|  The M610 by Samsung binds the speed of Sprint’s Power Vision EVDO network, to allow users to access the latest news, music and entertainment content at broadband-like speeds.
The 3.9 x 2.0 x 0.4-inch M610, at its slimmest point, is thinner than the RAZR (0.4 inches versus 0.5) and weighs a sprightly 3.2 ounces, making it small and light enough to disappear into a shirt pocket. Despite the thinness, a soft-touch finish gives the M610 a durable feel. The design is a bit too plain for our tastes, and we're not fans of the flat dialpad keys; however, the numbers are easy enough to dial without hitting the wrong keys.
We love the large 2.2-inch QVGA screen, which is the same size display found on the Samsung A900M. It's great for showing off pictures you take with the 2-megapixel camera. The camera has a rotating lens, which makes taking self-portraits a snap. The pictures looked surprisingly sharp-provided that you take a snap of the subject in decent lighting-the colors were a bit drab.
Unlike its predecessor, the M610 comes with a microSD memory card slot. Too bad it's located underneath the battery pack, which means you have to power down the phone to access the card. We figure this was a necessary shortcut to facilitate the phone's thinness, but anyone who frequently swaps out memory cards will find this implementation to be annoying.
The M610 uses a proprietary headphone jack/charging port, which means you can't plug in your own earbuds. Instead, you'll have to use the supplied set, which delivered loud, crisp sound but got uncomfortable quick. Then again, at least Sprint includes earbuds; both Cingular and Verizon charge extra. Plus, you could always go wireless by pairing the M610 with stereo Bluetooth headphones.
The 2 megapixel camera takes sharp, well balanced pictures, and features a new easier to use interface. Our only complaint is that the viewfinder is still set to "full screen" by default, which has been common on many Sprint phones. This means you see a portrait orientation preview, even though you are taking a landscape orientation picture. You can change the viewfinder to "wide screen" in the camera settings panel.
Specifications
- Dimensions: 3.98" x 2.05" x 0.47"
- Weight: 3.24 ounces
- Internal Display: 240 x 320 Pixel, 262K TFT Color
- External Display: 96 x 48 Pixel, OLED
- Color: Black
- Mode: Digital Dual-Band: EVDO, Digital Only; CDMA 1x EVDO: 800/1900 MHz
- Talk Time: Up to 3 hours
- Wireless Protocol: CDMA
- Service Provider: Sprint
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