Review of Samsung's UMTS Z300/Z308

Samsung Z308

Samsung Z308

Introduction

Envious of LG's success, Samsung has become much more ambitious in the UMTS handset market. Their Z140 was dismissed as uninteresting and too LG-like, and sales were unimpressive. In summer 2005, Samsung tried again, this time incorporating their popular E series design to the mix. The first model that came to the market was the Z300, re-branded as Z308 by SmarTone-Vodafone in Hong Kong, and announced just one day after SmarTone's flagship Sharp SX833.

Physical Aspects

Upon first sight of the Z308, it appears to be a bulky version of their bestseller E720. The design follows pretty much the same formula, from the cover design to the hinge.

The Z308’s dimensions of 89.4mm x 47.4mm x 25.4mm (3.51" x 1.86" x 1") will give an impression of a fairly small phone, but the weight of 107g (3.77oz) and the boxy shape actually make the phone feel much larger. However, given its specifications, I cannot complain about its size.

The body of the phone is made of the usual metallic painted plastic. The build is excellent and very solid. Scratch resistance is above average and fingerprinting is not an issue.

The Z308 comes with one of the best keypads I have ever encountered. Spacing and size are appropriate, arrangement is logical, and tactile feel is excellent. It is quite easy to tell that Samsung has spent time on the keypad design. The MP3 hotkey at the top and the huge cancel button below the D-pad made this handset easier to navigate than most. To solve the problem of having too many shortcut keys, Samsung added two white lights to separate the usual soft keys with the new application switch key and video call keys; this solution is superior to LG’s configuration. Needless to say, the white keypad backlight is bright and even.

The Infrared port, volume controls, and earphone jack are located on the left side of the handset, with the excellently designed sliding door for the Transflash memory card slot and the camera shortcut key located on the right. On the bottom, the usual charger/data connection port can be found, and the holes for hanging neck straps and accessories are on top. Turning the phone over will reveal the grille holes for the dual speaker system and a Samsung engraved battery with a printed SmarTone-Vodafone logo.

One thing I have to stress is that I am very impressed with the details Samsung put into the build of their expansion ports; all of the covers feel extremely durable, and the single-hand accessible sliding door for the Transflash slot is an answer to the usual clumsy flips as found on most other manufacturers handsets.

The biggest setback in terms of physical aspects is Samsung's hinge construction, which frankly I am not too fond of. The spring system is supposed to make the phone easier to flip, but it overdoes the job. Both opening and closing the handset feels so excessively forceful that I worry about the integrity of the camera and screens.

 

Featured products from the MobileBurn store