nice lines and appears very simplistic. being a Verizon customer I hope the adapt the VZW UI for this and release it as soon as they can for those who want a great texting phone but not the smartphone bill.

@Lavallee017: Didn't they already do that with the LG Voyager?

@Marty_MacFly: Yea I guess they did but the phone itself is so expensive. I could be wrong but this one looks to be a more wallet friendly version of the Voyager with a little less functionality but better than your average flip phone. Only time will tell

i agree, with marty...if its going to have a touch screen like that i would want some smartphone features...

@Lavallee017:

Only problem is that the gsm version is about 700 bucks, so I doubt that this will be "wallet friendly".

I'm all for more options. Many VZW faithful have seen the Voyager and have said, "next." I'm hoping it's slimmer and with a better touch screen: [www.phonearena.com]

wifi? if so yes, otherwise, no.

Why the f*&k does Verizon always maim the camera function on it's phones??

If it was developed as a 5 megapixel camera, why does Verizon change it to a 2 megapixel version?

Anyone know why?

@Hackoff: I second that. Wtf?? Does Verizon have to cripple everything ?

They probably do it to lower the cost for them, but keep the price high for you, increasing their profit margin.

This is a really nice looking phone, qwerty keyboard is so nice. I might actually get this one if i like the software on it.

@chillarmadillo: ok ok, I did not know this was going to have a SRP of $700. in light of this new information let me revise my stance. Macfly hit it on the head, why is this being released along side the Voyager!?

I kinda like this.

It's bound to be slimmer than the VX10000, and I still get a keyboard for texting.

I have a ways to go for m y new every two, so we'll be watching this closely.

Castrated, honestly, with the loss of that camera. Still lacks smartphone abilities that could set it apart, and now it's missing key media features..

Latest specs on the GSM version have a 3.15MP camera though. Sad, the Viewty has a 5MP and at least two other Samsung phones, one with a xenon flash and 3x optical zoom.

it sure has taken a long time for this phone to come stateside (like over a year). probably old tech by now.

@Hackoff: They cripple the cameras to:
a) Save bandwidth on their network. Big difference in data volume if everybody was suddenly slinging around 5megapixel MMS messages.
b) Cut down on support calls. Many, many Verizon phones (many phones in general) can't display a 5megapixel image, some just reject the message.

So gee, thanks Verizon. Keep cranking out crappy phones. AT&T is going to eat your lunch because they are getting the best phones. And god help you when the 3G iPhone 2.0 comes out.

Don't single out Verizon for crippling camera features; all US providers do it. That said, I'll only get this phone if it doesn't have the VZW UI. I know the chances between this are somewhere between "slim" and "snowball in Lucifer's asshole," but a man has to be able to dream.

That said, I'm pretty sure all US cell phone providers have a size limit when it comes to sending images, so I doubt they're overly concerned about the bandwidth getting clogged. I think it's more an issue of "this is cheaper for us, but we're sure as shit not going to pass any savings on to you."

I can't wait until next year, when Verizon (presumably) opens up their network and I never have to walk into one of their stores again. It's not like they ever know anything I don't anyway.

It doesn't have a VZW ui. Well, thats not 100% true since the obviously added their own things like get it now, navigator and what not but its keeping the basic croix ui look and feel.

The early pics looks like it has the odd 3 row key board in place of the 4 rows they ended up putting on the GSM version.

I'm going to give it a try when it comes out (assuming there isn't something that I want more before then, which, will undoubtly happen)

Wifi or not wifi? If it has wifi I may just buy this phone (I am stuck on Verizon anyways).

I don't believe this is supposed to have wifi.

It looks great (and I've always liked Samsung products) but I think I'm going to hold out for a more full-fledged smartphone this time around. Supposedly the HTC Touch/Vogue, HTC Iris, and Blackberry Curve are finally going to be making their way onto Verizon in the fairly near future (and in roughly that order.)

I find it excessively pathetic that American carriers ,such as 'Verizon' or whatever, have to completely deprecate the original international versions of their purported 'products.' The reduction of a 5MP camera to a meagre and utterly prodigal 2MP camera is a fitting example of their idiotic approach to technology. In fact, they have always been quite worthless, as far as I am concerned. Thank you.

Will I be able to use this phone with Alltel service? I am so disappointed about the lack of interest by manufacturers to carry the Immersion Vibetonz!