Samsung Saga i770

The world-roaming Samsung Saga is geared toward globetrotting business executives and smart device enthusiasts, says Sascha Segan of PCMag.com. It is one of the few Verizon world phones that allow users to keep their phone number while crossing borders -- a niche shared by the BlackBerry 8830 World Edition and BlackBerry Storm. While market rivals sometimes outperform the Saga on one or two counts  overall, users and reviewers agree that it holds its own as a well-designed, solid-performing device with broad capabilities. The Saga's story begins with a sleek business-centric design that harkens to the Samsung Epix and Samsung Ace. At 4.8 inches by 2.4 inches by 0.5 inches and weighing 4.6 ounces, it's a bit longer than the BlackBerry 8830 but otherwise smaller and a wisp lighter. Users can type their hearts away on a full QWERTY keyboard that has small but well-spaced keys. Finger-tapping extends to the gorgeous 2.6-inch, 320-by-320-pixel touch screen, which responds to firm presses and finger swipes but lacks haptic feedback and the Apple iPhone 3G's two-finger zoom. Screen navigation, however, is fine-tuned by the Saga's so called optical mouse (really a touch pad) -- which is larger than that of the Samsung Epix -- and a user favorite. Even so, the touch pad teeter-totters occasionally between unresponsiveness and random activation.

A 400 MHz processor powers the Saga, backed by 256 MB RAM and up to 16 GB of expandable memory via a microSD card. Windows 6.1 Professional Edition boosts productivity with its ability to view, edit and, in some instances, create Office documents, while the Opera Mobile web browser delivers superb page rendering. The EVDO Rev. A network supports clear call quality, fast data transfer, corporate and personal email, and text, picture and video messaging. In its absence -- such as when the phone roams on quad-band GSM abroad -- integrated Wi-Fi steps up to the plate. The Saga also has GPS, Bluetooth, a full array of wireless radios, and it can double as a laptop modem. Sorely lacking, however, is an IM client. Likewise, Verizon Wireless doesn't offer V CAST support for music and videos, even though the Saga comes equipped with Windows Media Player.

Other perks include a 2-megapixel video-capture camera, but Segan says it can't compete with the Samsung Omnia's 5-megapixel unit. Other performance issues noted by experts and users include sluggish multi-application performance, a garbled speakerphone and non-standard 2.5 mm jack. Poor reception is also a glitch, and in PCMag.com's testing, the BlackBerry Curve 8330 stays on the EVDO network more often. In the end, the majority of reviewers and testers give the Saga a thumbs-up as a viable option for heavy travelers on Verizon Wireless.