Stress Relief from Your Smartphone

By Dr. Perry Bosmajian, National Center for Telehealth & Technology

Dr. Perry Bosmajian is a psychologist and project lead for the Breathe2Relax mobile application.

In the growing mobile application marketplace, one of the most promising and rapidly expanding areas is health care and wellness. Here at the National Center for Telehealth & Technology (T2), we design and build high-value mobile applications for the benefit of service members and their families.

Our newest mobile app, Breathe2Relax, is of particular value to people who may be experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder, providing easily accessible relief for stress and anxiety. Breathe2Relax is a diaphragmatic breathing trainer that uses a smartphone’s interactive learning capabilities to teach deep-breathing exercises through video instruction and interactive demonstrations. It’s simple and effective for controlling stress when used either as a stand-alone tool, or in association with face-to-face psychological health care.

Diaphragmatic breathing (belly-breathing) has widely-known benefits for reducing stress, tension and anxiety by calming the “fight or flight” response. From the first time you launch Breathe2Relax, you can immediately begin the breathing exercise and track its beneficial effects through a simple stress results scale. You can easily customize your Breathe2Relax experience, using the app’s preference settings to select breath duration and number of cycles, as well as choice of music and background images.

One of the most interesting parts of Breathe2Relax is the “Body Scanner” feature that allows you to review an image of the human body to learn the effects of stress on its various systems. In understanding the negative and often unseen consequences of stress, users may be more motivated to use the app on a daily basis to develop a beneficial stress relief “habit.”

Breathe2Relax is a free mobile app available now for the iPhone and iPad through iTunes and is scheduled for release for Android devices in late July. For more information about Breathe2Relax and other available apps, visit t2health.org/apps.

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Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Pocket Guide Mobile Application Now Available

From Department of Defense Public Affairs

WASHINGTON (NNS) -- The Department of Defense announced June 7 that it has released a new mobile application for health care professionals, the Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Pocket Guide.

This application, developed by the National Center for Telehealth and Technology (T2), gives providers a comprehensive, quick reference that includes clinical practice guidelines for assessing and treating service members and veterans who have sustained a mild traumatic brain injury, commonly referred to as a concussion.

"This new tool is about providing clinicians with quick and convenient access to clinical guidelines for concussion care. It not only allows the clinician to provide evidenced-based care but maximizes time spent with the patient," said Katherine Helmick, deputy director for traumatic brain injury.

The mobile application is free and available for download on Android smart phones at https://market.android.com/details?id=org.t2health.mtbi. Hard copies of the pocket guide can be ordered by contacting the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center at info@dvbic.org or 1-800-870-9244.

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Smartphone App Helps Troops, Vets Manage Stress

From a Department of Veterans Affairs News Release

WASHINGTON, April 19, 2011 – Veterans dealing with symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder can turn to their smartphones for help any time with the “PTSD Coach” application created by the Veterans Affairs and Defense departments.

“This is about giving veterans and service members the help they earned when and where they need it,” Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric K. Shinseki said. “We hope they, their families and friends download this free app. Understanding PTSD and those who live with it is too important to ignore.”

PTSD Coach lets users track their symptoms, links them with local sources of support, provides accurate information and helpful individualized strategies for managing symptoms, officials said. The app is now available for download from the iTunes Store and will be available for Android devices by the end of the spring.

“This application acknowledges the frequency with which our warriors and veterans use technology and allows them to get help when and where they feel most comfortable,” said Dr. Jonathan Woodson, assistant secretary of defense for health affairs.

PTSD Coach is primarily designed to enhance services for individuals who are already receiving mental health care, though it is helpful for those considering entering mental health care and those who just want to learn more about post-traumatic stress, officials said.

“This is a great service we are providing to veterans, service members, their families and friends, but it should not be seen as a replacement for traditional therapy,” said Dr. Robert Petzel, VA’s undersecretary for health. “Veterans should utilize all of the benefits they have earned with their service, and one of the best things about this app is it will get veterans connected to the places that are out there to provide help.”

The application is one of the first in a series of jointly designed resources by the VA National Center for PTSD and the Defense Department's National Center for Telehealth and Technology to help service members, veterans, their families and friends manage their readjustment challenges and get anonymous assistance, officials said.

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Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 Mini Pro

Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 Mini Pro, the most notable thing about Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 Mini Pro is its diminutive size. Unlike almost every other smartphone on the planet, you can hide it behind a credit card, and if you have especially large mitts, you might be able to close your hand completely around it. At 3.3 inches tall by 2 inches wide by 0.7 inches deep, Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 Mini Pro is slightly taller and thicker than its X10 Mini counterpart, but we'll gladly take the added bulk for a full keyboard.

Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 Mini Pro remains quite light (4.2 ounces), so you won't feel burdened carrying it around. The 2.5 inch display and Sony Ericsson's User Experience interface are unchanged from the other phone. As we said before, the display is fine for browsing through menus and most basic features, but it's too small for higher end functions. As with Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 Mini Pro, some will appreciate the compact size, while others will want something beefier.

It's really up to you. Unfortunately, Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 Mini Pro remains stuck on Android 1.6 even months after 2.0's release. Below the display you'll find the same physical controls for the home screen menu and the main menu, and for moving backwards through a menu. You must dial calls using the standard virtual keypad, though you can bang out messages and e-mails much faster using the physical keyboard. As you'd expect, the keyboard is fairly small, but the keys manage to have a relatively comfortable, spacious feel.

We could type quickly and we like the stiff feeling of the keys. You won't find any shortcut controls, and numbers share space with letters, but basic punctuation is surfaced on the keyboard. For other punctuation and symbols, you must access an onscreen virtual keyboard. The space bar is in a convenient location in the center of the bottom row. The slider mechanism is neither too sturdy nor too loose.

The camera lens and flash also rest on the middle of the back side with the microSD card slot behind the battery cover. The remaining exterior features differ somewhat from the X10. The power or screen lock switch and 3.5 mm headset jack sit on the phone's top end, the camera shutter and volume rocker are on the right spine, and the Micro-USB port for data syncing and charging rests on the left spine.

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HTC Evo 4G

HTC Evo 4G is Sprint's premier smartphone and you'll get a great device regardless of our quibbles. We just hope Sprint starts to light up those 4G markets faster, so everyone can take advantage of the 4G capabilities and get their money's worth. HTC Evo 4G will be available June 4 for $199.99 with a two year contract and the aforementioned data plans. Though Sprint requires a $100 mail-in rebate, Best Buy and Radio Shack do not, so you get the $200 price tag instantly. Cut from the same cloth as the HTC HD2, HTC Evo 4G isn't what you'd call a dainty phone.

