reviews/htc-shadow/at-a-glance-102435.aspx?utm_source=Rss&utm_medium=CellPhoneReviews2/26/2008I first glimpsed the successor to the MOTO Q back at CTIA Orlando in April of this year. A Motorola executive seated next to me at a Smartphone Summit panel discussion pulled a pre-production Q9 from his packet and used it to check his email while I tried to sneak a look. Eventually he noticed, and after I introduced myself he let me check the device out. I remember being impressed by the new Q's QWERTY thumbboard - the layout and individual buttons felt much more comfortable and responsive than the keys on the original Q. Beyond that, I remember thinking the Q9 looked sorta cool - well, sorta cool for a smartphone anyway - but that was about it. After some time with the Verizon Wireless version of the Q9m, I've more or less come back to that first impression of the new Q. The Q9m - the consumer-targeted, music-oriented sibling of the all business Q9h - is a slightly faster, slightly more capable upgrade to the original Q. That new QWERTY board is, in fact, better than the - read full review]]>http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-reviews/motorola-q9m/introduction-design-102435.aspx?utm_source=Rss&utm_medium=CellPhoneReviews12/8/2007The Samsung Juke for Verizon is a cool little phone that makes calls, plays music, and tucks away almost unnoticed in a pocket or purse.  Featuring two gigabytes of built-in storage, a front-mounted scroll wheel for navigating through your music library and contacts list, and a unique switchblade design, Juke is small, slick, and easy to use. Samsung and Verizon left a lot out of Juke in order to make it tiny and inexpensive.  There's no 3G data, no access to Verizon's VCast multimedia offerings, and a very small - if bright and sharp - display.  You're not going to want this phone if you text, email, or surf the Web a lot on the go, and Juke's VGA camera and low-res screen won't do much for the technophiles out there, either.  But if you're looking for a cool little handset for calling, listening to music, and the occasional GPS usage, Juke  is a neat piece of gear that works really well.  If you like its look, that is. Design Juke is a - read full review]]>http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-reviews/samsung-sch-u470-juke-red/introduction-design-102435.aspx?utm_source=Rss&utm_medium=CellPhoneReviews11/19/2007To be fair, HTC was developing the Touch long before Apple's iPhone hit the market. But iPhone came to market first and quickly became the gold standard for a new breed of mobile devices marked by giant touchscreens and smartphone functionality combined with mainstream usability. As such, it's really impossible not to consider iPhone when using or reviewing Touch. So I'll do my best to look at the Sprint-branded Touch both as a next-gen Windows Mobile smartphone built with a finger-friendly touchscreen and refined UI, and as an "iPhone alternative" in the newly burgeoning world of mainstream-friendly, multimedia-centric handsets. As the former, Touch is one of the best, easiest to use Windows Mobile devices around so long as you don't need to type on it. Touch fits easily in one hand, and the combination of a flush-mounted hard plastic touchscreen and the Sprint-enhanced TouchFlo UI makes it much easier to use without a stylus than any other WM device I've ever tried - - read full review]]>http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-reviews/htc-touch/introduction-design-102435.aspx?utm_source=Rss&utm_medium=CellPhoneReviews11/16/2007What T-Mobile might lack in the way of a high speed data network, they more than make up for with service plans and features geared towards families and messaging addicts. Their myFaves plan and Sidekick family of devices have caught on with budget-conscious parents and their SMS-obsessed teenagers alike T-Mobile is working to (finally) roll out their 3G network in 2008, and they've also been working with manufacturers on a fleet of fun (and easy) to use handsets with advanced features and messaging-friendly form factors. The Samsung Blast is the first of this new wave of phones - its slim slider form factor will be familiar to Samsung fans, but the SureType-style keypad concealed beneath the sliding front panel is designed for the new wave of users to text as much as they talk. Unfortunately, while the Blast looks great on paper and in photos, it proved less than a blast to use. The twenty button QWERTY layout is a great idea, but for all it promises in the way of easy - read full review]]>http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-reviews/samsung-blast-sgh-t729/introduction-design-102435.aspx?utm_source=Rss&utm_medium=CellPhoneReviews11/16/2007Motorola's RAZR is an icon of cellphones, technology, and design in general.  The V3 and all of its brethren collectively became the second most successful mobile handset in history, and the word "RAZR" has become synonymous with "thin flip phone" in gadget parlance. But the RAZR eventually grew a little long in the tooth, and Motorola's dominance in the cellular world eroded over time.  After a legion of "four letter phone" offshoots - KRZR, ROKR, RIZR, PEBL, FONE, et al - Moto finally released the long awaited sequel to the RAZR: The RAZR 2.  RAZR 2 dropped on nearly every major US network at the same time, and while there are differences from carrier to carrier, the new RAZR's overall look and feel is the same across its variations.  RAZR 2 is thinner but heavier and taller than the original, and its traded those razor-sharp edges for rounded corners and curvier lines throughout.  The new RAZR is also built like a tank - it feels luxurious and - read full review]]>http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-reviews/motorola-razr2-v9m/introduction-design-102435.aspx?utm_source=Rss&utm_medium=CellPhoneReviews11/1/2007Despite its quirky "1960s scientific calculator" looks and lack of US-band 3G support, the Nokia E61i is one of the best smartphones in the world.  The combination of a strong WiFi antenna, the flexible power of the S60 Symbian operating system, and what might be the best QWERTY keypad to be found on any phone makes the E61i a workhorse mobile communicator equally at home in the board room and on the road. While many would-be Nokia smartphone users may have been put off by the pokey Cingular-branded E62 last year, the E61i is definitely worth a look if you like the feel of a Symbian smartphone.  The E61i features numerous cosmetic and internal upgrades over the E62 that make it a true powerhouse of a smartphone.  If you're a global traveler, you'll also appreciate that the E61i is an unlocked quad-band GSM handset with support for UTMS 2100 MHz band, which means it'll fly along Europe's 3G networks when you're abroad. There's a lot of competition in the - read full review]]>http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-reviews/nokia-e61i/introduction-design-102435.aspx?utm_source=Rss&utm_medium=CellPhoneReviews10/30/2007My wife has used a Samsung T809 ever since we signed a service contract a year and a half ago and she got one for free (after rebate, of course).  She really liked the phone's sleek slider profile, big, bold display, and overall cool factor.  Mind you, she's not a geek in any sense of the word - she's got style and so did her T809. But the T809 broke a few months ago and she'd been using one of my extras until the Sony Ericsson w580i arrived at our place.  Lots and lots of handsets pass through our home office, and this is the first one that actually made her say, "Hey, lemme see that!" when I unboxed it and showed it to her.  It's a slider, it's sleek, and it's got this very hip grey with blue trim thing going on. Lucky for us Sony Ericsson makes an unlocked version of the w580i as well as the locked AT&T version.  We tracked down an unlocked model for her to use, and I got to play with the AT&T model for this review.  And we're - read full review]]>http://www.phonedog.com/cell-phone-reviews/sony-ericsson-w580i-carbon-grey/introduction-and-design-102435.aspx?utm_source=Rss&utm_medium=CellPhoneReviews10/15/2007