Introduction

It should be noted that the SGH-S105 is pretty much the SGH-S100. The SGH-S105 was specifically designed for T-Mobile. Samsung says the SGH-S105 is an upgraded version of the SGH-S100, but as far as we can see there's no significant differences.

Design

The Samsung SGH-S105 comes with an incredible set of multimedia features. From its 65K color screen to its 16 polyphonic ring tones. Once you flip open the phone you'll know why people are raving about its screen. Its 2.1 inch color display is around 0.2 inches larger than the measly 4,096 color Motorola T720.

On the outside the SGH-S105 is just about the same as the A500. If you like clamshells, you'll like its conventional design. At 89 x 47 x 23 mm, its slips easily in a pocket, and is big enough to hold in your hand easily while talking. When open, the phone extends about 6 inches total, which should be perfect for people's faces. Also, an antenna sticks out about an inch. At 92 grams it's slightly smaller and lighter than the Motorola T720.

An outer cover has an external monochrome LCD display that shows the day, date, time, charge level, and network status. When a new call comes in, the phone number is shown, or tells you that you missed a call.

The SGH-S105 comes with 20 preinstalled polyphonic ring tones. Samsung arguably has the best sounding polyphonic ring tones out there. At 16 simultaneous instruments it definitely outperforms the Nokia 7210 and 6610's 4 simultaneous instruments. The tones are loud enough to hear from a pocket clearly. A problem we find with many mobile phones.

A disappointing feature we would have liked to see is voice dialing. If voice dialing is important to you, look elsewhere now. You won't find it here. On the bright side, the SGH-S105 comes with a good headset. Although the volume is a bit weak. even on the highest settings, sometimes voices were low.

Screen

Absolutely fabulous. At 65K colors, this 128 x 160 px color DSTN screen is by far the best we've seen to date. We could go on and on about the screen. It should be noted that the screen is divided into 3 parts. There's a top toolbar, the center where the wallpaper is, and a bottom toolbar. The actual area for the viewable area for the wallpaper is 128 x 128 px.

Indoors, the screen is bright and vivid. When you're outside it becomes black due to the sun overpowering the backlit.

The external monochrome LCD is 96 x 64 screen with a slightly reflective backgrounds. This makes it easier to read with little light outside.

The only drawback we came across was a discoloration in a sawtooth lighting pattern at the screen's bottom. It's not a big deal, but can get slightly annoying. Don't get me wrong, the screen is definitely exceptional.

Controls

The SGH-S105 has interconnected keys, which might be inconvenient when you try to dial by feeling. Keys on the same row become difficult to differentiate since they are all joined. Other than that, the keypad is fine.

The SGH-S105 is also equipped with a 4 direction keypad. This is fine for a phone, but we really like the 5-way jog dials of the Sony Ericsson. If you've used one, you'll know what I'm talking about.

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