Samsung today announced a new addition to its Ultra portfolio with the introduction of Ultra Smart F700. Samsung’s newy mobile phone will be showcased at 3GSM World Congress next week.
The Ultra Smart is a part of Samsung’s Ultra portfolio which feature touch screen as well as physical QWERTY keypad with “VibeTonz” technology which allows them to feel the buttons accompanied by responsive vibrations. Volume, playlists, brightness of screens as well as other menu control can be controlled utilizing the touch screen.
Samsung’s Ultra Smart reflects the latest speed of 7.2 Mbps under the High Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) network. Samsung says the Ultra Smart will feature a “full HTML browser” for access to the internet for email and data services. The F700 will feature a 2.78″ color display. The F700 does not feature Wi-Fi. The device also features a top-of-the-line 5 mega-pixel camera with auto focus and Bluetooth.
“The introduction of our Ultra Smart F700 reflects the needs of today’s consumers by including features such as touch screen, enhanced connectivity to mobile internet, and access to an array of multimedia content,” said Geesung Choi, President of Samsung’s Telecommunications Network Business, in the press release. “The Ultra Smart F700 is a good example of how mobile phone will evolve in the future. Samsung will focus on bringing products that reflect and pursue our position as a premium leader.”
Samsung F700 Specs:
• HSDPA 7.2Mbps, EDGE
• 900/1800/1900 MHz + 2.1GHz
• 5 Megapixel camera with Auto-Focus
• TFT display (2.78”, 440×240)
• Formats: MPEG4/H.263/H.264/Real MP3/AAC(+)/eAAC+/Real
• QWERTY Keypad
• MMS / E-mail / JAVA / WAP 2.0
• Bluetooth / USB
• Flash UI / Document Viewer
• “Full HTML Browser”
• Offline Mode, BGM
• Memory: microSD
• Size: 104 x 50 x 16.4mm
• Weight: unknown
• Battery life and standby time: TBD (to be determined)
• Price: TBD
• Release date: TBD
MacDailyNews Take: We’ll have to learn more about the Samsung phone’s unknowns, but it looks interesting so far. Note that the Samsung phone does not feature Mac OS X (it has a Flash-based UI), or Wi-Fi, has a smaller screen, lacks auto sensors, has no iPod and iTunes compatibility, and no multi-touch interface vs. Apple’s iPhone. The Samsung advantages are a higher resolution camera and HSDPA 7.2Mbps vs. iPhone’s GSM Quad-band. See specs above and below for more comparisons between the two phones.
Apple iPhone specs:
• GSM Quad-band (MHz: 850, 900, 1800, 1900), EDGE
• Camera 2.0 megapixels
• Screen: 3.5 inches, 320 by 480 at 160 ppi
• Input method: Multi-touch, touch screen
• Full QWERTY soft keyboard with auto error correction
• Operating system: OS X
• Browser: Safari full html
• Music: Windescreen iPod, Cover Flow
• Visual Voicemail
• Integrated Google Maps: view maps, satellite images, traffic information and get directions
• Widgets
• SMS
• Photo management application
• Accelerometer auto portrait to landscape detection sensor
• Proximity sensor immediately turns off the display, prevents inadvertent touches when held to ear
• Ambient light sensor automatically adjusts display brightness
• Rich HTML email client, POP3 or IMAP, works with Microsoft Exchange, Apple .Mac Mail, AOL Mail, Google Gmail and most ISP mail services
• Free Yahoo! Mail “push” IMAP email service
• Storage: Internal Flash 4GB or 8GB
• Wireless data: Wi-Fi (802.11b/g) + EDGE + Bluetooth 2.0
• Battery: Up to 5 hoursTalk / Video / Browsing, up to 16 hours Audio playback
• Dimensions: 4.5 x 2.4 x 0.46 inches (115 x 61 x 11.6mm)
• Weight: 4.8 ounces (135 grams)
• Price $499 (4GB), $599 (8GB)
• Release dates: US in June 2007, Europe in late 2007, and Asia in 2008
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Neo” for the heads up.]
