Samsung's SGH-i600: an HSDPA and WiFi Smartphone at last

Sure, you like the Motorola Q but hate the fact that it's missing WiFi. And the lack of 3G on the HTC Excalibur is also a deal breaker. Well, look no further for your QWERTY fix brother, 'cause our favorite maker of boxy black devices is showing off their SGH-i600 Smartphone at IFA in Berlin. This tri-band GSM 900/1800/1900 baby brings it all: HSDPA, EDGE, 802.11b/g WiFi, Bluetooth, a 1.3 megapixel cam with another up front for video calls, a 2.3-inch, 65k color, 320 x 240 TFT display, Microsoft's Push Mail, and 128MB ROM / 64MB RAM with MicroSD expansion all powered by Windows Mobile 5.0 Smartphone on a TI OMAP 1710 processor. The phone looks small enough for single-handed operation, can pull double-duty as an HSDPA modem and can even be switched into USB mass storage mode for easy drag-n-drop data transfer off your PC. And yeah, it's FCC approved so the estimated Q4 2006 release date is certainly do-able. Now sop-up the drool and click-on for more pics.

[Thanks, Martin]

[Covert @ Sep 5th 2006 9:51AM]

Tri-band... :(

And it looks like a graphing calculator.

[Leo Maia @ Sep 5th 2006 9:56AM]

This is very good news. I bet this Samsung phone works much better than the Q also.

[Me @ Sep 5th 2006 10:59AM]

"Sure, you like the Motorola Q but hate the fact that it's missing WiFi. And the lack of 3G on the HTC Excalibur is also a deal breaker"

Why do you need WiFi if your device has a High Speed (HSDPA or EVDO) connection. I can't think of the last time I needed to search for a Starbucks to read my email.

[soop @ Sep 5th 2006 10:07AM]

Don't you realise the SPV M3100 (Orange) has all these features too? And it's been out for over a month...

[CP @ Sep 5th 2006 10:10AM]

The site the pics link to claim its actually 2MP. Now it just needs a slightly bigger screen.

[Piz @ Sep 5th 2006 11:51AM]

Anyone know if this things supports the Stereo Bluetooth head sets? I think its called A2DP or somethin.

Also anyone have any good info on where to buy one when they come out, even if overseas...

[digicam @ Sep 5th 2006 12:36PM]

How can a phone be HSDPA on 3band ? Do you know stuff the rest of the world doesn't know or how do you get HSDPA run like this ?

[JC @ Sep 5th 2006 10:31AM]

Sure, it looks thinner and has QWERTY, but dude, I've been using my Eten M600 for months! And it's quad-band!

[pmow @ Sep 5th 2006 10:39AM]

HTC TyTN?
2 mPx, Qwerty, HSDPA, WiFi, and most importantly a _touch screen_. Oh, and it's already out in Europe.

[MacroEQ @ Sep 5th 2006 11:00AM]

I have waited *ages* for news on the Motorola Q for the UK, and not even a sniff of information. I am tired of waiting for it and will buy the Samsung SGH-i600 now.

Sorry Motorola, you lost a customer.

[Brett @ Sep 5th 2006 11:06PM]

Sounds like a Nokia E61 to me...

[Socko @ Sep 5th 2006 2:52PM]

Triband? will it work for Sprint?

[Jestyr @ Sep 5th 2006 12:22PM]

What the heck is up with the number pad? I hope that is just an old design bug..

First 2 chars of my layout are the silver buttons 2nd two are black and next 2 are silver
1@2$3:
4^5£6;
7~8&9'
0

It's like an ergonomic nightmare...

[Levi @ Sep 5th 2006 12:35PM]

In this day and age, what is the point of getting a Tri-band GSM phone FCC approved? Much less making a tri-band phone in the first place?

Both Cingular and T-Mobile have and/or are working on rolling out 850 Mhz cells nationwide, and while T-Mobile has widespread 1900 Mhz coverage (at least around Houston, TX), exactly how much more would it cost to make a quad-band über-device?