It measures 4.8 inches tall by 2.6 inches wide by 0.5 inch thick and weighs 6 ounces, so you're dealing with a good chunk of hardware. It's right on the cusp of being too big, but HTC was able to keep HTC Evo 4G relatively thin, making it more manageable. Plus, you might be willing to overlook the large size once you get a glimpse of the smartphone's massive display. Like the HD2, HTC Evo 4G rocks a 4.3 inch capacitive touch screen that's downright mesmerizing. The extra screen real estate makes a huge difference when viewing Web pages and reading text, and HTC Evo 4G supports the pinch to zoom gesture in a number of apps.

The display shows vibrant colors and the sharp WVGA 800x480 pixel resolution makes everything look crisp. There is a built-in light sensor that will automatically adjust the backlight based on the ambient light we were able to read the screen in most environments, but it did wash out a bit in bright sunlight. Another benefit of the large display is a spacious keyboard that rivals the iPhone's in ease of use. Even in portrait mode, we were able to quickly punch out a message with both thumbs (none of that pecking at the keys with one finger) with minimal mistakes.

As you can imagine, the landscape keyboard is even roomier, but most times we found we could get away with just typing in portrait mode. Below the screen, you get four touch sensitive navigation controls : home, menu, back, and search. A long press of the home key will bring up a list of your most recently used apps. There's a volume rocker on the right side, and the top of the device features a power button and 3.5 mm headphone jack. On the bottom, you'll find a Micro-USB port and an HDMI port. Be aware that the latter is a Type D connector, so you'll have to get a compatible cable to hook the phone up to your TV.

Of course, you can watch video and view photos right from the phone, and there's a handy kickstand on back so you can prop the phone up on a desk. Though there will be purists who prefer the standard Android skin, in most cases, we'd choose a device running HTC Sense. Out of all our custom skins for Android (Motoblur, TouchWiz, etc.), Sense is our absolute favorite, as it gives Android a more user friendly interface. In many cases, it improves on the core functions by better integrating the features, which is why we're glad to see that Sprint had the sense (sorry) to go with Sense on HTC Evo 4G.

Just like the Droid Incredible and the HTC Legend, HTC Evo 4G runs the newer version of HTC Sense, which was announced at Mobile World Congress 2010. This includes a revamped mail widget that can take you to a list view of all your e-mail instead of just one message at a time. (This view, however, is only one of several choices.) Once in the mail app, there's a handy tabbed interface at the bottom that lets you view unread messages, attachments, meeting invites, and more with a simple touch.

The Agenda widget also now displays your whole agenda on the screen, and, like the latest HTC devices, you get an animated weather widget right on the home screen that automatically displays the current conditions based on your location. You also get a new Group Contacts widget, which lets you organize your contacts by groups. For example, you can set up one for work colleagues, another for friends, and another for just family whatever you please. The UI looks good, and it's simple to add contacts to a group, though removing them requires a few extra steps.

Sense also makes it easy to access as much information as possible within the contact management system. If any of your contacts have Facebook updates, it will display them right next to their pictures in the contact database. You can also see all your exchanges (text messages, call logs, etc.) with a single person from his or her contact card, and all your contacts are accessible within the phone app.

However, we still had multiple instances of duplicate contacts and had to go back and manually link them together. Another feature, called Friend Stream, provides a single place for all your social networking needs, piping in updates from Facebook, Twitter, and Flickr. Unlike Motoblur, it's not server based the phone connects to the sites and pulls information directly from there.

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Nokia E73

Nokia E73 Mode's design is quite similar to the E72, not that we have any complaints, since we loved the E72's form factor. Nokia E73 is incredibly sleek at 4.5 inches tall by 2.3 inches wide by 0.4 inch thick, making it easy to slip into a pants pocket and comfortable to hold as a phone and messaging device. It's relatively light at 4.5 ounces but it has a very solid construction and feels like a device worth more than $70. The smartphone's display measures 2.4 inches diagonally and supports 16 million colors with a 320x240 resolution.

The size is on par with the one on BlackBerry Bold 9700, but it's not quite as sharp (the Bold's screen is 480x360) so images and text don't look quite as smooth on Nokia E73 as the Bold. Still, it's clear and vibrant, but tends to wash out slightly in bright sunlight. Like a number of Nokia's latest smartphones, Nokia E73 Mode lets you switch your home screen between two modes: personal and work. You can customize each mode with which apps you want accessible from the home screen, with the idea that you'll have work apps front and center in work mode, and more fun apps, such as the music player and photo gallery, in personal mode, so you can better balance your life.

Whether one can really "turn off" work mode is probably up to the individual, but nice a sentiment by Nokia. As for the general user interface, the Symbian based Nokia E73 runs on the S60 platform so the experience is much like the E72. The UI isn't particularly pretty, looking rather old actually, and requires some extra steps when navigating within an app, but it's fairly intuitive. Below the screen, you get a number of navigation controls, including Talk and End keys, two soft buttons, four shortcuts (home, contacts, calendar, and messages), and a combination optical trackpad or D-pad that Nokia calls the Optical Navi key.

To close an app, you much choose Options and then Exit. Nokia E73 Mode's QWERTY keyboard is, in a word, excellent. The rectangular buttons are a good size and have a nice domed shape, making them easy to press. The numbers share space with the letter keys in the middle of the keyboard. Though Nokia chose to highlight them in black against a dark gray background, they're actually not that hard to see. It's really one of the best physical keyboards we've used in recent memory, as we were able to type messages quickly and with little error. On the left spine, there's a Micro-USB port and a microSD expansion slot, both protected by an attached cover.

Meanwhile, you will find a volume rocker and a voice command button on the right side, and a 3.5 mm headphone jack and power button on top. The camera and flash are, as usual, found on back. Nokia E73 also has a front facing camera, but don't think this is in response to the HTC Evo 4G and iPhone 4. Most Nokia smartphones have had front facing cameras and video conferencing capabilities long before these two phones put it on people's radars. Though the interest hasn't necessarily been there in the past, you can, in fact, make video calls with Nokia E73 with an app, such as Fring, which is available through the Nokia Ovi Store.

Nokia bills the E73 Mode as a mobile to balance work and life, and the smartphone has a pretty well rounded feature set, though we'd say it skews a little more to mobile professionals than consumers, particularly with the messaging capabilities. The smartphone offers Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync support (e-mail, contacts, calendar, and tasks) as well as IBM Lotus Notes and comes with a mobile VPN client if you need to tap into your company's intranet. The Nokia Messaging app can also handle as many as 10 personal accounts, including POP3, IMAP4, and SMTP, and comes with push deliver, an attachment viewer, search, filters, and HTML support. In addition to e-mail, T-Mobile bundles the E73 with a handful of instant messaging clients and social networking apps, such as Facebook, Twitter, and MySpace.