Related articles:
Ihnatko: Hands-on with Apple’s iPhone (which runs Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard) – January 18, 2007
Apple’s Phil Schiller gives CBS News hands-on tour of iPhone – January 12, 2007
David Pogue: hands on preview of Apple’s iPhone, ‘gorgeous and so packed with possibilities’ – January 11, 2007
PC Magazine hands-on test of Apple iPhone: multi-touch UI ‘takes the breath away’ – January 11, 2007
Mossberg’s initial take on Apple iPhone: ‘radical and gorgeous’ with ‘brilliant new user interface’ – January 11, 2007
ZDNet: Hands on with Apple’s iPhone: ‘elegant, ravishing, simple, sleek; impeccable & intuitive UI’ – January 11, 2007
Hands-on with Apple’s iPhone – January 10, 2007
Apple debuts iPhone: touchscreen mobile phone + widescreen iPod + Internet communicator – January 09, 2007
And it ships when?
The only thing that looks good is the 5 M.P. camera. That would be great.
Flash UI, I’m not impressed. We’ve seen the future and it’s OS X.
What’s the price? And once its announced that its $500 – $600 will the same pundits that claimed the iPhone price was too high, come through with identical posts regarding the Samsung price?
Keyboard keys look familiar.
No doubt that hardware capabilities are surpassing the crappy services provided by the major carriers. It’s time the Verizons and AT&T need to catch up on their network capabilities and high speed cell access.
I like the pop out keyboard (I know Mr. Jobs says I don’t need one, but i Like them) but I will pass and wait on the iPhone!
Clearly, it’s more appropriate to look at the iPhone as a UMPC-type device more than a phone.. because, most of these phones don’t even begin to do iPhone stuff.. It’s just a little weird comparing these two, except for Samsung’s latest design ‘ideas’…
Slide out keyboard… they were so close to a soft keyboard.. why?
Note to Steve: call your lawyers. Now. They can’t do this can they?
If this thing goes out before June AAPL could lose 20% of its value. If the thing is marketed at, say, $199 or somesuch, APPL could reach 2002 levels.
I suspect the price will exceed that of the iPhone.
iPhone is DOA.
Flash UI, I’m not impressed. We’ve seen the future and it’s OS X.
I missed that. Flash is on par with WinCE and Palm OS. In other words, its a distant third to OSX followed by Symbian.
FUGLY!
You’ve been out-huckstered – without a word being said. No cool jeans & tshirt. No hubris. No claim to changing the world. No claim of reinventing the phone. How could you let that happen?
I with Chrissyone.
I agree, iPhone is DOA! Give me the Samsung!
Oh, and there’s a huge difference between “touch-screen” and “multi-touch.”
All Apple has to do is release a second model with a keyboard simliar to the Samsung. Remember the Cingular CEO said there are other iPhone models in the works.
A plain black t-shirt and old faded jeans are hubris? Sheesh. What would you call a suit? The emporer’s new clothes?
Darth Jobs buys Samsung, terminates F700 along with its development team after deleting their brains, sends remaining employees onto iPhone assembly line just outside Beijing.
BTW, I think the iPhone will do just fine – regardless of what Steve Jobs is wearing!
Death, doom, destruction, falling sky, pestilence, disease, and all other such knee-jerk reactions as espoused by ampar, SydneyStephen, OMG, and other end-of-Apple Cassandras! This is IT! The Mac and the iPod are finished! Sell your stock! Move to Borneo! Run screaming into the streets! Don thy hairshirts and beat thy breasts! There’s no recovering from this! Lamentations and recriminations all ’round! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH . . . . . . . .
In the phone biz you have to keep bringing out something new….can Apple do that? Apple seems to have a turn around of new product every year or longer. In the phone biz it seems like companies bring out new product every month.
Fashion is almost more important than function.
