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Cheap world smartphone with excellent battery life but no Wi-Fi
- Inexpensive for fast 3G network speed
- Full QWERTY keyboard
- You can edit documents
- Excellent battery life
- Good call quality
- Includes GPS capability
- Can operate almost anywhere in the world
- No Wi-Fi, no voice dialing
- Can't create documents
- Cheap plastic body
- LCD screen isn't the best
- Not many like the scroll wheel
- MicroSD slot handles only up to 4 GB
- Music player has some flaws
The Samsung Blackjack II is a 3G candy-bar smartphone with a full QWERTY keyboard and quad-band support, meaning it can work on cell phone networks most places in the world. This upgrade of the original Blackjack has a faster processor, an improved keyboard, a higher-resolution (but still generally panned) 2-megapixel camera/camcorder, built-in GPS capability and compatibility with AT&T's Video Share. One downgrade is a switch from a rubbery body to a fingerprint-attracting plastic body that PC World's Grace Aquino calls "cheap." You'd expect some economizing for the price, and WirelessInfo.com still says it's a very good low-cost alternative to the Nokia N81, BlackBerry Curve 8320 and AT&T Tilt. Just be aware that while the Samsung Blackjack II offers a lot of features for the price, it lacks Wi-Fi and voice dialing. Some reviewers like the 2.4-inch screen, and others say it's grainy. Some reviewers also express frustration with the scroll wheel.
You do get some good features for the price, reviews say. With the Windows Mobile 6 operating system, you get some document editing (but not creation) capabilities with Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint, plus you can view PDF files. The Blackjack II has a microSD memory card slot on the side, but it can accept only up to 4 GB. The phone also offers support for various instant-messaging clients and email services (including Microsoft Exchange), and most reviews say call quality is good. As is often the case in cell phone reviews, the music and video playback draws some criticism -- PCMag.com's Sascha Segan says the music stopped every time he adjusted the volume. Battery tests by PCMag.com, InfoSync and WirelessInfo.com all yielded more than six hours of talk time, and PC World achieved seven hours and 11 minutes.
We found quality reviews at CNET, PCMag.com, InfoSync, Consumer Reports, WirelessInfo.com and PC World. Oddly, CNET has not followed up with a battery test, but it does offer about 90 owner reviews. AT&T's website has the most user ratings with more than 300; we also found owner reviews at Amazon.com and PhoneArena.com.
Our Sources
1. CNET
CNET's Bonnie Cha gives the Samsung Blackjack II a "very good" rating, with about 90 owner reviews combining for a slightly lower score. The review promises an update with a battery test, but more than a year later there still isn't one.
Review: Samsung Blackjack II -- Black (AT&T), Bonnie Cha, Dec. 6, 2007
2. PCMag.com
This six-product roundup doesn't really rank the phones and is a bit dated because only the Samsung Blackjack II and AT&T Tilt actually had Windows Mobile 6.1 at the time. There's a link to full individual reviews. The Blackjack II is rated "very good" despite some sluggishness, lack of Wi-Fi and a poor camera.
Review: Windows Mobile 6.1 Phones, Sascha Segan, Apr. 2, 2008
Reviewer Philip Berne rates the Samsung Blackjack II as "good." It doesn't make the list of top business smartphones at the bottom of the review, though, in part because the "scroll wheel stymied us at every turn." The advanced multimedia functions and proprietary cables also get panned.
Review: Review: Samsung Blackjack II Business Smartphone, Philip Berne, Jan. 28, 2008
4. ConsumerReports.org
The Samsung Blackjack II and about two dozen other smartphones are ranked in a chart, with links to short individual reviews for each.
Review: Smartphones Ratings, Editors of Consumer Reports.org
This review may be more thorough than most readers will want, but there are helpful direct comparisons with five other cell phones. The Samsung Blackjack II gets the pick over three of them based on value for the price. On the other two, it's a toss-up depending on which features are most important to you.
Review: Samsung Blackjack II Cell Phone Review, Alfredo Padilla, Dec. 31, 2007
6. PC World
The Samsung Blackjack II rates a "good" despite "mediocre sound quality," a screen that produces "grainy" text and graphics, and a "cheap" feel to the plastic body. There is also a full lab report.
Review: Samsung Blackjack II, Grace Aquino, Jan. 24, 2008
7. ATT.com
More than 300 owner reviews combine for a very high overall score, though there are a few negative/mediocre ratings.
Review: Samsung Blackjack II, Contributors to ATT.com
