Philippine Cell Phones

The Samsung SCH-u750 Alias 2 from Verizon is a dual-mode clamshell cell phone, built of sturdy plastic with a professional-looking grey and silver exterior. The phone feels solid in your hand, though unfortunately the hinge has quite a bit of give, and does not inspire much confidence in its ability to last through excessive use. The Alias 2 is quite a large handset, measuring a full 102mm x 51mm x 18mm (4in x 2in x 0.7in), but weighs only 122g (4.3 ounces). The phone can be opened top to bottom in portrait mode, like a normal clamshell phone, or side to side in landscape mode, more like a miniature laptop.
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On the outer panel of the Samsung SCH-u750 Alias 2, there is a 2 megapixel camera for taking snapshots or video clips. Below this is the external display, a small square 1.3-inch unit with 128 x 128 pixel resolution. Immediately below this display are three touch-sensitive music playback buttons that are also used to navigate through the crude menu that’s available on the external display. On the left hinge of the phone you’ll find a 2.5mm audio port that is protected by an attached door to keep debris out. Further down along the left edge of the phone you’ll find the proprietary Samsung power port, also protected by a door, as well as the volume rocker and a dedicated voice control button. A covered microSD card slot is on the right edge, as is a Hold button for the music player and a dedicated power button below. Noticeably missing is a dedicated camera button.

Features
The Alias 2 has a 1,000-contact phone book with room in each entry for five phone numbers, two e-mail addresses, a street address, and notes. You also can save a dedicated emergency number. For further personalization, you can save callers to groups, pair them with a photo and assign one of 20 polyphonic ringtones.

Other essentials include a vibrate mode, a calculator, a calendar, an alarm clock, a stopwatch, a world clock, a unit and currency converter, and a tip calculator. Though the Alias 2 isn’t a true smartphone, you’ll find a few higher-end options, as well. It offers stereo Bluetooth, speaker independent voice dialing and commands, USB mass storage, and a file manager. Wi-Fi, which would be useful on a messaging phone, is not an option.

As an EV-DO phone, the Alias 2 supports the full range of Verizon’s 3G services, including V Cast streaming video content, and the V Cast Music with Rhapsody. Both the V Cast menu and music store interface are pretty much unchanged from other Verizon phones. Player options include the usual limited shuffle and repeat modes, but V Cast Music also will recommend other songs based on your playlist. The Alias 2 includes an airplane mode for listening to your tunes while aloft.

The Alias 2 has a 2-megapixel camera. You can take pictures in five resolutions from 1,600×1,200 pixels down to 160×120, and you can choose from three quality settings. Other options are plentiful and include a self-timer, a multishot mode, five color tones, four white-balance effects, an adjustable ISO, spot metering, a brightness control, and three shutter sounds (plus a silent option). There’s also a 10x digital zoom, though it’s unusable at the highest resolution. The Alias 2 doesn’t offer a flash, which we expect on a 2-megapixel phone. Camera quality was quite good, however, with bright colors and little image noise.

Specifications:
* The 2.6-inch display features a 240 x 320 pixel resolution with 262k colors.
* External: 1.3-inch 128 x 128 pixel LCD display.
* Measures 102 x 52 x 17mm and weighs 123g.
* 2 megapixel camera with 15fps QCIF video.
* Internal memory of 80MB and expandable via microSD card slot.
* Battery life: Up to 5 hours talk time and 336 hours stand-by.
* Bluetooth: version 2.0.

Performance
As mentioned, the Alias 2 also supports EV-DO, though it is not a Rev. A device. Call quality was quite good on the whole. Conversations were clear, the volume was loud, and the consistently strong signal didn’t suffer from interference or static. What’s more, we were able to talk in most environments without any problems. On the downside, the sound tended to be somewhat harsh and even robotic at times. It was a minor issue, though, and it didn’t distract from our experience.

On their end, callers were mostly positive. In fact, a few couldn’t tell that we were using a cell phone. We made calls in noisy environments and in a quiet room. Callers noticed few changes between the two areas. However, some reported that background noise increased when we were outside; it wasn’t significant, they said, and it’s hardly an unusual occurrence on a cell phone. Automated calling systems could understand us, but it was best if we were in a quiet room. Speakerphone calls were fine for the most part. The sound quality diminished somewhat, but the volume was loud. Also, we could speak a few feet away from the phone and still be heard.

Streaming video quality was fine, though we’ve seen better on other Verizon phones. Videos downloaded quickly thanks to the strong EV-DO connection and only one clip paused to buffer midway through playing. There was some visible pixelation, but most onscreen action was pretty smooth. Also, the sound was in sync with the action on the display. It’s most comfortable to watch the videos in landscape mode, even though the frame takes up only half of the screen.

Its music quality was satisfying. The audio isn’t especially rich, and like many music phones there was an audible tinny effect, but it is fine for short stints of listening. Headphones will provide a better experience, though we wouldn’t use the Alias 2 as our sole music device. Songs downloaded quickly from V Cast Music, and we added a 3.7MB song in about a minute. The Alias 2 has a rated battery life of 5 hours talk time and 16 days standby time. According to the FCC, the Alias 2 has a digital SAR of 0.541 watts per kilogram.