Samsung V200 > Reviews (57)

I have to say, when it comes to mobile phones, it grieves me to purchase a new handset.
However, im quite fortunate. I have a brother who is phone mad so I get his "almost new" cast offs. This benefits both me (as I get a new Phone) and you, the consumer as you get the wisdom of 2 users for the price of one!

SO when Chris came along with the latest phone for me to have, I imediately jumped at the chance of owning a camera phone.
Yes, this little jem has a built in camera as well as many other gadgets which I will gladly tell you about.

Firstly, lets look at the phone and get some background.

Looks/Feel.
The phone is quite small. Very compact is probably a better way to describe it. This is due to the fact that it is a "flip top" phone so the main screen, buttons,etc are all protected away when the phone is shut. A great idea that!

To the top of the phone is the camera

that is on a rotating bezel. Handy having a moveable camera as the lens can be twisted backwards so that it is fully protected from scrapes and scuffs in your pocket( if you remember) However, the phone is over a year old now and this is becoming more and more stiff. Perhaps a problem with age?
It is also very fiddly to turn the camera around as the control is very small. However the clarity and resolution of the camera is very good indeed.

Also on the top of the phone is the largely uneccessary aerial. Im sure they could make this inside the phone like a nokia handset but instead it protrudes and makes me a bit sore in my pocket!

On the top of the flip top part of the phone is a small LCD screen that displays who is calling, text message alert, the time andhow much battery you have remaing. This saves springing the screen open everytime you need to check for texts and phone calls.
However this is just a standard green/grey screen and not full colour. In fact it looks more at home on a nokia. On the newer models, this has been replaced altogether with a rotating "flip top" with one main screen. It up to you if you have the screen on the inside or out.

You also have all of the connections for Power, hands free and a handy volume control on the outside.

Opening the phone up, reveals many more goodies.

The Keypad is very flat which could pose a problem for big fingers or clumsy hands. The buttons do not press very well either. The menu control is nicely laid out and simple to use. Much better than the "nipple" design of the Sony Ericsson phones.
The camera button at the top is also quite prominent with one press. You have access to al lof the camera features.

The main screen is something out of this world! It is very large with bright colours and crystal clear pictures. This is the easiest way to navigate the menus with clear instructions given via the screen.
It has a handy power save mode that dims the screen if there is no action for a few seconds.

While we are talking about Battery power, this phone is excellent. For average use, I can almost go 1 whole week without needing to plug it in. This gives me great standby and talk time.

Some of the handy features on this phone include:
Infa Red Connectivity.
This is great for sending files,messages and even pictures to another wireless device. The phone comes with a CD called EASY GPRS which has an installation of software to enable your computer to send and recieve files from the phone if it is operating wireless itself. Luckily my laptop is so I can take pictures with my phone and send them to people via the computer.
This can be a bit awkward sometimes as the infa red connection can play up. You have to make sure you line the infa red sensors on both devices up exactly too.

Picture Messaging.
You can send pictures via the MMS system that this phone supports. However, make sure your provider supports this too. I am with Virgin Pay as you Go and they do not allow media Messaging, hence why I send pictures via email!

Tri Band Technology.
No longer do I require an additional Phone to use in USA. This phone has pretty much worldwide coverage. So no matter where I go in the world, I can always phone home.

Texting?
Hmm...I end up pulling my hair out with this one. It has predictive text and this can cause a problem. I have not found a way to add custom words to the dictionary and trying to get in and out of multitap or Predictive can prove a nightmare sometimes. Prepare to text SLOWWWWWWWWLLLLLYYYYYY

Signal Strength?
Very good. It seems to have a good range for finding a signal. The coverage is quite good anyway with Virgin but this phone tends to work in areas my Sony used to have problems.

Audio?
Fantastic. Crystal Clear sounds and the microphone is very sensitive and accurate.

Robustness
Well, I have to say, if fails slightly here. This phone had a habit of turning itself off for no reason before we sent it back to Samsung. However it is now fixed and we have not had a proble with it since. The casing itself is very easy to scuff and it does look like it has been through the wars a bit.

Overall.
A good phone on the whole. OK, it has gone back for repair once but it is 18 months old now! It is still working, the battery is still amazing and the screen and phone quality is great.
I would recommend picking one up to anyone as long as they have patience while texting.
A great phone though.