Samsung SGH-I617 Cell Phone Reviews

Audio quality: Music playback through the BlackJack II’s external speaker is pretty much what you’d expect—not good. Unfortunately, we couldn’t test how tunes sounded with headphones because the device doesn’t come with a pair out of the box, and you can’t use standard headphones with the BlackJack II (more on this later).

The phonebook is limited only by available memory. The SIM card can hold an additional 250 entries, and you can add up to 4GB of memory with an optional microSD card. Each contact entry can hold up to 12 numbers, three e-mail addresses and IM names, and a Web address. You can also assign a picture for caller ID, as well as choose from 27 polyphonic ring tones. Microsoft ActiveSync handles synchronization duties for phonebook entries, calendar items, tasks, and music files.

Messaging: This is one of the BlackJack II’s strong suits. The AT&T Xpress Mail program supports POP3 and IMAP accounts, and the device uses Microsoft Direct Push technology for real-time e-mail delivery. The BlackJack II automatically configured the settings for our Comcast and Gmail accounts quickly. The BlackJack II also comes preloaded with AIM, Yahoo Messenger, and Windows Live Messenger for instant messaging. You can be signed on to all three accounts simultaneously, but you can’t instantly toggle between accounts. Instead, you have to press the left soft key to move back to the main IM screen, and then select the service you want.

Camera/Video: The BlackJack II features a two megapixel camera with video recording, 4x zoom, and a self-timer (two, five, and 10 second delay). There’s also a multishot mode—ideal for capturing for fast-moving sequences—and a mosaic mode, which groups four consecutive shots into a four-panel mosaic. There’s no flash, but you do get white balance adjustments. Picture quality left much to be desired, with washed-out colors and fuzzy images.

Music: Music is not the primary focus of the BlackJack II. Still, you do have several options for listening to tunes on the smartphone. You can listen to streaming music from AT&T Music and AT&T Video, and you can subscribe to XM satellite radio (you get a three-day free trial period). The device doesn’t support over-the-air downloads, but you can transfer music stored on your PC to the device with Windows Media Player. The BlackJack II includes the mobile version of WMP, so you can create playlists directly on the device.

Bluetooth: Bluetooth 2.0 support means you can use mono and stereo headsets, hands-free kits, and perform wireless file transfers. We successfully paired a Plantronics 610 Discovery headset with the BlackJack II, and we beamed contacts back and forth between a Samsung A640 cell phone without a hitch.

The jog wheel is supposed to make you forget about the lack of a touch screen by making it easy to scroll through long lists or documents. But it feels loose and flimsy and isn’t as responsive as it should be. We preferred pressing and holding the button to scroll up or down. Even more annoying is Samsung’s choice to use a proprietary connector rather than a miniUSB jack. As such, you can’t use headphones that connect with a standard 2.5mm or 3.5mm jack. If you plan to listen to music, you’ll have to shell out some extra dough for a Samsung headset or Bluetooth stereo headphones. Also, our microSD card never snapped into the slot properly.

Keypad: The keys on the full QWERTY keyboard are fairly well spaced and sufficiently tactile. Unlike the first generation BlackJack, the number keys are grouped together instead of spaced out over every other column. It’s not ideal for extended periods of typing, but it gets the job done for quick messages or IM chats. The bottom row features several quick-launch keys, providing one-touch access to the Web, AT&T Video, e-mail, and the camera.