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Samsung A500

Samsung A500 - Comparison and review of the Samsung A500 cell phone.

What We Think

A compact, data-ready flip phone with external caller ID, Samsung’s A500 is one of the first PCS phones to use Sprint’s PCS Vision, combining a full-color screen, polyphonic ringers, pictures, and high-speed Internet access to support new and enhanced applications. With speeds comparable to a home computer's dial-up connection, you can view full-color graphic versions of popular Internet sites. The A500 is enabled to send and receive pictures and to play graphically rich J2ME-platform games on its color screen. Wireless messaging services via Web-based PCS Mail, PCS Short Mail, Wireless Chat by Jumbuck, and Messaging Fun games by Scan Mobile let you send and receive email on the go. In addition, the A500 lets you download images for customized screen savers and a wide range of polyphonic tunes for multiple ringer alerts. Complete with a personal organizer, the A500 even has an "airplane mode" where you can access the organizer and play games during flight without connecting. The phone has a TFT LCD screen, which provides a more three-dimensional feel to images, and a high-luminescent blue keypad backlighting, which, in combination with the 128-by-160 12-line TFT screen, offers better clarity and definition when viewing pictures or text. The lithium-ion battery is rated for up to 2-1/2 hours’ talk time and up to 9 days’ on standby. This phone weighs in at 3.6 ounces and is 3.4 by 2.0 by 0.8 inches in size.