If you've been tempted by the convenience of a mobile phone that can double as a PDA but have put off buying a hybrid because they're too bulky, that excuse has officially gone out the window. Put simply, Samsung's improbably sleek SPH-i500 breaks the combo mold.

 

Once you've laid your fingers on this wonderfully compact clamshell, it's impossible not to appreciate Samsung's engineering feat. At 4.7 ounces, this is the first smart phone that's truly small enough to slip into a pocket virtually unnoticed.

 

Powered by a 66-MHz processor and running Palm OS 4.1, all of the popular PIM applications are here, including Address Book, Date Book, Memo Pad, and To Do. Just pull the telescoping stylus out of its holster on the back of the device and start tapping on the bright 65,000-color touchscreen. Four tiny customizable buttons that by default open your contacts, calendar, messages, and the Blazer browser line the bottom of the display.

 

When it comes to entering data, the i500 accommodates with a Graffiti-window located just above the dial pad. This area seemed a bit cramped at first but we adjusted quickly.

 

Some may never get used to the smallish 2.5-inch display, especially those used to screens that are 3.5 inches or larger on traditional PDAs. But if you want the convenience of having one device that can do it all (organizer, phone, Web, and e-mail), we believe this is one tradeoff that lots of prospective buyers are willing to make.

 

As a phone, the i500 sounded great before and during calls. You have your choice of three traditional ring tones and 30 16-chord ringers. The device delivers up to three hours of talk time with its slimmer battery and up to 4.5 hours with its slightly chunkier battery. Plus, the syncing dock includes an extra slot to charge both simultaneously.

 

More importantly, the i500 feels more natural than any other smart phone we've tested, including Kyocera's 7135. That 6.6-ounce clamshell packs in more features, including a MP3 playback and Secure Digital card slot for memory expansion. The i500 comes with 16MB of RAM but without MP3 playback or a memory card slot.

 

Still, we had plenty of room for hundreds of contacts, calendar entries, and notes. Sprint supplies plenty of useful apps on the included CD-ROM, including trial versions of Quickoffice, an excellent PDA office suite that's lets you view and edit Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files, Splashphoto for uploading digital images, and StockManager. (For an in-depth review of Quickoffice, see PDA Office Suites on page 82.)

 For your downtime, the i500 comes with trial versions of Monopoly and Midway Arcade Classics (including Spy Hunter), along with full versions of Astraware and ZioGolf.

 

So what about e-mail? The package doesn't include PCS Business Connection Personal Edition, which offers real-time access to the updated e-mail, contacts, calendar, and files stored on your PC. Instead, the CD-ROM provides a link to Sprint's Web site for more information. New subscribers pay $5 per month for this service after a free two-month trial period. For the moment, Personal Edition works only with Microsoft Exchange and Lotus Domino servers; a desktop re-director version of the software should be available soon.

 

The bigger question might be whether the i500 is a good enough messaging device to warrant the investment in Business Connection. Devices with built-in keyboards like the BlackBerry, Treo 300, and the upcoming Hitachi G1000 from Sprint are tailor-made for e-mail. With its reliance on Graffiti, using the i500's stylus can feel awkward and slow when penning longer replies.

 

When it comes to surfing, however, the i500 delivers the goods with its built-in Blazer browser. Thanks to Sprint's high-speed 1xRTT network, we downloaded most Web sites we visited within 10 to 15 seconds. And, soon you'll be able to download Palm OS apps right over the air by visiting Sprint's online PCS Mobile Software Store.

 

Overall, we were very impressed with the Samsung SPH-i500. It's small enough to take anywhere yet powerful enough to keep you organized and connected wherever you roam.

 

-Mark Spoonauer

 

Samsung i500
Rating: 4.5 stars (out of 5)
Price: $400-$500
Company: Sprint PCS
(888) 253-1315
www.sprintpcs.com