Samsung SGH-A637

"Sometimes a cell phone is not what it seems," says CNET reviewer Kent German of the unpretentious-looking Samsung a637. On the outside, this candy-bar device looks simple, but on the inside, it packs a palette of multimedia features. Yet the promise of a great phone is short-lived, as the Samsung a637's design flaws and sketchy call quality receive a lukewarm welcome from reviewers and users. The plain white device measures, according to Samsung, 3.4 inches by 1.77 inches by 0.81 inches and weighs 3.2 ounces -- dimensions that surprised a number of owners who purchased it online and claim that's its actually 4.4 inches long. (CNET's review also lists the length as 4.4 inches, but it's not clear if they actually measured the device.)

The discrepancy, if it exists, is sizeable, but the phone's flimsy, plastic construction is by far the bigger issue. As German says, "Minimalism is one thing, but cheap is quite another." The assessment applies not only to the outside casing but plastic keypad buttons, which are flat (and thus impede dialing by feel) and, like the rest of the phone, a bit slippery. The circular navigation toggle and the screen shine through as the sole bright spots in design, with the 1.9-inch, 176-by-200-pixel display delivering vibrantly sharp text and graphics.

Performance balances out form factor to some degree, with the exception of call quality, which German describes as "marred by fadeouts." On the upside, the Samsung a637 offers plenty of messaging options: text, picture and video messaging, as well as instant messaging and web-based email. Basic features include a 1,000-entry phone book, calendar, alarm clock, call waiting, caller ID and a personal organizer supported by 50 MB of internal memory, expandable by up to 4 GB via microSD card. A 1.3-megapixel camera with video capture is also on board, and even though it lacks flash and a self-portrait mirror, it produces good photos.