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Samsung Restore SPH-m570

While it may claim similar eco-friendly properties as Samsung Reclaim does, Samsung Restore SPH-m570 looks a bit more like the Rant. It has a number keypad on the front, but it slides sideways to reveal a full QWERTY keyboard. Despite its recycled ingredients, Samsung Restore SPH-m570 feels sturdy, and we like its overall oval shape and curved edges. Measuring 4.6 inches long by 2.1 inches wide by 0.6 inch thick, Samsung Restore SPH-m570 is definitely bigger than both the Rant and the Reclaim, but it's still lightweight at 4.32 ounces and easily fits in a pocket or purse.

On the front of the phone is a lovely 2.4 inch QVGA display that supports 262.000 colors and has a 320x240 pixel resolution. We are pleased with the colorful images and the crisp text, and the size of the screen allows for more messages, especially in threaded conversations. You can adjust the brightness and the backlight timer. The menu interface can be arranged in either grid or list view, while the home screen has Sprint's One Click interface along the bottom row (You can read more about One Click in our review of the Samsung Highlight).

As part of the phone's eco-friendly theme, the Restore includes quick links to the Planet Green site in the One Click interface. The navigation array that follows is a bit of departure for Samsung messaging phones. You get the typical two soft keys, the speakerphone key, the back key, and the Send and End and Power keys of course, but instead of a regular toggle, you get a square optical touch sensitive touch pad similar to the one on the Samsung Moment. This makes navigating the menu a lot quicker and smoother, but it takes a bit of practice to not scroll too far from where you want.

Two soft keys are on the left side of the display, for use when the keyboard is open. The number keypad underneath the navigation array is quite roomy, and we like that the keys are separate from each other and are raised above the surface for quick dialing. The volume rocker is on the left spine while the 3.5 mm headset jack and camera key are on the right. The charger jack is on top and the camera lens is on the back. Sitting underneath the camera lens is the self portrait mirror.

Samsung Restore SPH-m570 has a 1,000 entry phone book with room in each entry for six numbers, an e-mail address, an instant messaging handle, a URL, a birthday, a street address, a job title and company name, and notes. You can assign callers to groups, pair them with a photo for caller ID, plus one of 20 polyphonic ring tones and melodies. As an option, you can use Sprint's wireless backup service to store your contacts on Sprint's servers.

It has essential features such as a vibrate mode and a speakerphone, plus the usual PIM tools like an alarm clock, a calendar, a calculator, a tip calculator, a world clock, a memo pad, and a voice memo recorder. You will also find stereo Bluetooth, voice command features, USB mass storage, instant messaging, and text and multimedia messaging. The latter supports threaded messaging so you'll be able to see your back and forth texts as a conversation. Along with Samsung Restore SPH-m570's pro-environment message, it also comes with an eco calculator that will measure your carbon usage, similar to the one on the LG Remarq.

As with most Sprint messaging phones, Samsung Restore SPH-m570 comes with social networking applications like MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter. Since it has GPS, it also offers Sprint Navigation and Family Locator services. Other applications included in the phone include Google services like maps, search, YouTube, and a ScanLife bar-code scanner. Along with the eco-calculator, the Restore also has "green" apps like Green Glossary and Green Guide that offer tips on how to live a more eco-friendly life. You can also do simple multitasking and send certain apps to the background.

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Palm Pixi Plus (Verizon)

Palm Pixi Plus (Verizon) is nearly identical in design to the Sprint Palm Pixi, sharing the same dimensions, 2.63 inch multi touch screen, and full QWERTY keyboard. Verizon also packages Palm Pixi Plus (Verizon) with the same accessories, which include a travel charger, a USB cable, and reference material. However, in addition to the limited edition artist series back plates, you can also choose from one of five new colored back covers, available in blue, green, orange, pink, or black.

Each costs US$ 29.99 (the artists series cost US$ 49.99 each) and all are compatible with the Touchstone charging dock. For more details about the smartphone's user interface and look and feel, please read our full review of Palm Pixi Plus (Verizon) for Sprint. For more add-ons, please check our cell phone accessories, ringtones, and help page.

Features
Obviously, the big news here is the addition of Wi-Fi. Though more of an entry level device and with 3G support, some might argue that Wi-Fi isn't a necessity, but we'd have to disagree. With all the data intensive apps on smartphones these days, it's good to have another means of connectivity. Wi-Fi can provide faster speeds for Web browsing, streaming media, or downloads, especially when a carrier's 3G network is overloaded by users; it provides another method for getting online when you're out of a 3G coverage area.

In the case of Palm Pixi Plus (Verizon), you also get the benefit of using the smartphone as a mobile Wi-Fi router. How? Glad you asked. At launch, you will be able to download a program called Palm Mobile Hotspot from the App catalog that lets you turn your Palm Pixi Plus (Verizon) into a mobile hot spot or Wi-Fi router and tether up to five devices to share a mobile broadband connection using Verizon's EV-DO Rev. A network. This feature is exclusive to the Verizon Pixi Plus and Pre Plus but we should note, it also comes with a price.

You will need to sign up for a Verizon 3G hot spot plan, which costs US$ 40 per month and comes with a 5GB data cap. If you go over the monthly allowance, you will be charged an additional five cents per MB. For comparison, the mobile broadband plans for the Sprint and Verizon MiFi's cost US$ 60 per month with the same 5GB data cap and overage fees. Aside from Wi-Fi and 3G, Palm Pixi Plus (Verizon) also offers Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP stereo Bluetooth support and built-in GPS.

As with other WebOS devices, the smartphone comes preloaded with Google Maps, which offers maps with satellite view, real time positioning, business searches, traffic data, and simple text based instructions. However, if you're after voice guided turn by turn directions, you'll have to subscribe to Verizon's location based service, VZ Navigator.

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Motorola Brute i680

Motorola Brute i680 should be able to withstand just about anything you can throw at it. It's large (3.92 inches tall by 2.09 inches wide by 1 inch deep), heavy (5.63 ounces), and is covered in a tough plastic and rubber skin. Indeed, the handset feels very solid in the hand and the sturdy hinge ensures that it opens and shuts with authority. We dropped the handset onto a concrete floor and even threw it across the room onto carpet. Both times, there wasn't a scratch and the phone kept on ticking.

Sure, the black and gray color scheme screams industrial, but this a device built for brawn over beauty. The external display is a bit bigger than a postage stamp, but it supports 65.000 colors (160x120 pixels). It supports photo caller ID, displays your recently called phone numbers, and doubles as a viewfinder for the camera. Speaking of which, the lens sits just above next to the flash. We'd prefer to have a camera shutter control on the phone's exterior, but one is not available.

