Samsung SLM Cell Phone Review - Hardware
|
Alfredo Padilla Published on December 17, 2007 Comment on this |
|
|
|
|
Keypad
Text Words Per Minute (8.04)
We were able to type on the Samsung SLM's keypad at an impressive 40.2 words per minute (WPM) using two hands and predictive text entry. This is very impressive for a phone with a regular keypad, it usually takes a QWERTY keyboard to get over forty words per minute. The Samsung SLM's impressive performance was the result of a roomy keyboard that wasn't too large. We did have some trouble with the lack of tactile feedback, though, as we weren't always sure if a key was pressed. We also would have liked better differentiation between keys. | Cell Phone | Words Per Minute | Score |
| Samsung SLM | 40.2 | 8.04 |
| Razr2 V8 | 46 | 9.20 |
| LG Venus | 46.31 | 9.26 |
| T-Mobile Shadow | 37 | 7.40 |
| Sony Ericsson W580i | 30.7 | 6.14 |
| Helio Fin | 31.7 | 6.34 |
T9 and Auto Complete (5.0)
The Samsung SLM supports T9 predictive text entry but does not support word completion.
One Hand Usability (0.0)
To see how easy it is to type on the Samsung SLM's keypad using only a single hand we repeat our words per minute (WPM) test using only one hand. Those who prefer to type out there messages with one hand will be happy to know that the drop-off is not great, we were able to manage 38.4 WPM in our one-handed typing test. Once again this is a very good score, you'll note below that we have a couple of phones that managed better, but most phones with keypads fall into the 30-35 WPM range that the W580i and Fin fall into.
| Cell Phone | Words Per Minute | Score |
| Samsung SLM | 38.4 | 7.68 |
| Razr2 V8 | 40.54 | 8.11 |
| LG Venus | 42.55 | 8.51 |
| T-Mobile Shadow | 32.4 | 6.48 |
| Sony Ericsson W580i | 34.5 | 6.90 |
| Helio Fin | 32.7 | 6.54 |
Keypad Backlighting (5.0)
The keypad backlight on the Samsung SLM is good. All of the symbols and numbers are illuminated clearly and evenly without being overly bright. Although there is a setting for the keypad backlight the only two options are "Use at Any Time" and "Use at Custom Time". If you choose the latter you don't have any way to set the "custom time". If you can figure this out you're smarter than we. As far as we can figure the keypad backlight works on exactly the same timer as the screen backlight.
Controls
D-Pad/Joystick (4.0)
The D-Pad on the Samsung SLM is located at the center of the controls on the upper half of the lower flip when the device is open. Like many phones that put all the controls and keypad on a single piece of plastic or metal the Samsung SLM's D-Pad does not provide you with much key travel or tactile feedback. We also found the keypad to be rather small and prone to errors due to the lack of differentiation between the outer ring that controls directions and the inner ring that acts as a center select key. It was very similar to the D-Pad we found on the Helio Fin, which also shared these problems, and is nowhere near as good as the D-Pad found on Razr2 devices, which have much better key travel and feel. Touch Screen (0.0)
The Samsung SLM does not have a touch screen.
Jog Dial (2.0)
Although it lacks a true jog dial the Samsung SLM's volume keys can be used to scroll up and down in certain situations like in the web browser or your music lists. Using the volume keys will jump you up or down several items or a whole page, which differentiates it from the function of the D-Pad and adds to its utility. We will be awarding the volume keys on the Samsung SLM two points in this section as they nearly approximate the function of a jog dial in some situations.
Soft Buttons (4.0)
The soft buttons on the Samsung SLM are located at the top left and right of the control keys. They suffer from the same lack of key travel, tactile feedback and poor differentiation that all the other buttons on the Samsung SLM do. On the plus side they are good sized and their placement makes them easy to find even if they are poorly differentiated.
Volume Control (6.0)
The volume buttons on the Samsung SLM are located on the left side of the phone near the top of the bottom half of the flip. The volume control is a single rocker key with each end raised slightly so you can differentiate between up/down by feel. When pressed they give you good tactile feedback, although not a lot of key travel. Overall we found them easy to find and easy to use.
Power and Standby (5.0)
The power button on the Samsung SLM is a secondary function of the end key. Just press and hold to turn the phone off. Only a single press is needed to turn it back on. Like many of the buttons on the Samsung SLM the end button lacks key travel, tactile feedback and differentiation from surrounding keys, although this last is somewhat made up for by the large size of the key.
Other Buttons (3.0)
In addition to the buttons discussed above the Samsung SLM has a couple of shortcut keys surrounding the D-Pad. To the left is a dedicated music key, which takes you to the music menu. To the right is a multi-task key, which allows you to switch between certain pre-selected programs like messaging, music and the browser. Below the D-Pad is a back button, which takes you to the previous screen or acts as a backspace when entering text. None of these buttons have secondary functions or can be re-assigned to a different function.
