The Samsung Impression may be expensive at $199, but you’ll get a lot of bang for your buck out of this slider phone. Messaging addicts will love its keyboard, and the device features a sharp 3-megapixel camera and a brilliant AMOLED display. It’s not a true smart phone, but anyone who’s primarily interested in making calls, texting, and multimedia will love the Impression.
Design
The most striking feature on the dark gunmetal blue Samsung Impression is its brilliant 3.2-inch, 400 x 240-pixel resolution AMOLED touchscreen—it’s the first device on a U.S. carrier to feature the technology. Colors on the screen pop beautifully, and the screen even helps save battery life by turning off the pixels in dark areas of any image displayed. Measuring 4.5 x 2.3 x 0.6 inches, the Impression is a bit bigger than the LG Voyager, weighs 5.3 ounces, and felt a bit bulky in our pocket.
Below the display are Send/End buttons and a Return key. On the left side of the unit is a button for accessing open tasks and volume controls. A lock key and a camera launch button are on the right, and the power/headphone port is on the top of the phone. A 3-MP camera is on the back of the unit, as well as a small speaker. A full four-row QWERTY keyboard slides out from beneath the screen.
Keyboard
The Impression’s spacious, thumb-friendly keyboard was a pleasure to use. Keys are soft, offer good feedback, and have a soft white backlight for typing in low-light conditions, and the sliding function is sturdy and smooth.
The on-screen QWERTY and alphanumeric keyboards were better than on most resistive touchscreen phones; dialing a number or sending off a text, without drawing out the keyboard, was easy. But while both were accurate, the hardware keyboard was still preferable for longer messages.
User Interface
The Impression’s colorful TouchWiz interface takes advantage of this handset’s beautiful display. TouchWiz is, essentially, a quick-launch bar on the left side of the screen from which you can drag commonly used applications onto the desktop—and back off when you’re done using them. Apps range from the alarm clock to a music player, and even AT&T Navigator.
At the bottom of the home screen are three quick-launch icons, for the dialpad, contacts, and a menu. Inside the menu you’ll find AT&T’s standard-fare offerings, including AT&T Music, Yellowpages, MEdia Mall, and the MEdiaNet browser.
Hands-on video with Apple's groundbreaking tablet.