On the top of the phone you'll find a speakerphone control and the standard Nextel button for accessing your recent calls list. Between them is a headset jack, which, unfortunately, is 2.5 mm (we prefer a standard 3.5mm jack). On the left spine are the volume rocker and push to talk (PTT) control. Both are large and easy to find by feel. We were glad to see that Moto included a Micro-USB port for both the charger and a USB cable. You'll find it on the right spine behind a secure rubber flap. Motorola Brute i680 is water resistant so the rear battery cover is secured by a locking mechanism.

You'll also need to remove it to access the microSD card slot. Moto doesn't include an unlocking tool in the box, but you should be able to use your fingernail. The Brute also is certified to the standard military specifications for elements like dust, shock and vibration, high and low temperature, and salt fog. The internal display measures 2.2 inches and supports 65.000 colors (220x176 pixels). Though its resolution isn't exactly eye popping, it's perfectly suitable for this caliber of phone.

Colors were bright and graphics and photos show up well. You can change the text size and the backlight time. We were glad that unlike many previous Nextel phones, Motorola Brute i680 offers a one page menu interface in a list or icon style. The spacious navigation is extremely user friendly with all controls raised above the surface of the phone. There are four directional controls with a central OK button, a dedicated menu key, two soft keys, a camera shortcut and the Talk and End or power keys.

The only thing missing is a dedicated back button. In standby mode, the up and down directional buttons open the settings menu and the recent calls list respectively; the side buttons let you cycle through the shortcut icons that sit on the display. They keypad buttons are spacious and tactile. We could text and dial quickly and we appreciate the large backlit numbers on the buttons.

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LG Lotus Elite

LG Lotus Elite carries on the fashion phone reputation of its predecessor with an unquestionably bold and unique design. Measuring 3.43 inches wide by 2.44 inches long by 0.75 inch thick, LG Lotus Elite pays homage to the original Lotus with its square shape but has a style all its own. Indeed, the Lotus Elite is much sleeker and curvier than the blocky Lotus, with rounded corners and shiny chrome detail along its borders. The phone feels like it is solidly constructed the hinge seems sturdy as well.

LG wisely debuted the Lotus Elite in a stunning bold red decorated with a whimsical floral tattoo, which appears to be a ploy to attract the female demographic. However, the biggest design update for LG Lotus Elite is with its external display. It measures 2.4 inches diagonally, which takes up quite a bit of room on such a small phone. It also boasts 262.000 colors and a 320x240 pixel resolution, which makes everything look sharp and colorful. Not only that, but the display is now a touch screen.

Indeed, you can use your finger to tap through options just as you would with any touch screen handset. The display is resistive, not capacitive, so it's not quite as responsive as the screen on the iPhone or the Nexus One, but since the external touch screen on LG Lotus Elite has access to only a limited menu of options, it's not that big a deal. The first thing you'll notice when you activate the external touch screen is that it has animated wallpaper the one we have has an animation of a flying butterfly, for example.

You will also see the typical indicators like battery and signal strength, plus the date and time. There's also an icon for any missed calls or messages. Beyond that, you can customize it so that you can access your messages, photo gallery (or slide show), speed dial contacts, recent call history, and contacts list without having to open the phone. You simply swipe horizontally across the screen to flip through them. You can also use the external display as a camera viewfinder.

You can adjust the external display's screensaver and, if you want, you can calibrate the touch screen for added accuracy. On the whole, we found the external touch screen intuitive to use. On the left side are a 2.5mm headset jack, the volume rocker, and the charger jack, while the camera key, screen lock key, and microSD card slot are on the right. On the back of the phone is a tiny little metal loop on which you can tie a cell phone charm if you wish. The LG Lotus Elite even comes with an optional red leather strap to attach to it.

Interestingly, the 2.0 megapixel camera on LG Lotus Elite is located right on the hinge of the phone. When the phone is closed, the camera lens appears on the upper left of the phone's rear. When the phone is open, the lens appears on the hinge in between the display and the keypad. Since you'll be using the internal display as a viewfinder at that point, it makes it much easier to take self portraits. Flip open the phone and you'll find another 2.4 inch display with the same color support and pixel resolution. Unlike the external display, though, the internal one is not a touch screen.

It does feature Sprint's OneClick interface, which is a center carousel of shortcut tiles along the bottom row of the home screen. This lets you quickly access phone functions like your messages, your account details, Sprint Navigation, your Yahoo Mail, and more. Notable shortcuts include quick views of your Facebook, Twitter, and MySpace accounts, plus a Google menu that gives you access to Google search, Gmail, and YouTube. You can easily add and remove shortcut tiles from the OneClick carousel. You can adjust the display's brightness, the backlight time, the font size for messages, the browser, the notepad, the dial digits, and applications, and you can have picture IDs for contacts, unsaved numbers, and private or unknown numbers. The main menu can be arranged in either grid view or list view.

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LG Neon GT365

LG Neon GT365 provides tri-band GSM coverage (850/1800/1900 MHz) for voice as well as GPRS or EDGE connectivity for receiving data. AT&T's EDGE network offers availability in more than 13.000 US cities and along some 40.000 miles of major highways. Providing average data speeds between 75-135Kbps, it's fast enough to support a wide range of advanced data services, including full picture messaging, high speed color Internet access, and email on the go.

The phone has a built-in web browser for MEdia Net downloads and mobile web browsing. AT&T's MEdia Net service enables you to receive and send emails, read news headlines, get weather updates, download games and ringtones, and more. You'll be able to access the AT&T Mobile Music services, which enables you to access the Napster and eMusic subscription music services, stream music video, discover what's playing with Music ID song recognition software, and find out what's hot with The Buzz music news portal.

LG Neon GT365 Features
LG Neon GT365 has a 2.4 inch LCD with a 240 x 400 pixel resolution and support for 262K colors, and it also has an accelerometer for auto rotation of the screen when you turn it from portrait to landscape view. Below the screen you'll find a colorfully organized four button navigator that's complemented by send or end keys and two soft navigation keys. When you press the dialer button at the bottom left corner of the LG Neon GT365's navigation area, you'll be able to quickly dial numbers using the touchscreen dialer.

All other functions are accessed via the physical navigation keys. The Home screen menu from LG Neon GT365's Flash user interface (UI) provides quick access to your calendar, alarm clock and digital audio player, and it provides an intuitive tab-based layout for accessing phone, multimedia and other tools. LG Neon GT365 also offers a three row full QWERTY keyboard that smoothly slides out from the left side of the phone (when viewed in tall portrait mode). LG Neon GT365 comes with a small 14 MB internal memory, which is expandable via optional microSD memory cards (up to 4 GB in size).

The internal phonebook can store up to 1000 contacts, with each entry providing space for up to four phone numbers, one email address, and a picture ID. The phone also includes nine speed dial options (eight entries plus one voicemail) and support for caller groups as well as designating a specific ringtone to a contact. Hands free communication is easy thanks to the integrated speakerphone. This phone also provides Bluetooth wireless connectivity (version 2.0), and includes profiles for communication headset, hands free car kits, and file transfer.

