Samsung Glyde U940

"I wanted to love it," says an owner of the Samsung Glyde, one of a handful of touch-screen contenders chasing after the Apple iPhone 3G (*est. $200). But like other hopefuls, it falls short of the mark. Reviewers and users agree that the Glyde's impressive form factor -- which combines touch-screen navigation with the messaging ease of a slide-out QWERTY keyboard -- is hindered by fickleness. This setback is so significant that the Glyde has trouble competing with its closer Verizon rival -- the LG Voyager, which also sports a touch screen and QWERTY keyboard combo, albeit a fold-out, clamshell style. Size-wise, the Glyde is a bit more pocket-friendly but nearly an ounce heftier. The Glyde's spacious keyboard lends itself to rapid and accurate typing, while the bright 2.8-inch, 240-by-440-pixel touch screen handles navigation. Although the screen lacks the iPhone 3G's accelerometer, it changes automatically to landscape view when the keyboard is pulled out. Yet even with adjustable haptic (vibration) feedback, the touch screen doesn't always respond to taps and presses. Lisa Gade of MobileTechReview.com resorted to "finger slaps," and Bruce Meyerson of BusinessWeek stubbed his finger with "maddening regularity" for commands to register. It's a frustration among testers and a deal breaker for users, especially because the Glyde relies on the touch screen for making phone calls in the absence of dedicated numeric keys.  

This shortfall dulls the luster of the Glyde's finer points, most notably a full-blown HTML-friendly web browser that outperforms the Voyager and, according to Philip Berne of InfoSync, is the best browser of any iPhone competitor, rendering pages perfectly. Verizon's 3G EVDO network supports fast data transfer, good call quality, mobile email, text, picture and video messaging and instant messaging with AIM, Yahoo! Messenger and Windows Live Messenger. The Glyde lacks Wi-Fi, but on the upside, comes equipped with GPS receptivity with VZ Navigator, V CAST music and streaming videos. The LG Voyager, on the other hand, offers V CAST Mobile TV but lacks GPS functionality. The Glyde also packs 45 MB of internal memory expandable up to 8 GB via microSD slot and a 2-megapixel camera. In tests, however, the camera produced blurry and off-color photos, and experts agree a lens upgrade is in order. It's just one of a number of features in need of fine tuning for the Glyde to be a market contender. In the meantime, reviewers recommend the LG Voyager as a better touch screen and QWERTY combo, while the iPhone 3G and LG Vu avail for touch-screen fans. 

MobileTechReview.com, BusinessWeek, InfoSync, CNET and PCMag.com compare the Samsung Glyde with its closest rivals -- the Apple iPhone 3G, LG Voyager, LG Vu and LG enV2, while user comments from CNET and PhoneScoop.com reveal common experiences with extended use.