Steve Jobs said “400 Patents” look out Samsung
Bring it on!!!!
I bet it is the same price or higher than the iPHONE.
Between the two, I will go with an Apple designed product every time.
The dolts that continue to diss the iPHONE are showing their complete ignorance regarding the HUGE quality difference between Apple and all the other companies that currently make cell phones.
Hopefully, the iPHONE will put an end to all the cheap rattle-box plastic Korea is using these days. Most of the so called “Music Phones” buzz more than a blown out JBL at a drunken rock concert.
Oh my Gawd! Steve Jobs is wearing a new pair of shoes! Such arrogance! Such hubris! Has anyone as smug ever walked the face of the Earth? Arrest that man before he CHANGES HIS PANTS!
The Samsung phone will probably be quite a bit cheaper than the iPhone, primarily because of less hardware (no hard drive, wi-fi, etc.) and less technology (software and sensors, etc.). Many questions will need to be addressed. How well will it interact with a corporate network? What kind of software can be installed on the phone? Will it support MS Office? What carriers will be able to support this phone? How good is the UI?
If the price is right, the features are implemented correctly, and the restrictions are limited, then people won’t care that it may not be able to do some of the things that the iPhone can do. It will still sell well.
“In the phone biz you have to keep bringing out something new….can Apple do that?”
CAN MICROSOFT?
“Steve Jobs said “400 Patents” look out Samsung”
Yeah, especially if we find out this thing does anything more than check what time it is in Berlin.. or the most whack media player inteface ever (engadget)
The thing is twice as thick as the iPhone!
@Hanford Lemoor’s real name is Glenn Shannon:
Uh, haven’t they already evidenced this capability with the iPod line? Has ANYONE else in that market niche responded with the same alacrity and quality of design/product innovation?
Am I missing something here?
It’s so much more than meets the eye…. Apple’s entire package is seemless – software, elegance… you name it. As for the camera, I don’t care if it is 2 or 5 megapixel – when I take photos, I use a real camera. 2 megapixel is more than enough for a phone.
realist,
No way, this thing will be more expensive than the iPhone. The Sony Ericsson p800-900’s were around $900 without a contract at first, and they didn’t even have qwerty.
The Samsung is ugly as sin.
Still, it has some good features. 5mp camera is pretty impressive.
Flash is not an operating system. It is nothing more than cute animations. This phone will not be an iPhone competitor.
Hey, did Samsung mention anything about running full-featured applications on their “new” device? How ’bout movies? Looks like a really complex “DayTimer” to me.
Sorry, its just another geekphone. It’s market is very limited ie part of the smartphones 5% share.
iPhone is no smartphone, its an everyman phone. Its market is much broader, as high as 30%.
Pundits who claim price of iPhone is too high appear to only come from USA, outside in the rest of the world where mobile telephone is more mature it’s the kind of prices people are paying for smart phones.
Shouldn’t the MDN headline read “…iPhone killer” because you know that in the future every new phone to come out after the iPhone will be labeled an “iPhone killer” even if all it does is make calls. Get on the bandwagon now!
Looks cool. I think Apple will have more serious competition in the phone space. The 5 megapixel camera is really f-ing cool. My only major gripe with the iPhone is the camera.
Dear MDN, thank you for your honest and thoughtful take. In the past I’ve been disappointed by the usual rants (it’s not made by Apple, so it will DIE!!!), and you pointed out how the two actually do compare. I think you’re right that this one does have many disadvantages, but it shows that Apple is already making them think more about designing phones that are more user friendly. And it also shows a trend away from Microsoft phone OSes.
I’d love to see GPS navigation and a 5 MP camera. That would make it my perfect companion!
From the photos, the Samsung looks twice as thick as the iPhone and carrying weight is a major consideration, the main reason the shuffle has sold so well. The allure of the iPhone is HOW it works, not what it does, and comparisons are like comparing a Ferrari to a Yugo saying they both do the same thing. Still, this is “close enough” for most Windows users to perhaps wait for. Apple would do well to get theirs to market ASAP. Steve Jobs was clearly wrong when he said Apple was five years ahead.
