Preview: Samsung Heat

by Eric Lin
March 8, 2007

When you first take the Heat out of the box, there is a little instructional sticker on it, as there are on many new phones. I tore it right off thinking it just pointed out where the keys were; which it does. However the sticker also warns you to press and hold the soft keys to reject an incoming call, which I and many others who received review units failed to notice. Learn from our mistake.

The long press to reject a call takes a little while to get used to, but since the touch keys all seem to respond better to a slightly slower, more deliberate press than a regular key, it is not that awkward after adjusting.

instruction sticker

Click a thumbnail above for a larger view.

The Heat has the exact same software as the Drift, only the body is different. The Heat is narrow and easy to get a grip around when it's closed. Sliding it open is satisfying, as it is sprint loaded, so it opens with a nice pop. Though the touch sensitive keys are still sluggish (even when set to super-sensitive, and yes "super" is actually the setting), the D-pad and numeric keys have a very nice feel and are easy get around. Texting is lightning fast - even faster than on the Drift.

closed, standby		closed, all buttons on		open
right side		left side		back, open
hand fit, closed		hand fit, open		hand fit, key size
Click a thumbnail above for a larger view.

Reception and battery life are both as good as the Drift, which is to say, slightly above average for a CDMA phone. However, the screen is a bit more difficult to read as it is slightly smaller. It is also coated with a dark finish that makes it very difficult to read in sunlight, even at maximum brightness.

heat v. drift, closed		heat v. drift, open		heat v. drift, back
heat v. drift, thickness
Click a thumbnail above for a larger view.

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