Samsung Intensity II (Verizon Wireless) – Basic messaging phone
I have seen a lot of phones ending up with wrong names and the Samsung Intensity II is one of them. This phone has a full QWERTY keyboard but I would still call it entry level basic handset because of the features that it has to offer. There is nothing ‘intense’ on this handset. Maybe Samsung put in such a name in order to make a good first impression on the customers. The only ‘intense’ feature, in terms of design is the electric color which is quite good. I would recommend this phone to youngsters who are purchasing a handset for the first time.
Samsung Intensity II has a 2.2 inches screen with good resolution. It would make no sense to ask for a really high resolution since this is an entry level phone and the screen size is small. The colors look bright and the text is readable too. The unique thing here is the menu interface which has pictures instead of standard list. Some might think this is a bit childish but for me, it makes the phone lively.
Samsung Intensity II’s navigation array is a bit cramped. The keys are located at a close distance and hence I had a lot of mishits during the lab tests. The array is made up of two soft buttons, speaker phone button, four way navigation key with OK button in the center, cancel button, speaker phone key and the regular send/end buttons. All the keys, except for the send/end ones are a bit small.
On the bottom, there is the numeric keyboard and the buttons here have a diagonal slant which makes typing easy. The keys are not cramped and hence I didn’t have many mishits. On the back, there is a 1.3 megapixel camera which takes pretty low end photos. I would recommend using this camera just for taking photo caller ID pictures are nothing else. The camera also has a mirror on the side for taking self portrait images.
For music enthusiast, the Samsung Intensity II has Vcast music with Rhapsody but you will have to download the music from your computer first and then transfer it to your mobile phone. Songs cannot be downloaded directly to the cell phone which is kinda bummer. Other goodies include turn by turn navigation, Bing search app, and voice command too.
Finally, I tested the Samsung Intensity II for call quality. It is good but there were some moment of weakness. I expected the call quality to be really good since it is a basic phone and such entry level handsets are used mostly for calling purposes only. This phone comes in two color options – deep gray and metallic blue. I got the latter model in my labs for reviewing. The cost of this phone is $49.99 after a $50 mail in rebate and you have to sign a two year agreement with Verizon Wireless, the service provider.
