It's also got Opera MIni 9.7 off the bat, a capable, though not phenomenal browser, along with (crappy) apps for Facebook and Twitter, besides the usual Sprint stock: Navigation, Live TV, etc. Overall, the experience feels clunky and, far too often, frustratingly laggy.

Why anyone would buy this $250 (or $200 at Best Buy) faux-smartphone over the much cheaper, more elegant, and just plain better Palm Pre or HTC Hero—which are real and excellent smartphones on Sprint—I don't know. The welcome addition 720p video isn't worth it, even if it is pretty decent vs. the Flip Ultra HD:

[Sprint]

The Samsung Instinct HD has been officially outed as a $250 (after rebate) addition to Sprint's line, with a lean spec sheet that matches up with previous rumors: it has have a 5-megapixel camera with HD video recording and HDMI-out—Samsung's using Microsoft's definition of "HD", evidently—that it runs a proprietary Samsung OS, and that it is, well, an incremental upgrade to the popular-but-underwhelming Samsung Instinct. On top of that we now know it's got a 320x480 screen, Wi-Fi, the fantastic Opera 9.7 browser and GPS—none of which are overly surprising. The release date confirms prior suspicions as well: It's set for September 27th.

It's announced, it looks decent, and it's about what we expected—so what's wrong? For one, it's inexplicably been tagged with a higher price than Sprint's Pre and their Hero, two phones that are objectively more capable that the Instinct HD. And why is Sprint being so cagey about specs? We don't even know how much storage this thing comes with, or what the quality of the HD video is. It's a bizarre way to launch an utterly un-bizarre phone which, mind you, could still be a nice handset. It's just gotten off to an inauspicious start.

UPDATE: Some reprieve! From Best Buy:

Although we are not announcing this in a press release, I thought you might want to let your readers know that Best Buy Mobile will be selling the device for $199.99 with 2-year activation after instant rebates. The smartphone will be available in Best Buy Mobile stores starting tomorrow Sept. 25.

[Sprint]

In one sense, not a whole lot: All the major points of our original review, good and bad, still apply (so read that for the complete rundown).

The S30 really is just a marginally improved rendition. The year-old OS moves with a bit more haste; the touchscreen is more responsive (one of the better resistive touchscreens we've used on a feature phone); and the default browser is a smidge better than even the Instinct's original life-changing 1.1 update (the new zoombar for navigating pages is fast and smooth, but the browser does still runs out of memory loading Giz, for instance). The hardware is a bit smoother and feels more natural in your hand, at the cost of being blander, I think.

Its bid at being more open—developers can have at some of the core Java APIs—will apply to the original Instinct as well, so original owners don't have to feel hosed. Honestly though, I'm not entirely sure how much development that's going to yield. A two-device pseudo-smartphone OS is not a very sexy platform to develop for, really.

But, even though its age is definitely starting to show, its well integrated features and pseudo-smarty OS make it one of the best feature phones you can buy on any carrier, and definitely one of the best phones you can buy on Sprint, period. At least until the Palm Pre shows its pretty face. See if you can snag it for under $130 with contract, though.

The S30 does improve on its forebear in a few not-insignificant ways, shipping with the excellent (but free and previously downloadable) Opera Mini browser, an improved touchscreen, a refreshed OS and softer, botoxed styling. At heart, though, it's the same old Instinct, and I don't mean figuratively—the spec sheet is almost identical.

The only way a $130 asking price makes any sense is if its considered solely in the context of Sprint's lineup, which is very, very thin on attractive smartphones and high-end feature phones. Among that sad crowd, the S30 looks pretty good at $130, but against a wider industry backdrop of $100 BlackBerrys and WinMo Smartphones—not to mention some vastly more impressive offerings at the $200 price point—it, and in turn Sprint, looks silly. [Sprint via IntoMobile]

The phone will be available on April 19 for $130 (according to Gadget Review), and seems eerily similar to its predecessor. But Samsung claims it has an "Advanced Responsive Touchscreen", faster internet browsing with Opera 4.2, GPS with 2D and 3D maps, Bluetooth 2.0, a 2-megapixel camera and haptic feedback for the on-screen keyboard. It also has a 3.2" screen and is only half an inch thick.

After messing around with it for a few minutes, I can tell the touchscreen is definitely improved, with a responsive UI, more vibrant display and haptic feedback that serves its purpose well. The UI design is extremely similar to last year's offering, but the browser also seems to be a step up, even if it's still not up to snuff with the Webkit-based mobile browsers. The phone is slightly bigger than the original Instinct, though hardly noticeable, and has a nice bronze back.