With the A2DP Bluetooth profile, you can stream your music to a pair of compatible Bluetooth stereo headphones. You can also wirelessly send contacts, calendar events, notes and pictures. LG Neon GT365 can save up to 20 Bluetooth pairings. The digital audio player is compatible with MP3, AAC/AAC+, and WMA files, and it allows you to create and manage playlists directly on LG Neon GT365. Other features include a customizable equalizer and visualization, the ability to multitask in other phone applications while still playing music, and easy transfer of files from your PC via USB (optional cable available separately).

LG Neon GT365 also includes a flight mode, which allows you to continue playing music while turning off the cellular radio. The 2 megapixel camera offers four resolution modes (1600 x 1200, 1280 x 960, 640 x 480, and 320 x 240 pixels) and it has up to a 4x digital zoom (depending on resolution selection). It also features white balance and brightness controls, multi shot capabilities, night mode for enhanced imagery in low light conditions, multiple quality options, and your choice of shutter tones (including silent). Additionally, this phone can capture video clips with audio in either 320 x 240 or 176 x 144 pixel resolutions with up to a 2x digital zoom. You can record clips up to 32 seconds for sending via MMS messaging or up to 60 minutes for saving to your PC.

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LG Xenon GR500

LG Xenon GR500 can quickly download video, music and more over AT&T's lightning quick HSPDA 3G network. Additionally, with AT&T's 3G network, you can listen to a conference call on a headset while sending and receiving e-mail attachments, picture messages or Web pages at the same time. This GPS enabled phone can access the AT&T Navigator service for turn by turn directions as well as its Video Share serve, which enables you to send video of yourself to another compatible phone while making a voice call.

LG Xenon GR500's large touchscreen with vibration feedback and enhanced user interface make menus, shortcuts, and contacts available right at your fingertips. And with its compact, slideout QWERTY keyboard, you can quickly send text messages and emails. Other features include a 2 megapixel camera or camcorder, Bluetooth for handsfree devices and stereo music streaming, MicroSD memory expansion (up to 16 GB), organizer tools, access to mobile email and instant messaging, and up to 4 hours of talk time.

AT&T Service
This AT&T phone can handle high speed data connectivity via AT&T's 3G mobile broadband data network, which is available in most major metropolitan areas. The AT&T 3G network uses the dual band 850 and 1900 MHz 3G network (UMTS/HSDPA), which provides download speeds ranging from 700 Kbps to 1.7 Mbps, and upload speeds ranging from 500 Kbps to 1.2 Mbps. This makes it possible to enjoy a variety of feature rich wireless multimedia services, and it gives you the advantage of offering simultaneous voice and data services.

In areas where the 3G network is not available, you'll continue to receive service on the AT&T EDGE network, which offers availability in more than 13.000 US cities and along some 40.000 miles of major highways. Providing average data speeds between 75-135Kbps, the Xenon is fast enough to support a wide range of advanced data services, including video and music clips, full picture and video messaging, high speed color Internet access, and email on the go. You'll also enjoy quad-band GSM connectivity, which allows you to make calls in more than 190 countries and access data applications in the more than 135 countries where AT&T offers international data roaming.

With 3G connectivity, you'll be able to access AT&T's Video Share service, which enables you to send a live, one way video stream to another compatible phone during a standard voice call. The service also allows you to switch the direction of the video stream during the same phone call. (Customers must be in an area served by the company's 3G network and have a Video Share enabled phone.) While using Video Share with family and friends is a fun way to communicate, it's also very useful for business.

For example, a majority of users in the architecture, engineering and construction industries rated the ability to share live video through Video Share highly, according to research commissioned by AT&T. Video Share lets you see progress on a job site or review the day's work without having to drive from an office or other site to do so. You can take advantage of the AT&T Navigator GPS software and service, a full featured premium navigation application that includes audible turn by turn directions, real time traffic updates and re-routing options, and 3D moving maps (additional charges applicable).

AT&T Navigator offers several other features to make your commute more enjoyable and reliable, including mobile access to Yellowpages.com. Additionally, AT&T Navigator is the only mobile phone-based GPS service that provides integrated speech recognition for address entry and points of interest search. With 3G connectivity, you'll be able to access AT&T's Cellular Video (CV) service and the Internet while on the go. Cellular Video features content from CNN, The Weather Channel, iFilm, Comedy Central and exclusive premium content from HBO and much more.

And you get access to AT&T Mobile Music, which enables you to buy tracks while on the, access the Napster and eMusic subscription music services, stream music video, discover what's playing with Music ID song recognition software, and find out what's hot with The Buzz music news portal. LG Xenon GR500 has a built-in web browser for MEdia Net downloads and mobile web browsing. AT&T's MEdia Net service enables you to receive and send emails, read news headlines, get weather updates, download games and ringtones, and more. LG Xenon GR500's also pre-loaded with AT&T's Mobile Banking application, which is compatible with accounts from banks including Wachovia, SunTrust, Synovus, and BancorpSouth.

Mobile Banking from AT&T affords you the flexibility to stay on top of your banking needs while you're on the move, enabling you to check your account balance, securely transfer funds between your eligible accounts, view and pay bills, and review your transaction history. AT&T customers pay no additional fee to access mobile banking and, because the application resides on the handset, the service is optimized to reduce the number of new page views necessary to complete a transaction. Minimal data usage charges apply and vary based on individual use.

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Samsung Intrepid SPH-i350 (Sprint)

Samsung Intrepid SPH-i350 (Sprint) isn't much of a looker. It measures 2.4 by 4.9 by 0.5 inches (HWD) and weighs 4.3 ounces. It's finished in black plastic with a dark chrome band around the front panel edge. The 2.6 inch plastic resistive touch screen offers just 320 by 240 pixel resolution. It's small and stubborn enough that you'll need the stylus tucked into the bottom right corner for just about anything not on the home screen or main menu (more on that later).

Six function keys bracket a large, rectangular five way control pad all were easy to press in regular use. The four row QWERTY keyboard felt a little cheap, but it was fine for modest typing chores. As a dual-band EV-DO Rev A (800/1900 MHz), quad-band GSM (850/900/1800/1900 MHz) and UMTS (2100 MHz) device, Samsung Intrepid SPH-i350 (Sprint) is a true world phone just as its namesake implies. It also includes Wi-Fi. Voice quality was solid in both directions, with a trebly, crisp tone in the earpiece and good wind rejection.

Reception was average. Annoyingly, the OS couldn't keep up with dialing numbers all the tone sounds piled up a second or two afterward and cut each other off. The booming speakerphone was plenty loud for outdoor use. Calls sounded fine through a Plantronics Voyager Pro Bluetooth headset. Battery life was excellent at 6 hours and 34 minutes of talk time.

