Windows Phone Thoughts: Pocketing Samsung's SPH-i700: The Ultimate Connected Pocket PC?

Hardware (continued)
The cradle
Samsung has bundled an interesting cradle with the device. The device "reclines" in the cradle, using side clips to hold it in and down against the sync connector. It is not difficult to one-hand it in this fashion, although I'm personally not a huge fan of the angle; while it makes it easier to use it as a "stand" to interact with the i700, I prefer to keep my cradles further back and have my device at a steeper (viewing) angle.


Figure 10: The i700 cradle.


Figure 11: The i700 cradle, with the device inserted into it.

The cradle does have a few nice touches: it has an extra battery slot in which you can charge an extra battery irrespective of whether or not the i700 itself is docked. There's a separate LED on the front to let you know the extra battery's charge status. There's also a cutout so that you can insert and remove the SD card without removing the i700 from its cradle, and a little hole in the front to hold an extra stylus.

Like most other Pocket PC cradles, the AC adapter plugs into the cradle to enable it to become a charge-and-sync solution. Samsung also offers a charge-and-sync cable that works in a similar way, minus the extra battery charger.

The screen
As a reflective-color-screen user for most of my Pocket PC career, it was not difficult to be impressed by the brilliance of transflective displays, and I drooled at my coworker's 3975 the day he got it. The 3975's display is generally considered one of the best transflectives on the market, but I think I've finally found a unit whose display rivals or even beats the iPAQs indoors. The i700's is that good. Click on the pictures to show a bigger version.


Figure 12: The Today Screen on four devices. From left to right, the XDA, the 2215, the i700, and the 3975 on maximum brightness. Adjusting the brightness doesn't affect the contrasts as shown here; adjusting the angle does, a little, but the i700's contrast is best of all the four when viewed "head-on". Oh, and the agenda item on the 2215 is legit. :lol:


Figure 13: The Programs Screen on the four devices.

The brightness levels of the i700 and the iPAQ are similar, but I find the color balance and contrast to be better on the i700. The i700 supports four brightness levels, and I find the 2nd level ("Medium") to be a good compromise most of the time; the only other setting I use is the dim setting for low-light situations. The one situation where the i700 falls short, though, is angled viewing: the iPAQs easily outclass it.


Figure 14: The 4 devices, at an angle. No comparison.

Incidentally, ClearType quality is very good -- almost as good as the XDA, which is probably the single best ClearType display in the Pocket PC world. There's no tweak, but you don't need one. ClearType can be enabled system-wide via a tool like Chris De Herrera's RegKing.

The case
On the other hand, the i700 is bundled with perhaps the worst carrying case I've seen for a PDA.


Figure 15: The carrying case, closed. Yes, this black case shows fingerprints. 8O


Figure 16: The carrying case, viewed from the bottom. It's thick, and the angle is caused by the case sitting on the closed buckle.

It provides adequate protection, but that's about the only thing that's good about it. It's not contoured to the i700, so it's a bulky, squarish object that's barely pocketable. It looks like Samsung realized it wouldn't be pocketable, so they helpfully attached a long strap to the zipper. It's been derisively called "man-purse" in the forums, and I can see why.


Figure 17: The carrying case, opened. It's awkward to hold at best, especially for a lefty like me.

The only somewhat redeeming factor of the case is that it uses a plastic holder to securely snap the i700 into place, and it's very easy to remove yet secure. However, this plastic holder is a large part of what makes this case bulky and awkward. The case opens to the side, which I also generally dislike as it makes the device harder to hold. When closed, there are cutouts for the earpiece and microphone, but you feel really stupid holding it up to your ear, as if it's a plastic brick. :lol:

Since I refuse to use this case, I've employed an old Compaq 3650 slipcase for the occasion. The i700 fits perfectly in it, even with the extended battery. I'm hoping that Vaja will release one of their open-faced cases for the unit.


Figure 18: The i700 sitting in my ancient 3650's slipcase. Who knew that thing would be so valuable? ;)