May 2008
Samsung Glyde: First Look
A touch-screen cell phone that's a pleasure to (be)hold
Samsung Glyde
Price: $200, with a 2-year contract from Verizon, including rebates
Samsung's new Glyde is a premium-priced cell phone that shares some of the attributes of the iPhone, such as a large touch screen. The 2.8-in. (diagonal) touch screen serves as a display and a control center. Those controls give you direct access to the dialing keypad, main menu, and contacts.
In our tests, phone performance was on par with other phones that use CDMA technology. That is, it had very good voice quality when talking, good when listening. The talk time of up to 3½ hours promised by the manufacturer is adequate, though not exceptional. In our Ratings of cell phones (available to subscribers), you'll find other touch-screen models, such as the LG Voyager.
Here's what we also found in initial tests of the Glyde:
HIGHS
Easy access in a palm-friendly case. Measuring 4.0x2.0x0.7 inches, the Glyde is noticeably slimmer than many other touch-screen phones we've tested and fits quite comfortably in your hand. The virtual keypad has vibration feedback—an effective way to simulate the feedback you get from pushing real buttons (though dialing is difficult without looking). Gently pressing your thumb on the menu icon provides direct access to the Glyde's major applications, such as messaging, contacts, Web browser, media player, and VZ Navigator—Verizon's GPS navigation service.
A full QWERTY keyboard. Most conventional cell phones force you to type text messages and e-mails on alpha-numeric keypads. But sliding the Glyde's faceplate to the right reveals a full QWERTY keyboard, and automatically shifts the display's orientation from portrait to landscape orientation to align with the keyboard. So you won't lose your place, Web, music and text applications also seamlessly reorient themselves when you switch views. Composing e-mails and text messages is quite easy using the keyboard, whose well-spaced black buttons are clearly labeled with contrasting white letters.
HTML Browser. The browser supports HTML, which very few cell-phone browsers do, and so allows you to visit a wide variety of Web sites. And those pages should download quickly over Verizon's EV-DO high-speed wireless broadband data service. But the touch screen only works with your finger—not a stylus. As a result, selecting hotlinks that are close together can be a challenge.
Solid multimedia performance. Pushing a button on the Glyde's side instantly activates its 1.9-megapixel digital camera and turns the touch screen into a well-proportioned viewfinder. Tapping that viewfinder gives you access to many of the camera's functions and settings, such as auto-focus, self-timer, and resolution. The camera, which has a flash and can record video, also supports PictBridge for printing hard copies of your snapshots directly to a compatible printer. The music player is also quite capable, automatically organizing tracks according to genres, albums, artists, and playlists. There are multiple playback options, such as repeat and shuffle.
Other Glyde pluses: The phone also supports Bluetooth stereo headsets for tangle free listening, and has Bluetooth data capability that enables wireless file exchanges with other compatible devices.
LOWS
Inaccessible card. The Glyde accepts MicroSD cards of up to 8 GB (cards that size cost about $100). But its card slot is under the battery cover, which makes it difficult to access.
BOTTOM LINE
If we are, indeed, going to see more phones with touch screens in the coming months, let's hope they're more like the Glyde. Its compact design makes it easy to hold and gives your thumb easy access to the stylish touch-screen interface, which provides direct access to all critical operations, from launching applications to dialing phone numbers. Its ergonomic QWERTY keyboard can easily handle such typing-intensive tasks as texting and e-mailing. But keep in mind that the Glyde doesn't have the ability to view or edit Office-type documents, a hallmark feature of smart phones.
Samsung's new Glyde is a premium-priced cell phone that shares some of the attributes of the iPhone, such as a large touch screen. The 2.8-in. (diagonal) touch screen serves as a display and a control center. Those controls give you direct access to the dialing keypad, main menu, and contacts.
In our tests, phone performance was on par with other phones that use CDMA technology. That is, it had very good voice quality when talking, good when listening. The talk time of up to 3½ hours promised by the manufacturer is adequate, though not exceptional. In our Ratings of cell phones (available to subscribers), you'll find other touch-screen models, such as the LG Voyager.
Here's what we also found in initial tests of the Glyde:
HIGHS
Easy access in a palm-friendly case. Measuring 4.0x2.0x0.7 inches, the Glyde is noticeably slimmer than many other touch-screen phones we've tested and fits quite comfortably in your hand. The virtual keypad has vibration feedback—an effective way to simulate the feedback you get from pushing real buttons (though dialing is difficult without looking). Gently pressing your thumb on the menu icon provides direct access to the Glyde's major applications, such as messaging, contacts, Web browser, media player, and VZ Navigator—Verizon's GPS navigation service.
A full QWERTY keyboard. Most conventional cell phones force you to type text messages and e-mails on alpha-numeric keypads. But sliding the Glyde's faceplate to the right reveals a full QWERTY keyboard, and automatically shifts the display's orientation from portrait to landscape orientation to align with the keyboard. So you won't lose your place, Web, music and text applications also seamlessly reorient themselves when you switch views. Composing e-mails and text messages is quite easy using the keyboard, whose well-spaced black buttons are clearly labeled with contrasting white letters.
HTML Browser. The browser supports HTML, which very few cell-phone browsers do, and so allows you to visit a wide variety of Web sites. And those pages should download quickly over Verizon's EV-DO high-speed wireless broadband data service. But the touch screen only works with your finger—not a stylus. As a result, selecting hotlinks that are close together can be a challenge.
Solid multimedia performance. Pushing a button on the Glyde's side instantly activates its 1.9-megapixel digital camera and turns the touch screen into a well-proportioned viewfinder. Tapping that viewfinder gives you access to many of the camera's functions and settings, such as auto-focus, self-timer, and resolution. The camera, which has a flash and can record video, also supports PictBridge for printing hard copies of your snapshots directly to a compatible printer. The music player is also quite capable, automatically organizing tracks according to genres, albums, artists, and playlists. There are multiple playback options, such as repeat and shuffle.
Other Glyde pluses: The phone also supports Bluetooth stereo headsets for tangle free listening, and has Bluetooth data capability that enables wireless file exchanges with other compatible devices.
LOWS
Inaccessible card. The Glyde accepts MicroSD cards of up to 8 GB (cards that size cost about $100). But its card slot is under the battery cover, which makes it difficult to access.
BOTTOM LINE
If we are, indeed, going to see more phones with touch screens in the coming months, let's hope they're more like the Glyde. Its compact design makes it easy to hold and gives your thumb easy access to the stylish touch-screen interface, which provides direct access to all critical operations, from launching applications to dialing phone numbers. Its ergonomic QWERTY keyboard can easily handle such typing-intensive tasks as texting and e-mailing. But keep in mind that the Glyde doesn't have the ability to view or edit Office-type documents, a hallmark feature of smart phones.