Then you have one device you can sell world-wide...

[Xman @ Sep 5th 2006 12:56PM]

"Why do you need WiFi if your device has a High Speed (HSDPA or EVDO) connection. I can't think of the last time I needed to search for a Starbucks to read my email"

you need it b/c wifi has a wider coverage and in many cases will be free. HSDPA is just being rolled out in the USA, and only cingular has it so far. this makes wifi a more reliable option. however, cingular does have edge and so does t-mobile in the USA, so that would have been a better question to ask. though the same holds true, network coverage can be spotty.

what i don't understand is the tri-band limitation of the phone. i thought that the 850mhz spectrum was required for HSPDA. there is just not enough bandwidth on the 1900mhz spectrum for voice and data being used by both cingular and t-mobile. guess this phone won't be in the USA.

[Cole @ Sep 5th 2006 2:59PM]

I find that this is great. For those that can't get a Moto Q because they have Cingular or T-Mobile can now get this phone that is even better than the Q and will work only on Cingular or T-Mobile. Now it would be nice if they put it in silver and other colors.

[Vincent @ Sep 5th 2006 3:44PM]

"Triband? will it work for Sprint?"

Erm... its tri-band GSM. Sprint is CDMA network. This phone wont even begin to know how to work on Sprint, Nextel, Verizon, etc.

[mark @ Sep 5th 2006 7:28PM]

sorry not up to date on all the latest tech. i am looking for a handheld tri band phone/pda to use for yahoo video instant messaging in the middle east and asia is this it? any ideas? thanks

[Paul @ Sep 5th 2006 7:03PM]

Why do screen sizes on all new smartphones seem to be getting smaller and smaller while my eyes are getting worse and worse? 2.3 inchs at 320x240 just seems ridiculous to me (at least the way WM utilizes the real estate). The 2.8 inch screens on the current crop of WM phones are almost too small. I want to go back to the days of 3.5-3.8 inch vga screens. WM at QVGA was designed to be read comfortably on a 3.5 inch screen. dropping it down this small is just asking for migraines. I'm almost to the point of going back to (shudder) two devices again because of this trend...

[Faslane @ Sep 5th 2006 7:29PM]

That number pad it truly killing my "carpal tunnel hand" just thinkging about using it. WOW!

[Hushed Casket @ Sep 6th 2006 3:02PM]

"Why do you need WiFi if your device has a High Speed (HSDPA or EVDO) connection. I can't think of the last time I needed to search for a Starbucks to read my email."

Because not everywhere you go has EVDO/HSPDA. More places have WiFi than EVDO/HSDPA. Also, you can get poor cell reception in buildings (i.e., office spaces).

[dbyun @ Sep 12th 2006 5:43PM]

I wonder if this will come to Canada.. hopefully with Rogers.. I was gonna buy Q but decided to hold it off and wait for this if this is coming to Canada this year...

[Harry Myhre @ Sep 30th 2006 1:54AM]

dang, the screen on the samsung is SO TINY!
I will stick with my HTC Wizard style phone.

[vuducvuong @ Jan 21st 2007 5:32PM]

vorrei comprare telefono SAMSUNG SGH I600

[maypo33 @ Apr 29th 2007 11:11PM]

sorry not up to date on all the latest tech..poor knowledge in this, can somebody comfirm with me, is it SGH-i600 can use yahoo messenger and skype? and 3G eyes can be webcam...? if can.. :))

[Brian lee @ May 8th 2007 11:22PM]

Is anyone using this or any other tri-band) phone in the USA on Cingular? By far this phone is nice than the i607 model.

[Julio @ Jun 11th 2007 5:26AM]

Does anyone knows how to type special characters (ex. underscore) when using opera on SGH-i600?
Been trying since I bought this thing, but seems impossible to access special characters through another application other than windows mobile certified apps.