Windows Mobile, Business Support, and Apps
Without the proper tuning a la HTC TouchFLO or Samsung TouchWiz, Windows Mobile looks archaic. Version 6.5 brought a much needed refresh to the home screen which actually looks and works nicely, with its larger buttons and clearer fonts. But the rest of the OS remains ugly and outdated right down to the old school touch screen calibration process on first start up. At least Internet Explorer Mobile 6 is slightly improved from earlier horrific versions, and even renders static

Flash content in a pinch. But it renders desktop pages very slowly and hangs up loading scripts, and the touch screen controls still feel like an afterthought. As a proper Microsoft powered smartphone, Samsung Intrepid SPH-i350 (Sprint) views, creates, and edits Microsoft Word and Excel documents, and views PowerPoint files. It connects to Microsoft Outlook and Microsoft Exchange Server accounts for Direct Push e-mail.

The Intrepid isn't a bad smartphone for third party apps, thanks to its 528 MHz Qualcomm MSM7600 processor, 266MB of free internal storage, and 193MB of total RAM, with a generous 153MB available for user programs. A microSD card is located underneath the battery cover and off to the side. You have to pull the battery to swap cards, which is a royal pain. An ill fitting battery cover compounded the misery it always took five or six tries to seat properly. Multimedia fans get the usual compliment of Sprint Power Vision services, including dozens of Sprint TV channels (live and simulcast), Sprint NFL Mobile Live, and NASCAR Sprint Cup Mobile.

The GPS radio hooks into the TeleNav powered Sprint Navigation for voice enabled, turn by turn directions. Samsung Intrepid SPH-i350 (Sprint) locked onto my location quickly and spoke clearly, although the low-res screen and Windows Mobile's fixed upper and lower UI bars made for a tiny map window. Sprint included quick links to Facebook, Twitter, and Flickr for social networking duties. Instant messaging was a disappointment, the tabbed interface works with AIM, Windows Live, and Yahoo accounts, but charges for each message as a 20 cent SMS.

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Doro PhoneEasy 345gsm

Doro PhoneEasy 345gsm is a comfortably sized candy bar style phone at 4.9 by 2 by .6 inches (HWD) and 3.5 ounces, coated in a soft touch black or white plastic. The phone has huge rubberized buttons and a bright enough, basic 1.8 inch 128 by 96 colors LCD screen with large fonts. At US$40, with no contract service plans from Consumer Cellular starting at US$10 a month, Doro PhoneEasy 345gsm is extremely affordable.

Consumer Cellular uses AT&ampT's physical network, but charges less than the major carriers do per minute for light users (though they don't offer free nights and weekends.) But here's the design flaw. Doro PhoneEasy 345gsm has a "panic button" on the back that calls a user programmed number if you press it three times. The panic button is exactly where it put my index finger when I'm holding the phone up to my ear. This is very annoying. Now, not everyone puts their finger in that location.

Doro PhoneEasy 345gsm is a decent voice phone, but I like its stablemate the PhoneEasy 410gsm better. Like the 410gsm, Doro PhoneEasy 345gsm gets better reception and sounds better than AT&ampT's other simple phone, the Pantech Breeze. But Doro PhoneEasy 345gsm sounded a bit muddier, both on receive and transmit, than the 410 it was still acceptable, just not as good as its cousin.

The speakerphone was loud but sounded hollow. Like the 410gsm, Doro PhoneEasy 345gsm has a powerful vibrate mode and comes with 20 ringtones, including classical music and traditional phone rings. It connected with my Plantronics Voyager Pro Bluetooth headset without a problem.

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Samsung Instinct HD (Sprint)

First of all, it has an awesome camera. Recorded HD (1280 by 720) and VGA videos were sharp, super smooth, and well lit only the flat colors and slightly pixelated look gave away the tiny cell phone lens. Photos taken with the 5 megapixel still mode looked very sharp outdoors, with plenty of detail in bricks, grass, and tree leaves. There was quite a bit of noise in darker rooms indoors, but shots were acceptably sharp and detailed with enough light.

Shutter speeds were about one second even with auto focus, and the phone recovered almost instantly after every shot. To play back HD video (either recorded or sideloaded), you have to attach a US$29.99 HDMI cable, sold separately. When do you want converted a few 720p movie trailers to MP4, sideloaded them to the microSD card, and hooked up the Instinct HD to a 42 inch plasma HDTV. The video even played simultaneously on the Instinct HD's screen. (The TV only shows video output, incidentally not UI graphics.)

Other media features here are flexible, but inconvenient and buggy at times. You need to pull off the stiff battery cover and remove the battery to replace the memory card. My 16GB SanDisk microSD card worked fine, and Sprint tosses a 4GB card in the box. The phone has a standard size 3.5 mm headphone jack. AAC, WMA, and MP3 music tracks sounded clear over Motorola S9-HD Bluetooth headphones. The music player displayed album art when available.

Various Sprint themed services like NFL Mobile Live and NASCAR come as part of Sprint's Everything plan, and you can buy music tracks over the air from Sprint's music store. I ran into several glitches playing music and video. The volume inexplicably started deafeningly loud on every track for the first quarter second, and the unit hard reset itself in the middle of an MP3 track.

Popping the battery and microSD card reset it. The video player oddly forced me into the TV app when it was done, even though I hadn't been using Sprint TV. The Instinct HD has the right hardware for gaming with its large touch screen and accelerometer. But it wouldn't run any of our Java benchmarks, and the one preloaded game demo ran poorly. It appears all that CPU horsepower is geared toward HD video.

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RIM BlackBerry Bold - black (AT&T)

When you first lay eyes on RIM BlackBerry Bold - black (AT&T), the words "sleek," "sexy," and "cool" don't exactly to come to mind. At 4.5 inches high by 2.6 inches wide by 0.6 inch deep and 4.8 ounces, RIM BlackBerry Bold - black (AT&T) is bulky and wide, making for a bit of a tight fit in a pants pocket. It doesn't exactly take your breath away like the iPhone 3G, but that's not to say it's a bad looking phone. RIM BlackBerry Bold - black (AT&T) chassis and silver trim are attractive enough and the rounded edges give the handset a streamlined design.

Plus, if you turn the phone over, you'll notice that the back has a leatherette texture (no more slick plastic), providing a sophisticated look. If you want to customize your device a bit, RIM will sell replaceable backplates in different colors, including blue, gray, and red, for $29.99 each, which is a little pricey in our opinion. Now while the overall design isn't particularly flashy, the true beauty of RIM BlackBerry Bold - black (AT&T) lies in the display. The smartphone boasts a 2.75 inch half VGA, non-touch screen that shows off 65.000 colors at a crisp 480x320 pixel resolution.