Also included is live search with voice commands, Sprint TV and Music Store support, Visual Voicemail and video recording.

SAMSUNG INSTINCT® s30, EXCLUSIVELY FROM SPRINT, ADDS ATTRACTIVE STYLING, INSTANT MESSAGING, IMPROVED WEB EXPERIENCE AND ENHANCED OPEN DEVELOPMENT CAPABILITIES TO POPULAR INSTINCT

All the best of award-winning Instinct, including Visual Voicemail, Speech to Action with GPS integration, full touch screen and the speed of
America's most dependable 3G network, coming soon on new Instinct s30

Available April 19; Sign-up now at HYPERLINK "http://www.sprint.com/SamsungInstinctS30" www.sprint.com/SamsungInstinctS30
to be among the first to own the next generation in the Instinct family

LAS VEGAS – March 31, 2009 – Sprint (NYSE: S) and Samsung Telecommunications America (Samsung Mobile) today announced the upcoming availability of Samsung Instinct® s30, a successor to the iconic Samsung Instinct touch screen phone that debuted last summer exclusively from Sprint. Instinct s30 offers full touch screen functionality and the broadband speeds of America's most dependable 3G network.*

Instinct s30 raises the bar with built-in instant messaging, an improved Web-browsing experience through both the default browser and Opera Mini 4.2 as well as the popular games "Guitar Hero® – World Tour" and "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader" preloaded to keep consumers connected and entertained while on-the-go. Instinct s30 offers a thinner streamlined design for a smoother feel in the user's hand with two color options - Cobalt Metal or Touch of Copper.

ADVANCED FEATURES BALANCE BUSINESS AND PERSONAL NEEDS
Instinct s30 is ideal for customers looking to simplify and increase the productivity of their business and personal lives with quick access to corporate calendar functionality via Microsoft® Outlook®. Sprint Mobile Email Work provides access to corporate email, contacts, and calendar from Microsoft® Exchange Server 2000, 2003 or 2007 accounts, or IBM Lotus Domino accounts at no additional charge.

Like its predecessor, Instinct s30 has the following industry-leading features:
Expansive touch screen featuring localized haptic feedback giving users a gentle vibration as they use the virtual QWERTY keypad
Live Search for Sprint, powered by Microsoft, provides easy access to directory information on-the-go, GPS-enabled directions, interactive maps and one-touch click to call access
Visual Voicemail, allowing users to listen to messages in their order of preference and manage them with a simple tap of the screen
Sprint TV® with an extensive selection of channels and on-demand programming
Sprint Music Store allowing users to browse and wirelessly download full-length songs directly to their phone for just 99 cents each
Advanced stereo Bluetooth® 2.0
SMS voice and text messaging with threaded text
True HTML Web experience from both the enhanced embedded browser and the addition of Opera Mini 4.2 with a desktop-like browsing experience
2.0 megapixel camera with camcorder

Instinct s30 offers a Speech to Action button providing many functions using voice activation including call, text, picture messaging, traffic, movie, sports, news and search. Speech to Action brings the user seamless integration with Sprint Navigation, powered by Telenav, with GPS-enabled audio and visual turn-by-turn driving directions, one-click traffic rerouting and more than 10 million local listings

"Samsung Instinct s30 is proof that it is possible to improve on even one of the most successful mobile phones," said Bill Ogle, Chief Marketing Officer for Samsung Mobile. "Instinct s30 offers people a new way to enjoy a fast and fun user experience with their phone."

MORE OPEN FOR DEVELOPERS
Instinct S30 will also be more "open" than its predecessor, with access to core Java APIs (application programming interface), including messaging, multimedia and Bluetooth, that allow developers to take advantage of the phone's features. By providing this open access, Sprint is providing what developers have been seeking and making it possible for them to create more sophisticated and innovative new applications for customers to use on the Instinct family of phones.

