The Samsung Eternity is a relatively affordable yet elegant touchscreen phone that sports a 3-megapixel camera, broadcast-quality TV, and a fun and easy-to-use interface. For $149, this AT&T handset isn’t nearly as versatile as the iPhone but it should please multimedia mavens looking for a beautiful touchscreen phone with a few bonuses.
Design
The Eternity measures 4.3 x 2.2 x 0.5 inches in size, exactly the same dimensions as the LG Vu, and weighs a light 3.9 ounces. Its piano black face is home to a large 3.2-inch, 400 x 240-pixel display, which is bright and crisp; it’s 0.2 inches larger than the aforementioned Vu but has the same resolution. At 3.9 ounces, it’s also 0.6 ounces heavier than the Vu. The phone’s accelerometer automatically adjusts the display depending on whether you’re holding the Eternity vertically or in landscape mode.
The front of the unit has just three buttons: Send, End, and a return button; on the left are volume controls. We like the full 3.5mm headphone jack on the right side of the phone, which sits above a camera quick-launch button and menu key that brings up an on-screen menu for items such as the call log, MEdiaNet, messaging, and music player. The back of the phone has a plastic brushed-metal look to it and a 3-MP camera that lacks a flash. The phone comes with 200MB of internal storage; you can add up to 8GB using a microSD Card (not included).
Touchscreen Interface
The Eternity’s touchscreen offers light haptic feedback so you’ll know when the phone has registered a touch. The display was accurate, and we didn’t have to repeat taps to make a selection.
Like the Samsung Behold on T-Mobile, the phone sports Samsung’s TouchWiz user interface, which we enjoyed using more than the one on the Vu. At the bottom of the home screen are three icons: Dial, Contacts, and Main Menu. Along the side, a ribbon houses several shortcut icons for such apps as Calendar, Clock, Calculator, and a music player. When you want to use any of these functions, simply drag the icon onto the desktop to interact with it; when you’re finished, drag it back to the ribbon. We like that the ribbon can be stowed away by clicking a small arrow, too, which gives you more desktop space. The LG Vu, by comparison, had a standard main-menu area where all of the applications were stored, and we preferred the Behold’s TouchWiz method of displaying commonly used apps.
The main menu has the standard fare, including an Address Book, the AT&T GPS Navigator software, and Media Mall. You’ll also find a Yellow Pages application and a shortcut to AT&T Mobile TV.