It's quite possibly the best looking screen we've seen on a smartphone to date. The iPhone and HTC Touch Diamond come close, but we did a quick comparison between the iPhone and Bold and found that pictures on the Bold looked slightly smoother and crisper. Colors pop on the screen and video playback was truly impressive. With such a beautiful screen, we're glad to see that RIM BlackBerry Bold - black (AT&T) features an updated user interface, much like the RIM BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220.

Some of the new icons are a bit difficult to identify at a glance (e.g., downloads, applications, and settings), but as you scroll over, each item is identified by name along the bottom. As usual, you can customize the home screen with various themes, background images, font size and type, and backlight brightness and time out. Below the display, you get the standard navigation controls, which include Talk and End or power keys, a menu shortcut, a back button, and a trackball navigator. The one benefit of the phone's wider size is that these buttons are plenty large and easy to press.

RIM BlackBerry Bold - black (AT&T) has a QWERTY keyboard that RIM likened to a modernized Curve keyboard, but it reminded us more of the BlackBerry 8830. We know some 8800 series users had issues with the keyboard, but we didn't have any problems with the Bold. The keyboard buttons are of a good size and have a nice tactile feel to them. We were able to compose e-mails and text messages with minimal errors. They're also backlit for easy typing in darker environments.

On the left spine, you will find a 3.5 mm headphone jack, a mini USB port, a customizable shortcut key, and a microSD or SDHC expansion slot. The right side holds the volume rocker and another user programmable convenience key. There's a mute button on top of the handset, and the camera and flash are located on the back. AT&T packages RIM BlackBerry Bold - black (AT&T) with an AC adapter, a USB cable, a wired headset, a software CD, and reference material. For more add-ons, please check our cell phone accessories, ringtones, and help page.

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HTC Imagio (Verizon Wireless)

Though HTC Imagio (Verizon Wireless) touts itself as a multimedia smartphone, it is not as flashy as other multimedia focused hand helds. This is not to say it isn't attractive indeed, we love the large touch screen display as well as the smooth edges and tapered corners. But the dimpled bezel surrounding the display, which doubles as the speaker, and the thick plastic casing gives it more of a hefty industrial feel. Measuring 4.6 inches tall by 2.4 inches wide by 0.5 inch thick and weighing 5.25 ounces, HTC Imagio (Verizon Wireless) has quite a sturdy construction and is not at all flimsy or cheap.

The back of HTC Imagio (Verizon Wireless) is partially covered in a matte black soft touch finish, which gives it a comfortable feel in the hand. By far the most stunning thing about HTC Imagio (Verizon Wireless)'s appearance is its large 3.6 inch WVGA touch screen. It has 65.000 colors output, 480x800 pixel resolution, and a smooth glass surface, which result in beautifully crisp images and sharp text. The extra screen real estate lends itself well to Web page scrolling and video viewing as well.

Also handy is the built-in accelerometer that switches the screen from portrait to landscape mode when you rotate the phone. This is only applicable in certain situations, though, like with the Web browser, e-mail, photos, and videos. Even though HTC Imagio (Verizon Wireless) does not have the Touch branding. Like that on the HTC Touch Pro2, you get additional tabs for the Calendar and Stock quotes, plus the ability to add and remove tabs on the Home screen. We also really like that the Start menu is presented in a grid view, which you can customize with different apps and settings.

HTC Imagio (Verizon Wireless) has a resistive touch screen rather than a capacitive one. We usually complain about this because resistive displays require more precision than capacitive screens, but in the case of HTC Imagio (Verizon Wireless), we were quite pleased with it. The touch screen felt responsive and easy to use, even when we were just using our fingers instead of the included stylus. We even liked the onscreen QWERTY keyboard, especially since it supports XT9 auto word complete and tapping the keys provides haptic feedback.

We do prefer using the keyboard in landscape mode rather than in portrait mode, however, as the keys are a bit bigger, thus resulting in fewer mistakes. The zoom in and out bar underneath the display helped a lot when reading and selecting hyperlinks in the Web browser as well, since you could just zoom in easily by sliding your finger on the bar. It does take a couple of seconds for the page to render when zooming in, though. Underneath the zoom controls are the Talk and End or Power keys, a media key, the Start menu key, and a back key.

The media key can be mapped to any media application, like V Cast TV, V Cast Video, or the music player. The keys are flat, but there is enough delineation between each key that they weren't hard to press. The volume rocker is on the right spine and the mini-USB port and 3.5 mm headset jack are on the bottom. On the back is the camera lens plus an antenna that doubles as a kickstand simply press the release button and it'll pop out. This way you can set HTC Imagio (Verizon Wireless) on a flat surface and watch videos as if it were a portable television. Also on the back toward the lower right is the stylus compartment. The microSD card slot is inconveniently located behind the battery cover on the right side.

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Samsung Omnia II (Verizon Wireless)

Like many of the touch screen smartphones available today, Samsung Omnia II (Verizon Wireless) has a candy bar design but it is slightly on the bulkier side at 4.69 inches tall by 2.35 inches wide by 0.52 inch thick and weighing 4.76 ounces. However, there's good reason for the extra size and that's the gorgeous 3.7 inch WVGA (800x480 pixels) AMOLED touch screen. When compared with the first Omnia and other touch screen smartphones, videos and photos look amazing on Samsung Omnia II (Verizon Wireless).

It has a smoother picture, wider viewing angles, and higher contrast. Also, a built-in accelerometer changes the screen orientation when you rotate the phone for certain applications like the Web browser, messages, photos, and video. Also, while the smartphone's touch screen is resistive and requires a bit more pressure than a capacitive touch screen to move among various home screen panes, we found it quite responsive and didn't require the precision of a stylus to select items.

We should note that the touch screen was a bit temperamental when we first used it, but after realigning the screen with the stylus, everything was fine. Below the display, you get Talk and End or Power keys and a Main Menu key (more on this later). There is an OK button, but it's on the left side of the phone along with the 3.5 mm headphone jack and volume rocker. The microSD expansion slot is also located on this side but you'll have to remove the stylish red battery door to access it.

On the right spine, you'll find the stylus, a Micro-USB port, a lock key, and a camera activation or capture button. Last but not least, the camera and flash are located on the back. The only thing we missed was having a back button for returning to the previous screen, since an on screen option wasn't always available. While the physical aspects of Samsung Omnia II (Verizon Wireless) aren't radically different from the competition, the smartphone's does have some unique "design" features are beneath the surface.

For one thing, it offers an on screen portrait and landscape QWERTY keyboard with Swype technology, which Webware previewed a while back. Instead of pecking at individual keys, Swype lets spell out a word by dragging your finger on the keyboard from letter to letter. Swype's algorithm then does its best to figure out what word you're trying to input it also automatically enters a space after you complete a word and includes certain tricks, such as circling a key to input a letter twice. Admittedly, we were very skeptical of Swype.

