Nokia, the world's leading mobile phone manufacturer recently released the Nokia Surge. Competitively priced, it is a low cost Symbian smartphone that comes with a slide-out QWERTY keyboard for heavy texters.

Weighing only 4.4 ounces, it is well constructed and has great build quality. The phone is presented in a glossy black finish and the slide mechanism clicks smoothly into place. Key layout is great and spaced well enough for convenient messaging. Feedback from key input is good and accurate.

The Surge comes with a pretty 2.4 inch, 320 x 240 pixel LCD which is crisp and bright. UI (User Interface) graphics is a bit dated and certainly needs an upgrade. Surprisingly the Surge does not come with touch screen features. Calling is a bit cumbersome as the QWERTY keyboard is needed for dialing out numbers.

The Nokia surge is quad-band GSM/ EDGE phone and is capable of operating with most networks in the world. A Wi-Fi feature does not come with the phone and is a letdown for heavy online users. Call quality was good and phone signal was adequate. 3G receptions was good, scoring average in tests done. Speakerphone was a bit soft and was difficult to hear in a moving car. Call quality however is greatly improved by aftermarket Bluetooth devices. The Surge together with a good headset provided better quality and voices were clearer. Static could sometimes be noticed but were far and few to affect call experience. Battery life is rated at 5 hour talk time and a less than average one week standby time.

Calling features include a conference call feature which is standard for most Nokia phones. The Surge also provides one of the most accurate experiences in terms of voice dialing functions. A speaker-independent voice dialing option is offered which makes making calls easier and fast.

For messaging, the Surge is packed with amazing email features. SMS were not threaded and conveniently shown individually. Adding contacts through SMS took extra clicks an area which the Surge could have done better. Mobile messaging and email applications were great with support for major email providers. Instant messaging features include AOL, MSN, and Yahoo messenger.

Listening to your favorite music tracks was excellent with the phones music player. The phone comes with a good music player and playback options were plenty. Creating a playlist was a breeze with the Nokia PC Suite software. The Surge comes with 16GB of storage space, storing loads of images and music tracks was not a problem and an option for an additional memory card is available. Synchronizing the phone was easy with a USB, transferring files was quick and convenient with this option.

Web browsing was average and download times were good. The Surge uses Flash Lite for surfing qnd provided good feel while going online. The application however had glitches for sites like YouTube. Overall online experience was good and was ahead of similar range phones.

Camera is a 2 megapixel shooter and does not come with flash or autofocus. Images were quite disappointing with pictures appearing dark and a hint of red color. Sending pictures via MMS was quick and simple. Uploading pictures to your favorite online social network is not available and could have been a welcome feature for the phone.

Overall, the Nokia Surge is a great smartphone to own and passes beyond mediocrity. It comes with a great keyboard, and good web browser. But the Symbian OS is not a user-friendly enough and it does not have advanced SMS and IM options. The Surge however is competitively priced and is a good bargain for smartphone hunters.

