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Basic Verizon flip phone is great for seniors, kids
Pros
- Outstanding reception and call quality
- Accessible design
- Easy-to-use navigation menu
- Large readable fonts
- Good battery life
Cons
- Tiny external display
- Thin on features
- No Bluetooth
"In a world where gadgets strive to impress, it's comforting to see a phone that has absolutely no pretensions," says Kent German of CNET about the Samsung Knack. This austere phone delivers solid reception and call quality in an easy-to-use design. According to PCMag.com, it places second only to the Samsung Jitterbug for simplicity, making it a fine choice for seniors, young kids and other cell phone newcomers. Reviewers and users consider the Knack one of the best basic cell phones on the market, and it garners an Editors' Choice Award from PCMag.com.
While German says the Knack "won't win any beauty contests," its size and design excel at being user-friendly. A compact 3.8 inches by 2 inches by 0.7 inches and weighing 3.6 ounces, it hosts a small monochrome exterior display that displays the time and caller ID. Flip it open and the Knack presents a generous backlit keypad with large keys and vivid 2.2-inch diagonal, 220-by-176-pixel display. A huge selling point for many is the streamlined six-entry menu, which makes navigation a snap. Likewise, Nuance's voice dialing requires no training and scores for accuracy. Other features include 22 ringtones, speed dialing, vibrate mode, a speakerphone, a headphone jack and easily identifiable color-coded controls. With 32 MB of internal memory, the Knack supports a 500-entry phonebook, voice mail, text messaging, a dedicated 911 dial, alarm clock, world clock, calculator and stopwatch. Reviewers and users are unanimous about its superb call quality and reception, although a wish list includes Bluetooth for handsfree use, a larger "OK" button and rocker and the ability to remotely program contacts as with the Samsung Jitterbug. Even without these extras, the Knack excels -- surpassing the now-discontinued Verizon Coupe for usability and delivering better voice quality than the LG VX5400. That model is the former PC Editors' Choice Award winner and Sascha Segan's pick for slightly more seasoned cell phone users; it has since been replaced by the well-reviewed LG VX5500.
An in-depth review from PCMag.com compares the Samsung Knack to market rivals such as the Samsung Jitterbug and the LG VX5400. A standalone review from CNET evaluates features and performance, while owner comments from CNET and PhoneScoop.com show how the Knack fares with long-term use.
Where To Buy
| Samsung Knack U310 Flip Phone for Verizon Wireless | |
(18 reviews) |
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Our Sources
1. PCMag.com
For Sascha Segan, the Samsung Knack's simplicity places only second to the Samsung Jitterbug, and because the Knack has better performance and voice quality than the Verizon Wireless Coupe and LG VX5400, respectively, it earns PCMag.com's Editors' Choice award.
Review: Samsung Knack SCH-U310, Sascha Segan, Oct. 16, 2008
2. CNET
"In a world where gadgets strive to impress, it's comforting to see a phone that has absolutely no pretensions," writes Kent German. He concludes that as austere as the Knack may be, lacking items such as Bluetooth, it nonetheless ranks as one of the "best basic phones on the market" and is a great option for seniors or cell phone newcomers.
Review: Samsung Knack SCH-U310 (Verizon Wireless), Kent German, Sept. 9, 2008
3. CNET
While less than a dozen users weigh in on the Samsung Knack, they agree that it is a great no-frills cell phone, although they wish Bluetooth was on board for hands-free calling.
Review: Samsung Knack SCH-U310 (Verizon Wireless), Contributors to CNET
The few users reporting on the Samsung Knack like this phone for its simplicity, readable text and good voice quality. Limited reception and lousy ringtones are among its drawbacks.
Review: Samsung Knack U310