However, to our surprise, it worked and was mostly accurate. We ran into some problems when entering terms that weren't true words, such as an IM handle, though Swype will try to come up a list of possible results. It also takes some adjustment to enter long words since you have keep your finger on the screen the whole time. Still, we were always amazed when it came up with the correct word. Samsung also completely redid the main menu page. Pressing the menu key below the display will bring up a grid view of all your phone's apps. There 12 icons per page and each page is customizable so you can rearrange the apps in the order you want.

All you have to do is press the Edit button on the bottom of the screen and at that point you can move the icons to any position on any menu page. Pages will be added as you add more applications to your phone, and you can move among pages by swiping your finger left to right or vice versa. Right next to the Edit button is one of our favorite additions the new Task Switcher function. This feature shows you all your running applications in thumbnail visuals and lets you easily switch between tasks, exit out of an app, or end all running programs. It alleviates one of the biggest problems of Windows Mobile, which was multitasking. In fact, TouchWiz 2.0 in general does a good job making the OS more easy to use, so much so you can hardly tell it's a Windows Mobile smartphone.

Finally, like the Samsung Behold II, Samsung Omnia II (Verizon Wireless) offers the 3D cube interface for the phone's various multimedia capabilities. However, unlike the Behold II, there is also a toolbar on the where you can launch the same entertainment apps with a simple tap, which is much more functional than the gimmicky cube. Overall, TouchWiz 2.0 makes much more sense and is more useful on Samsung Omnia II (Verizon Wireless) than the Behold II, as it provides the customization abilities that Windows Mobile lacks and offers a much more intuitive user interface.

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Sanyo SCP-6760 Incognito (Sprint)

Sanyo SCP-6760 Incognito (Sprint) takes a cue from a few other cell phones before it. We've seen its horizontal flip design on handsets like the LG enV Touch, but this is the first time it's been on a Sanyo phone. The sturdy handset measures 3.7 inches tall by 2.2 inches wide by 0.7 inch thick and is a tad heavy at 4.3 ounces. Its reflective skin catches the light and doubles as a mirror, though it also attracts smudges by the ton. The flap opens just short of 180 degrees, but you can view the internal display at a slight angle when holding the phone in your hands.

Also, we like that Sanyo SCP-6760 Incognito (Sprint) doesn't wobble when you rest it in a table in the open position. The face of the Incognito is more than just a shiny surface it's also a large alphanumeric touch pad and navigation array. It's invisible when the backlighting is off, but a flick of the small switch on the left spine will activate the controls that include a standard 12 digit keypad, a back key, the Talk and End buttons, four directional arrows, and a central OK button.

The keys need just a light press and a vibrating feedback lets you know that your touch has registered. The arrangement is quite spacious so you shouldn't have a problem pressing the wrong key. Though Sanyo SCP-6760 Incognito (Sprint)'s design is unique, it's not always easy to use. As you'd expect, the touch surface is slippery and you'll leave a visible fingerprint with every press. We'd also like more customization options as it is you can't change the backlighting time, the touch sensitivity, or the intensity of the vibrating feedback.

We also didn't like the tiny external display. Not only is it monochrome so it won't show photo caller ID, but also you can access only a few menu options. Though we admit that we'd rather use the internal display under most circumstances, we'd like to see some color here at the very least. On Sanyo SCP-6760 Incognito (Sprint)'s right spine you'll find the microSD card slot, Micro-USB charger port, a voice dialing control, and the volume rocker. The latter is a bit small and located too close to the bottom of the phone.

The camera lens sits on the rear side next to a speaker. Sanyo SCP-6760 Incognito (Sprint) doesn't allow for self portraits. On the bottom of the device is the 2.5 mm headset jack; we'd prefer a 3.5 mm jack on a music phone. The internal display measures 2.6 inches and supports 262.000 colors (320x240 pixels). It's bright and vibrant with sharp colors and graphics and the menu interface is easy to use.

As on similar phones the display has a landscape orientation for easier messaging. Sprint also adds its own spin with the carrier's OneClick interface, which offers customizable shortcuts to favorite features. You can change the display brightness and backlighting time. Users with visual impairments should note that the font size on both displays can be quite small.

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Motorola Droid (Verizon Wireless)

Officially announced on October 28 and set for a November 6 release, Motorola Droid (Verizon Wireless) delivers on much of the hype. The display is gorgeous, the Android 2.0 updates are excellent, and the handset is lightning fast, particularly for an Android phone. We'll refrain from using the dreaded "iPhone killer" expression, but comparisons between the two devices are obvious, and we see the Droid as a real competitor to Apple's device.

On the downside, Motorola weren't crazy about the keyboard and dial-pad accessibility, the calendars aren't fully integrated, and we'd prefer to see dual mode (GSM or CDMA) capability. But for Verizon's first pass at Android, Motorola Droid (Verizon Wireless) more than delivers. And even better, it's a clear departure from Verizon's locked down past. At US$199, Motorola Droid (Verizon Wireless) is on par with T-Mobile's Android device, but it's slightly more expensive than Sprint's devices.

At first glance, you might not think Motorola Droid (Verizon Wireless)'s design amounts to much. Its build is rather dull and the sharp angles result in a boxy look. But this is a smartphone with a lot of surprises, the biggest being the positively gorgeous WVGA display. At 3.7 inches, it surpasses even the iPhone and is firmly in the bounds of what we consider to be an acceptable size for a touch screen display. Color support is generous (16 million hues) and the resolution (440x854 pixels) is some of the richest we've seen.

We aren't kidding when we say that this display is bright and brilliant with vibrant colors and sharp graphics. It also lends itself well to the welcome Android 2.0 interface updates (more on that later). The capacitive display's touch interface is quick and responsive and we love the added multi touch capability. As with previous Android phones, there's vibrating feedback only for certain functions (like a "long press"), though you can turn off the haptic feedback completely if you desire. When we selected items and scrolled through long lists, there was no lag time in performing the command (more on that later, as well).

You also can customize the display's brightness, backlighting time, and animations. The accelerometer will adjust the display's orientation as you rotate Motorola Droid (Verizon Wireless) in your hands, but you can turn this feature off. Outside of the upgrades from Android 2.0 and Motorola Droid (Verizon Wireless) specific tweaks, the basic interface will be familiar to Android users. You get only three home screens we prefer the five we got on the Motorola Cliq but you can customize each pane with widgets. And, of course, the central pane has the Google search bar. The main menu is accessible via the pull tab at the bottom of the display. The menu's design is mostly unchanged. You can move icons around and add shortcuts and folders.

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