UPC	12
Brand	Samsung
Model	Samsung SGH-E250
Battery Type	Li - Ion
Battery Capacity	750 mAh
Battery Talk Time	5.00 hours
Standby Time	250 hours
GSM Bands	900/1800/1900
CDMA Bands	N/A
Operating System	N/A
OS Version	N/A
Processor	N/A
Memory	N/A
Unveiled on	N/A
Display Type	Color
Display Technology	TFT
Display Size	128 x 160 pixels
Display Colors	65 536
Display Physical Size	2.00 inches
Display Features	N/A
Additional Display Type	N/A
Additional Display Size	N/A
Additional Display Colors	N/A
Additional Display Physical Size	N/A
Multiple SIM Cards Support	N/A
Design Form Factor	Slider
Design of Antenna	Internal
Dimensions	3.93 x 1.96 x 0.55 (99,49,75 x 49,75 x 13,93 mm)
Weight	2.85 oz (80,60 g)
Global Roaming System	Yes
Accelerometer	N/A
GPS	N/A
TTY TDD Enabled	N/A
Camera and Video Camera Type	Built-in - Immobile
Camera and Video Camera Resolution	0.3 megapixels VGA
Camera and Video Camera Video Capture	Yes
Camera and Video Camera Flash	N/A
Camera and Video Camera Features	N/A
Camera and Video Camera More	Digital zoom, Multi shot, Effects, Self-timer
Camera and Video Video Playback Protocols	N/A
Camera and Video Video Playback Features	N/A
Connectivity Data More	GPRS/EDGE
Data Max Speed	N/A
Internet Browsing Protocols	WAP 2.0
Internet Browsing Features	N/A
Infrared Port	N/A
Bluetooth Version	2.0
Bluetooth Profiles	Headset (HSP)/Handsfree (HFP)/Dial-up networking (DUN)/File Transfer (FTP)/Object Push (OPP)/Generic Access (GAP)/Serial Port (SPP)/Service Discovery Application (SDAP)/Basic Printing (BPP)/Generic Audio/Video Distribution (GAVDP)/Advanced Audio Distribution (A2DP)/Audio/Visual Remote Control Profile (AVRCP)
Bluetooth Features	N/A
Wireless LAN Type	N/A
USB Type	N/A
USB Version	N/A
Proprietory	N/A
SyncML	N/A
Computer Synchronization	Yes
HeadSet Jack 2 5mm	N/A
Head Jack 3 5mm	N/A
TV Out	N/A
External Antenna	N/A
Pop Port	N/A
Full Keyboard	N/A
Touch Screen	N/A
Side Keys Left	Volume keys
Side Keys Right	N/A
Predictive Text Input Support	N/A
Predictive Text Input Type	T9
Memory Expansion Slot Type	microSD
Memory Built in	7.6 MB
Message Text Send Receive	Yes
Message EMS	Yes
Message MMS	Yes
Message Instant Messaging More	N/A
Message Instant Messaging Services	N/A
Message E mail Protocols	IMAP/POP3/SMTP
Message E mail Features	N/A
Music AND Audio Music Player Protocols	MP3, AAC, AAC+
Music AND Audio Music Player Features	Music player
Music AND Audio Radio	FM Radio
Music AND Audio FM Transmitter	N/A
Voice Dialing	N/A
Voice Commands	N/A
Voice Recording	Yes
Voice Speaker	Yes
Voice VoIP	N/A
Regulatory Approval SAR Head	0.48
Regulatory Approval SAR Body	0.54
Regulatory Approval SAR Measured in	1900 MHz
Polyphonic Rings Voices	N/A
Notifications Polyphonic Rings Features	MP3 ringtones
Vibration Alert	Yes
Alarm	Yes
Calendar	Yes
Calculator	Yes
TO DO	N/A
Stopwatch	Yes
Flashlight	N/A
Organizer Other	World Clock, Timer, Memo, Converter
Document Viewer Support	N/A
Document Viewer Supported formats	N/A
Book Features	Caller groups supported
Book Capacity	1000
Book Multiple Numbers Per Contact	Yes
Book Picture ID	Yes
Book Ring ID	Yes
Personalization Faceplates	N/A
Personalization Profiles	Yes
Games	Yes plus JAVA downloadable
JAVA Profile	Midp 2.0
JAVA Configuration	N/A
Wireless LAN Support	N/A
Messaging E mail More	N/A
Software JAVA Support	N/A
Connectivity Internet Browsing Support	N/A
Connectivity Bluetooth Support	N/A
Connectivity USB More	Yes
Battery Talk time 3G	N/A
Battery Stand by time 3G	N/A
Battery Video call time	N/A
Battery Music playback	N/A
Battery Video playback	N/A
Battery Gaming	N/A
Battery GPS usage	N/A

The next full touch offering from AT&T and Samsung, the Samsung Solstice?„?, is a communication and entertainment gateway at your fingertips! This 3G/HSDPA device boasts a large, responsive touch screen with an accelerometer, full touch QWERTY keyboard, and a crisp QVGA display. It??™s customizable Widget bar functionality conveniently brings the user one touch access to their most used features right to their idle screen. And with quick access to Facebook and MySpace, they can always stay in touch with friends. Fully loaded with Mobile Email, Instant Messenger, Mobile Web, AT&T Navigator, AT&T Music and a 2.0 MP camera/camcorder, this device keeps you connected, at the touch of a finger.