The Samsung GT-B3410 is one of a number of new feature phones which include many functions you would normally expect to find only in a smartphone. The GT-B3410 can now be bought for under £80 unlocked with a pay as you go SIM card and the main features stand out for people like me who expect certain things in any phone-
A slide-out QWERTY keyboard, 2.6” TFT LCD touch screen, 2 Megapixel camera, MP3 / Voice recording, Built in instant messenger, Social networking out of the box, Email setup wizard.
Can an £80 phone really cut it as a smartphone? Well I have to say that the answer is yes if you are happy with more caveats than I have time to quote here. The B3410 is very easy to use and the touch screen is ultra responsive with the clever interface making you feel that you are using a phone which costs at least twice as much. The build quality is good and sliding out the keyboard produces an immediate change of orientation that makes some of the Windows Mobile devices feel sluggish in comparison. Sadly the keyboard is somewhat dowdy and doesn’t provide much feedback, but it is still better than most touch screen keyboards.
For size and form factor the B3410 feels almost perfect and offers a reassuring if slightly chunky feel in the hand. I have little doubt that it will survive that harshest of handbag and briefcase environments. The 3.5mm headphone jack shows that entertainment is high up on the list of priorities here and music and video playback are acceptable, if not of the level of most other devices. The microSD expansion does mean though that you can carry a large selection of music and videos with you whenever you like which is a bonus.
There is a lot of software included and the PIM side is usable at best. The notes application and calendar do the job quite well with the contacts app feeling more than a little clunky, but the inclusion of tasks, memos, a world clock, calculator and a converter will no doubt be all that the target market will want on a phone. Other apps are included with Google and Facebook being the most notable alongside an FM radio, voice recorder, communities (MySpace, Facebook, Flickr, Photobuscket and Picasa) and some trial Java games for good measure. Sadly you will be relying on Java apps for expansion, but again I suspect the target market will not need to download much (patronising I know).
The communication side is weak with no 3G or Wi-Fi and only EDGE support offers usable internet browsing. However, this phone is all about messaging and keeping in touch and for that you can easily get away with 2G so it will still suffice for what it really needs to do.
The B3410 is a basic phone which knocks on the door of the smartphone world, but ultimately provides a voice experience which is too weak to be classed as a serious contender. It feels slightly cheap and this goes against the great screen and usable keyboard which are the highlights here. It is a hugely likable device with a good battery though and will serve its purpose well. For £80 it is a demonstration of what is possible in 2009 / 2010 and I suspect we will see a feature phone which deserves the title ‘smart’ before 2010 is over with.
Re. a feature phone deserving the title ‘smart’ by end of 2010 – I think I agree with that.
In that light, I’d like to suggest a revision of the definition of ‘smartphone’ – a smart phone is one that can effectively leverage the cloud (gosh, what a strange phrase), whether via a traditional smartphone OS or via a more proprietary one.
And maybe we need to extend the taxonomy – a smartphone is a phone with a trad OS; a smart phone is one that works the cloud well.
I see your point, but that definition could include many non-smart phones (whatever that is:)) I guess there is no definition, but it gives me an idea for a competition on 247:)
Bring it on!
All phones will be Smartphones, this is the trend. Does not matter what the OS is, as long as it supports web, email & social networking it will be viewed as a Smartphone. Form factor is also improtant, as Samsung and Nokia seem to appreciate. The slate form factor has its limits. Form, function, blah, blah, blah….
I dont agree with this article, because Samsung GT-B3410 is NOT a smartphone. You make people confused. I work as an PDA/smartphones advisor and it is neccesary for people to know how to call each type of mobile devices. So please, dont call it smartphone, use “feature phone”.
Hi Pavel- the first sentence in the article says it all really- “The Samsung GT-B3410 is one of a number of new feature phones which include many functions you would normally expect to find only in a smartphone.” Did I call it a smartphone?
Also, define what a smartphone is for me please because I have no idea what the actual definition is:)
Well, it is mentioned in the title, but OK. There are lot of problems with definitions, because each part of the world use its own and specific definition. There is now problem with PDA. It is portable computer with touch screen and usually without keyboard equiped with OS (Palm OS, Windows Mobile, Linux in Sharp Zaurus…). But it is hard to describe what smartphone really is. For example american journalists like to call “smartphone” everything with phone ability and OS. But in Czech republic where I live and work journalists usually devide smart devices to smartphones and communicators. Smartphone used to be device looking like ordinary cell phone with some PDA functions and communicator is PDA with GSM or CDMA, it is more computer than phone. But since Apple iPhone was introduced borders between categories disappeared and now it is really hard to help people to find suitable device. They for example need a PDA but they saz they need smartphone.
Sorry for my long post. I just do not like comparing devices from different categories.
it hate gt b3410 it doenst support java of more than 400 kb no shockwave flash no nothing no handwriting text . even simple corby is the bestest best than corby plus .i m now crying for purchasing it it was my greatest mistake ever and you say it a smartphone a 2g phone that doesnt even cant send a e-mail even though having a e-mail feature
i am really disapointed that samsung GT-B3410 dosn’t support youtube/other live streaming videos in the mobile browser.
i think the GT-B3410 is fine, and to jitu, gmail works fine 4 me!