I think it looks very nice, but for me, the only thing less useful than no keyboard is a tiny keyboard. And, while the flippy thingys on the phone always looks cool, in reality I always dislike having to deal with them.
Samsung announces an iPhone killer and in the space of just a few inches of discussion here, it’s dead itself.
I’m sure Samsung appreciates knowing they need spend no further time or money on getting this thing to market.
Just remember, Apple has plenty of time to add additional features!
Samsung phone looks great. Gotta be honest here.
I normally like Samsung products, they usually lead the way with quality in terms of electronics. But this is obviously an iPhone rip-off. Very un-Samsung-like.
i hope that the camera on the iphone is bumped up along with the addition of 3G.
I will buy one.
The keyboard is a must have on smartphones
That thing looks like a fast copy of iPhone, just like Vista is of Tiger.
Just wondering, is it [samsung] as fscked up.
Personally I don’t like those slide-outs. I prefer flip over slide-out and my #1 choice multi-touch /w touch-functionality-turned-off-when-close-to-my-ear-or-in-my-pocket.
iPhone has to be much more than we know. Hey, six fscking months. What we saw at MacWorld can only be on parrallel lines with what we saw at WWDC ’06. I bet there’s something more and it comes out of the wrappings with Leopard. GPS? G3? Apps? Integration with Leopards functionality is sure.
Parallel lines. Apple ain’t gonna pop the hood. They need to move 402,3 metres faster than anyone else. Apple knew there’ll be imitations, let others copy the half baked presentation product. When your enemies know that you’re wearing a vest; they aim for the head.
In Apples case, I hope they aren’t. Even if they we’re, Apple can deliver vertical integration. Other cell phone manufacturers can only prey to god, since Microsofts doesn’t look so great in its current state.
The problem with all Samsung phones:
– Weak RF for phone calls.
– Weak speakers.
– Poor software that is not intuitive; poor compatibility and interoperability with computer hardware and databases.
– Software designs, graphics and icons with an Aisan influence that don’t always appeal to business professionals or Anglos.
– Sexy and elegant “me too” hardware designs that usually aren’t original, but instead are knock-offs of popular products first offered by other cellular manufacturers. I own the Samsung A900 Bluetooth/Music Player phone (a.k.a “Blade”) that is a knock-off of the Motorola RAZR. Like all Samsung products, it’s so-so as a phone, but worse as a music player and calendar/contacts manager. I only purchased it because it was one of Sprint’s first Bluetooth phones and have never used the Music Player because the file transfer capabilities are brain dead.
– Software is Samsung’s Achilles heal…
Steve has given us an approximate deadline for the delivery of the iPhone but Samsung has none. Nor do they have a price. Seems to me that they’re probably a lot further from delivering than Apple is. Apple has a carrier and a full working prototype. Many people have held it in their hands and played with it. How many people can say that for this announced product?
I suspect that, as quite often happens, Apple will deliver early. Since the carriers are already determined for the USA and Canada, we can probably expect that the handsets are out there being tested right now. As soon as they pass all the tests the carriers run we will be very close to launch. I expect that the hardware form is already locked down for first release. Since it is a complete computer, modifications can mostly be done via software upgrades.
I fully expect the iPhone to debut in North America in May or early June. And I’ve already got half the money put aside.
I walked away from the Paris Apple Expo where Steve releaswed the beta of OS X with CD (or DVD) and installed it that day in 2000. I expect to get the first rev of the iPhone. Can’t resist.
Samsung phone for people who dont want bad ATT service. Apple make very bad move, limit iPhone to ATT. Sam at Samsung not so stupid, we make phones for everybody. We win big. Apple win big. Nokia and Moto go bye bye.