Developers will have open access to the following Java APIs when creating applications on Instinct s30:
Multimedia: recording audio, playing media files such as MP3 songs, streaming content and using the camera to take pictures
Messaging: sending and receiving messages
Bluetooth - establishing connectivity to send/receive data with peripherals
Contacts/Calendar: reading and writing to contacts/address book, and reading and writing to events
File Access: reading and writing to the internal file access on the handset
"We are excited to introduce Instinct s30 into our portfolio in a few weeks as we continue the tradition of innovative and easy-to-use touch screen devices that will appeal to a broad array of our customers," said Kevin Packingham, Sprint senior vice president of product and technology development. "The original device surpassed our highest expectations for both customer interest and industry accolades. The enhancements on Instinct s30 make it even more versatile for our customers and access to core Java APIs like messaging and multimedia will make it even easier for more developers to create new applications."
Sprint plans to extend access to these Java APIs to the Instinct s30's predecessor, Instinct, through an over-the-air software upgrade. The Java APIs will then be available on all future Java-enabled Sprint phones.
In providing open access to these capabilities, Sprint is creating a leading open software environment for developers to create innovative applications. Sprint's industry-leading Application Developer Program ( HYPERLINK "http://developer.sprint.com/instinct" \o "http://developer.sprint.com/instinct" http://developer.sprint.com/instinct ) further supports development in an open environment by providing an extensive set of free resources, including a kit with Instinct programming templates and device emulation, sample applications with source code, developer guides and developer forums.

Samsung Korea let slip a press release teasing their CTIA announcements, in which the S30 makes a clear appearance. Alongside its picture, we find two lonely nuggets of information: that the S30 will have a 3.2-inch screen, and that it has updated software. For reference, the original Instinct has a 3.1-inch screen, so shelve those 'Mini' fantasies (and for that matter, the odd notion that all handset manufacturers are planning to create teensy versions of their products).

So here's what we can infer from our little bit of data: the S30 is almost certainly just a newer, rounder Instinct, and will replace that years-old handset. The inclusion of its screen size as a banner feature in the preliminary press release indicates that there won't be anything groundbreaking, so unless the new software is something really special, Sprint's game is going to have to be price—as in, the lowering of. [Samsung Korea via Akihabara]

It's really not looking so different than the original Instinct, save for the rounded edges that should make it more comfortable in the hand while distinguishing it a bit more from the iPhone. If earlier leaks are to be trusted, you'll see this handset sometime in mid-April. But is anyone out there earnestly excited about the redux? [Sprint Users via BGR]

Head of Product Strategy Won-Pyo Hong says the Android units will ship alongside a LiMo handset, marking a serious shift in focus to Linux for Samsung. The company isn't spilling any more details for now, so we've really just got the words "Android" "Samsung" and "handset" to spark our imaginations. That, and the equivocal "more than three" thing—surely, "more than three" just means "at least four", right? [Reuters via Crunchgear]

The phone is said to be similar to the Instinct and Omnia non-QWERTY handsets, which I'm pretty sure is ETNews' overspecific way of saying that it'll probably look like every other Samsung touchscreen phone because, well, it's a Samsung touchscreen phone. Details are slim, but this quote provides all the meat we need for now:

“We are accelerating the development process for Google phone in order to meet the specific need of local carriers.

We will be able to release Google phone in the second quarter of the next year in the US market.”

It's no longer news when a company is 'considering' Android—they all are. But release targets for a new phone, even vague ones, are like sweet gadget manna. [ETNews via ModMyGphone—Thanks, Neerhaj!]

Version: BH29
Delivery: OTA
Projected Release Date: 9/17 (client initiated) 9/24 (network initiated) Projected Release Dates are best estimates and are subject to change with no notice.

Notes: Instinct firmware BH29 includes the resolution of 249 tickets open since the previous public firmware release, BF30. The release also marks the first public release of the updated Instinct Web Browser, version 1.1. The new browser is based on an entirely new codebase and brings an 10x improvement to rendering speed, most noticeable in the areas of pan/zoom/resize functionality.

New browser features include:
* VC Button -> Hide/show controls; browser controls can be hidden to provide more screen to webpage display
* Favorites enhancements -> Improvements to favorites UI allows for sticky mode lock
* 34 other web browser tickets resolved

As I think we've firmly established, we call these iPhone clones because they are made superficially with the look and feel of the iPhone in mind. They are not direct competitors to the iPhone, as they don't run on a smart, open platform like iPhones—or Blackberry and Windows Mobile phones—do. The Dare, like the Instinct, is closed and proprietary, geared to customers who like much of what the carrier has to offer, and would just like a better way to make use of it. And after spending some time with the Dare, I can safely say that, much like the Instinct, it really does let you do that. Easier Access
For starters, Verizon has done away with its dependence on unchangeable, annoyingly deep menus. With the Dare, you can drag any app or function directly to the desktop for one-click access. You can add key people to the Favorites launcher, where you simply drag their face to the phone or message icons to call or launch a new SMS.Even those cryptic notification icons always seen at tops of phones are clickable on the Dare.E-mail and Web
Let me get this off my chest first: The Dare browser is WAY better than the Instinct's, both in rendering speed and page layout. You can navigate Gizmodo with very little trouble, especially if you're going read-only. My only complaint was that there was no way I could find to speed-scroll through so many blog posts without giving my thumb a callous.Verizon's E-mail app is basically the same as it's been for about six or eight months. I do not recommend it for business use, as it's not very full featured, but I was able to get the Dare to notify me whenever any mail from three different accounts came through, and the iPhone-like QWERTY keyboard with pop-up letters really helped when typing. The only trouble I had sending e-mail was due to a funky POP3 account with ambiguous recommended settings. (One negative: You can't edit POP settings once you've configured them, so I had to keep deleting and adding the same account over and over again.)

