It’s difficult to tell when mobile phones will stop growing, although the easier and more logical response would be to assume they never really will. Mobile phones seem to have reached critical mass, with features becoming more integrated and more sophisticated with each generation’s release, but for all we know this is the same thought people had when things like text messaging and ringtone customization were first added to the then-call-and-ring-only mobile phones. Indeed, each new little thing will feel like the ultimate innovation, at least until the next one comes along and revolutionizes mobile phones anew. We should be so lucky.
For its part, mobile phone manufacturer Samsung hasn’t stopped working on blending the old with the new, finding new ways to execute the tried and true mobile phone design to meet emerging new expectations and needs. As such, their new Rogue SCH-U960 is a charming mobile phone model that maximizes its bulky frame with a great range of features, from a stunning display to a great keyboard to a powerful feature set that boasts a Flash Lite-endowed HTML browser, a 3-megapixel camera, EV-DO Rev. A, and GPS, as well as good call quality that justifies its purpose as a mobile phone to begin with.
The exterior of the Rogue may remind most users of the Samsung Impression, although there are noticeable differences – the Rogue is somewhat shorter, thicker and blockier at 4.29 inches long by 2.17 inches wide by 0.65 inch thick, with a pleasant heft at 4.94 ounces. The eye is immediately drawn to the 3.1-inch AMOLED display [AMOLED stands for active-matrix organic LED], which displays vibrant images with 262,000 color support and a 480×800 pixel resolution. Images are bright and sharp, and the touch screen is responsive and equipped with vibrating feedback. What makes it even better is the TouchWiz interface, Samsung’s easy to use innovation that offers users a collapsible toolbar through which they can access shortcut widgets for most tools as well as social media sites like Facebook and YouTube.
Sliding the front panel to the right shifts to landscape mode and reveals the four-row QWERTY keyboard, which has a great, responsive set of large raised keys with separated letters and numbers, as well as shift and function keys and navigation arrows. The internal accelerometer shifts the phone screen orientation depending on how it’s held, particularly for applications like the photo gallery viewer and Web browser.
The Rogue also has an internal accelerometer that changes the orientation of the screen depending on how you hold it. It does work with only certain applications, though, like the Web browser and the photo gallery. It also comes with a document viewer that reads most Microsoft Office files and PDFs, and it also has GPS with VZ Navigator support. The Rogue is also great for messaging, with text, picture, voice and video messages appearing in you inbox as conversation threads, as well as visual voice mail, Windows Live Messenger, and mobile, corporate and mobile Web email. The full HTML Web browser is a delight to use, with easy controls and smooth scrolling for all but the more complex Web pages. Flash Lite and the addition of a newsfeed feature make it even better.
The Rogue’s music player supports WMA, MP3 and unprotected AAC/AAC+ file formats, and the video player supports H.264-encoded videos. The 3-megapixel camera is much more impressive, however, with LED flash and eight resolution modes. Finally, call quality is as loud and clear as you’d expect, with little static or interference and enough clarity to get through automated-calling systems.
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