Sho Long Wang
Sam Sung
I’ll still buy the iPhone even if the Samsung is $199 unlocked. Everyone knows that every other phone sucks except the iPhone – just as all PCs are junk, because thats what Mac fanboys say!!!!
So what if iPhone is double or triple the price of every other iPhone. Apple doesn’t sell junk… WOOOOO HOOOOO Steve, WOOOOO HOOOOOO
The common problems with MOST Samsung phones:
– Weak RF for phone calls.
– Weak speakerphone with poor sound quality.
– Occasional oddball placement of connecting ports that may be convenient for engineers, but inconvenient for customers.
– Poor software that is not intuitive; poor compatibility and interoperability with computer hardware, databases and file transfers.
– Software designs, graphics and icons with an Aisan influence that don’t always appeal to business professionals or Anglos.
– Sexy and elegant “me too” hardware designs that usually aren’t original, but instead are knock-offs of popular products first offered by other cellular manufacturers. I own the Samsung A900 Bluetooth/Music Player phone (a.k.a “Blade”) that is a knock-off of the Motorola RAZR. Like all Samsung products, it’s so-so as a phone, but worse as a music player and calendar/contacts manager. I only purchased it because it was one of Sprint’s first Bluetooth phones. I have never used the Music Player because the file and music transfer capabilities are brain dead… And who in their right mind would buy songs from the Sprint Music Store?
– Software is Samsung’s Achilles heal…
What is up with everyone complaining about the lack of a physical keyboard on the iPhone? I have never seen someone type out multiple paragraph emails on their phone. Have you noticed how short the emails are that people send you from their phones? The size of them just doesn’t make it worth while to type long emails. Since the iPhone has an iPod dock connector, I’m sure that third-party vendors will have portable keyboard with dock connectors for those they have to write a novel on the phone.
The screen is much smaller than the iPhones screen. It is slight larger than the 5G iPod’s screen.
If Verizon becomes an carrier for this Samsung and the price is less the iPhone, then I may just stay with Verizon and pass on the iPhone.
The slide out keyboard is cool…. the over all physical package looks cooler… its like the iPhone that we all hoped for.
Apple is gonna have to step it up to compete – better camera, better network, & 3G hopefully.
Hmmm, I was amazed at the FUD thrown up here.
IPhone. Exists, works (see hands on demo) has a target price, and parts work well together.
New Phone (insert name here).
iPhone Killer,
Shipping date, TBD
Shipping price TBD.
makes phone calls
Has micro sized keyboard
Has big screen for pictures (of what??? )
Has touch screen.
YAWN!!!
When I see it running and can touch it and play with it, then I will worry about if I want it or not.
PS,
IF I am going to type a lot, wouldn’t I want a full sized keyboard to attach to it.
If I want to watch movies/hear music, I need an uncluttered screen and a movie player /music player?????
Apple, well thought out, integrated, and best of all, — It Just Works (and better than you ever thought possible). Sorry about that last part, I got carried away.
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N.
The Samsung phone is copying the iPhone as much as the iPhone copied the LG phone. So, no more arguments about copying.
The total volume of the Samsung phone is very close to the iPhone, so size isn’t much of an issue here.
Unless Samsung expects some outrageous margins, the price should be significantly less than the iPhone.
OS X on the iPhone won’t mean much if there aren’t many useful applications that Apple lets you purchase. Either way, the iPhone won’t have a processor that will make the phone comparable to a Mac in much of a meaningful way, so until we know what applications are out there, the OS comparisons are mostly meaningless as well.
I don’t think many people are going to cry over the Samsung’s inability to automatically switch from portrait to landscape view, especially if the Samsung is significantly cheaper because of it.
Multi-touch versus Samsung’s touch sensitive screen is nice on the iPhone, but not nearly useful enough to create a big advantage.
The keyboard will be big for people that are use to keyboards and are hesitant about changing methods.
Sure, the iPhone still has time to surprise us with more features, but so does the Samsung phone.
Battery life will be very important.