Display
Primary Screen Gross Resolution (4.0)
The Samsung SLM's primary display has a resolution of 176 x 200. This was the standard for cell phones a little over a year ago, but nowadays it's outdated. As you can see from our table below the Samsung SLM has the lowest resolution amongst our comparison phones. We understand the Samsung SLM is an entry level phone, but we're almost at 2008 and we expect even entry level phones to have better screen resolutions.
| Cell Phone | Resolution | Score |
| Samsung SLM | 176 x 220 | 4.00 |
| Razr2 V8 | 320 x 240 | 8.00 |
| LG Venus | 320 x 240 | 8.00 |
| T-Mobile Shadow | 320 x 240 | 8.00 |
| Sony Ericsson W580i | 320 x 240 | 8.00 |
| Helio Fin | 320 x 240 | 8.00 |
Primary Screen Pixels per Inch (5.87)
Pixels per inch is a measure of pixel density. Higher pixel density makes for sharper images, smoother edges and richer colors. Screens with lower pixel density can seemed washed out. The Samsung SLM's pixel density is very low at 117.4, in fact it's one of the lowest we've ever seen, as you can see from our comparisons below. This poor PPI is the result of a very low resolution combined on a large screen. You can see the lower pixel density in the way that the Samsung SLM draws object on the screen, they can be pixelated and colors seem faded. We appreciate the large screen size, but as we mentioned below without a decent resolution it's almost wasted, and this is the best indication of that.
| Cell Phone | Pixels Per Inch | Score |
| Samsung SLM | 117.4 | 5.87 |
| Razr2 V8 | 181.8 | 9.09 |
| LG Venus | 200 | 10.00 |
| T-Mobile Shadow | 153.8 | 7.69 |
| Sony Ericsson W580i | 200 | 10.00 |
| Helio Fin | 173.9 | 8.70 |
Screen Physical Size (6.00)
The Samsung SLM's main display measures 2.4 inches diagonal, which is pretty good sized for a clamshell phone. You can see below that only the T-Mobile Shadow had a larger display then the Samsung SLM's. The large display makes us wish that it had a better resolution. The lower resolution makes the display feel smaller than it actually is because stuff looks blockier and larger than it would at higher resolutions.
| Cell Phone | Size Diagonal (inches) | Score |
| Samsung SLM | 2.4 | 6.00 |
| Razr2 V8 | 2.2 | 5.50 |
| LG Venus | 2 | 5.00 |
| T-Mobile Shadow | 2.6 | 6.50 |
| Sony Ericsson W580i | 2 | 5.00 |
| Helio Fin | 2.3 | 5.75 |
Screen Brightness (4.25)
The Samsung SLM's screen can get up to 60 lux in brightness, as you can see below this is a little on the low side, but not overly so. The Razr2 V8 with its 156 lux screen is the outlier here rather than the SLM. The SLM offers you a decent set of controls for the display, with five options for screen brightness and several presets for how long the backlight stays on.
| Cell Phone | Brightness (lux) | Score |
| Samsung SLM | 60 | 4.25 |
| Razr2 V8 | 156 | 9.10 |
| LG Venus | 63 | 2.65 |
| T-Mobile Shadow | 54 | 2.70 |
| Sony Ericsson W580i | 85 | 6.75 |
| Helio Fin | 78 | 5.15 |
Screen Bright Light Performance (6.0)
The Samsung SLM performed better under bright light conditions, we were able to make out icons on the screen easily but did have to squint some to make out text. It's not the best we've ever seen, but it's much better than the terrible performance we saw from LG Venus.
Color Depth (8.0)
Color depth is a measure of how many colors can be displayed on the phone's screen. The Samsung SLM can display 262,000 colors, which is pretty good. For awhile now 65,000 colors has been the standard for cell phones but as you can see below more and more phones are starting to display over a quarter million colors. Higher color depth allows you to see more colors on screen when viewing photos, watching videos or surfing the web.
| Cell Phone | Colors (thousands) | Score |
| Samsung SLM | 262 | 8.00 |
| Razr2 V8 | 65 | 6.00 |
| LG Venus | 262 | 8.00 |
| T-Mobile Shadow | 65 | 6.00 |
| Sony Ericsson W580i | 262 | 8.00 |
| Helio Fin | 262 | 8.00 |
Secondary Screen (6.2)
The Samsung SLM's secondary screen is pretty small at 96 x 96 pixels and 1.1 inches diagonal. It displays 65 thousand colors, but really all it's good for is giving you some basic information like time, incoming numbers and alerts. You won't be using it as a viewfinder for the camera or controlling applications with it.
Ports & Storage
Power & Data Ports (2.0)
The Samsung SLM uses a proprietary port for both power and data storage. We aren't fans of proprietary ports, and you can tell that based on the Samsung SLM's poor score in this area. Please get on the Mini/Micro USB bandwagon Samsung. Headphone & Jack Compatibility (4.0)
The Samsung SLM uses the same proprietary port that is used for power and data as a headphone port. As much as we hate proprietary data and power ports we hate proprietary headphone ports even more, zero points. Thankfully the Samsung SLM does support wireless stereo headphones via Bluetooth so it isn't completely shut out in this section.
Internal Storage (1.0)
The Samsung SLM has 50 MB of internal storage, which is pretty average for an entry level device. This is more than enough memory to store your contacts, calendar appointments and caches, but don't even think about storing a large amount of media on the SLM. You need to invest in a memory card for that.
Expansion Slot & Format (7.5)
The Samsung SLM supports Micro SD cards for expanded memory. The Micro SD slot is located on the left side of the phone and has an attached plastic cover protecting it. This cover is easy to get off, but we do worry that it might break off eventually. The slot itself is spring loaded and we found it simple enough to get cards in and out of it.
| Previous Next | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