Premium Unlimited-Use Plans
The good news is, unlimited use of e-mail and web are included in Verizon's new premium price plans, along with unlimited text messaging, unlimited use of basic V Cast clips and ACTUALLY USEFUL stuff like the ESPN MVP sports and WeatherBug web apps. Though it seems at first glance that pricing is a tad higher that Sprint's, the difference is negligible:



$80/month - 450 primetime talk minutes
$100/month - 900 primetime talk minutes
$120/month - 1350 primetime talk minutes
$140/month - Unlimited talk minutes
And yes, there are family premium plans that give you these perks for multiple (compatible) phones. The phone itself is $200 after a mail-in rebate.

Lighter Features
In our introductory walkthrough video, we showed you some awesome traits. After a revisit during our review, here's how those features held up:

• Slow-mo video cam - It's a bit grainy, but with decent light, it could make some interesting videos at 120 frames per second. The 3.2 megapixel camera is decent, but nothing to write home about.

• Full photo editing - Speaking of camera, the editing feature is not as "full" as we first thought. There's no red-eye reduction or shadow/highlight or color adjustment. Most of the options are actually novelty, and even for being silly they are not very useable.

• Music player - Good: Plays MP3s and even iTunes Plus DRM-free AACs that you drag to the "My Music" folder of the MicroSD card (up to 8GB); Bad: Still has issues with tags, and appears to count image metadata as additional song files, so browsing by Artist or Album is fine, but browsing "All Songs" is messy. In addition to that the video player reads standard MP4 (but not H.264), and pauses songs when you switch to video playback, only to pick up where it left off once you're done.Hardware
Like the Sprint Instinct, there's a 3.5mm jack for universal headphone fit, but unlike the Instinct, the Dare has a motion sensor inside that tells whether you're holding the phone horizontally or vertically. Videos, photos and the music browser all automatically adjust, as do keyboards and web pages. It's a nice touch, though I'll be honest, you don't really miss it on the Instinct.

The Dare's touchscreen leaves something to be desired. It's not as snappy as the Instinct's, and even after calibrating the screen, I found myself resorting to fingernail tapping to gain some precision.

The body of the Dare is a tad chunkier, but shorter too, with a slightly stubbier screen.

Dare vs. Instinct
The Instinct is, inside and out, a more elegant device. I preferred Instinct's e-mail app, and its included news, sports and weather web apps were great. Verizon is promising some unlimited-use apps like ESPN MVP and WeatherBug to compete with that, and while they're pretty nice programs, they were not ready to be used on the Dare at the time of this review.

The thing I can't stand about the Dare is VZ Navigator. I have tried to appreciate this, and since unlimited use of it comes with the premium plan, it can be considered a feature of the phone. Still, it's the worst GPS UI I've ever played around with, and Verizon would do much better to kill off their own licensed app and go with Telenav, which Sprint and AT&T both use.

Still, after playing with both, I have to say that the Instinct's aesthetic assets don't fully make up for the Dare's key advantages, one of which happens to be Verizon's network. In the northeast at least, there's no substitute.

Conclusion
Like the web apps, there are a few more wait-and-sees: Visual voicemail isn't in effect yet, and may or may not come via over-the-air update. Rhapsody is just launching today, and for $15/month extra you will be able to sideload the Dare with Rhapsody-to-Go tracks, though a Windows PC is required for that.

I am very content to say that this is Verizon's best attempt at a customizable, user-friendly touchscreen phone, and that, if you are into buttonless touch interfaces, you could do a lot worse across all the carriers. I think the $200 iPhone trumps the $200 Dare if you don't care which carrier you're on, but for those of you who are sticking with Verizon, you might, um, venture to pick up a Dare. [LG Dare at Verizon Wireless]