It may very well be able to sync with iTunes. We can’t say for sure at this point. Although, it would have to use a different player on the phone itself, and it wouldn’t be able to play iTS purchases. But that’s not really an issue since typically only 3% of songs on an iPod are purchased from the iTS, and stripping off the FairPlay DRM is easy, right?
The Ultra Smart F700 will offer a very competitive alternative to the iPhone
The iPhone doesn’t offer particularly impressive hardware…what looks good is the software.
So really the only way to compare it with any other phone, including this Samsung one, is to compare using them.
Comparisons on the basis of spec sheets and still photos, positive or negative, are pretty useless.
“In the phone biz you have to keep bringing out something new….can Apple do that? Apple seems to have a turn around of new product every year or longer. In the phone biz it seems like companies bring out new product every month.”
That’s why phones today suck. I’d rather have a great product every year than a sucky one every couple of months.
ps the keypad is clunky. don’t expect to see one on the iphone
The only think I like about it is that it has a keyboard.
It’s kinda like a Sidekick stylized to look like the iPhone.
I’m mainly interested in having more straight-forward synchronizing and compatibility with OS X. I’m sure iPhone integration will be seamless. I’ve not had good experiences with Samsung interfaces so I don’t expect much from them.
> Samsung releases an iPod killer [wannabe]…
Oh, come on! We’ll see many variants to this, the LG, and the iPhone, so drop the paranoia.
For those of us that live in a city where Cingular is simply an abomination, this looks to be our only option. A Samsung iPhone wanna bee.
How depressing.
Regarding MegaPixel numbers, your mileage may vary. The nokia phones rated at 2-3 megapixels take really bad pictures. You would be better off with a stand alone camera to get a decent picture.
Hmm not bad, not bad. I still feel an ‘actual’ keyboard still has it’s place. This is great. It isn’t about Apple taking over the phone market. It’s about opening other phone companies eyes to what can be done. Steve has got them off there arses. Take the iPod. If Apple never made the iPod, there wouldn’t be this huge array of mp3 players that we have today.
Change the world.
brilliant is smarter than ultra smart
‘soooo innovative’ – NOT!
Sorry but qwerty slide-out keyboards have been around for the last 10 years in mobile phones.
I remember having a Nokia Communicator – which looked very similar to that Samsun 8 years ago, as yes, it had a qwerty slide out keyboard.
Samsun, you have been outclassed by Apple.
Back to the drawing board… btw the ripoff of the MacBook keyboard design is a blatant copy.
Im getting an iPhone regardless what crap handsets come out from mobile phone manufacturers.
By the way – this new Samung phone IS TARGETED AT CORPORATE/BUSINESS USERS! – NOT the consumer market, which is the iPhones primary market.
2 totally different markets with different needs and phone requirements (hence the dated slide-out keyboard – aimed at businessmen on the move).
I bet you can’t ‘zoom in’ on websites or create rich emails with the Samsung.
The cell phone industry moves very, very fast and is hyper competitive. Windows mobile 6 will be introduced Monday and tons of other companies will be producing devices that compete in the same space as the iPhone.
Don’t get me wrong, the iPhone is a sexy device, has some great features and is a worthy addition to the mobile landscape but it will likely not reinvent the smartphone market.
As for the Samsung device, I’ve seen a few people comment that Samsungs have poor build quality. Not true; I’ve seen a variety of Samsungs get tossed so hard they have bounced and still continuted to function. However, I agree that their OS and interface often leave a lot to be desired and it will certainly be a concern with the F700.
Just my 0.02c….
Someone said they think the iPhone is dead? Wake up will you? It is obvious you cannot see a breakthrough product before you. I could take your knowledge of electronics and put it in a sewing thimble and still have plenty of room left over.
You hate Apple for no good reason. Look at the massive appeal and success of the iPod and you are looking at a repeat of it from the iPhone. Your only problem is that your buddies didn’t invent the iPhone.
Suck it up.
iPhone is going to be so fucking cool!