Posted by Mia in Several years ago the company Samsung did not think of producing secure mobile phones in the belief that it is strictly niche product. The production of such a phone is expensive and the price of it must be democratic. Anyway, the Korean giant could not ignore this little untapped sector of mobile telephony, and produced a secure pipe Samsung B2700.
The market didn’t favor devices from Siemens, Ericsson and Nokia having high degree of protection. Samsung decided not to hurry. There, after a few years of thought-thinking … and the first protected model was released this summer. The M110 had (and has) one big drawback – the phenomenal functional austerity. That is, in fact, there are almost no advanced features, even a camera with VGA-resolution display and STN-matrix.
The hero of our review is the model B2700. In fact, it is the improved and supplemented M110 with the possibilities of low-level tubes of middle-class, production 2007-2008.
Appearance
Of course, unlike its glossy contemporaries, Samsung B2700 looks brutal. From a distance of a stretched hand, it reminds me of a toy-phone of Chinese production in a counter area of a manufacture market.
This is not a stone in the garden of Korean designers, simply such specific devices always looked like that, and the B2700 has been no exception.
Samsung B2700 is indeed a very impressive toy, thanks to a rather thick rubberized plastic, but on the back side of the camera lens, the thickness of «coverage» is 3.5 mm, which demonstrates the strength of protection.
However, you can see below how it looks in general.
From the side the loop for the strap looks very reliable, somehow reminding a rifle.
The removable rear lid is also of considerable thickness.
With a powerful clip, it is pressed on the body, which (at the perimeter of the battery compartment) is a thin rubber gasket, which prevents the penetration of moisture.
In our test sample, the clamp was so tight that it proved difficult to open the door. A battery connector for the SIM-card and the card memory is under the accumulator so there is no chance of an instant replacement.
The camera lens is not particularly protected – a normal glass, as in most cell phones.
At the left end of the swing are the volume and the universal connector shielded by the «sly» and tight sealing cover, protecting the filling tube from dust and moisture. At the right end the on / off button of the camera and the flashlight are located.
The keyboard of Samsung B2700 is executed on a rubber substrate and fits extremely snugly to the body. Despite the simple appearance (although when it comes to glamour there is so much of it around that it becomes repugnant), it is very convenient, no mistakes in typing and management, the finger always falls on the appropriate button.
The white backlight is very bright, and symbols are perfectly visible in any light, and it is pleasant.
Display
Display with a resolution of 176 x 220 pixels and a diagonal of 1.9 inches is of good quality: bright, contrasted, it provides a distortion-free transfer of color test images. All done at modest levels. There is an adjustment of brightness in display as well as in keyboard. Viewing angles cannot be called narrow which is something significant for a phone addressed to active users.
The screen is closed by the shade, which is at a decent distance from the LCD matrix. Thus, it has a chance to survive if the unit is dropped on asphalt from a human height. The protective glass can be shattered, but the matrix is not affected. And to change the screen is more expensive than the glass.
Protective Properties
The new mackintosh is positioned just as secure (certified IP54), and not as water-shock-mud-resistant phone. This means that you shouldn’t swim with it, dive in the bathtub, put it under the wheels of a car, checking the strength of the shell, or crack the nuts, in order to withdraw the edible core. The tube is designed for active users – bikers, skiers, snowboarders, tourists and other fidgets. If the owner falls from a great height, the shell tube should not be greatly affected, and in successful set of circumstances there will be no trace of the fall to the ground. I admit that a couple of times I did throw the device a stone road at a speed of 15-20 km/h, and… there was only a small dent left on the body. My colleagues did not take long to be persuaded, and they were happy to be included in the experiment, heartily dropping and throwing and the device on the floor, but the result was just a kick back of the lid along with the battery, which is just what should happen in such a situation.
In addition, I watered the B2700 by a watering-can, and to cap the water procedures dipped it for a minute in a mug with water. And nothing, it survived. By the way, the manufacturer states that with this innovation one could be caught in the rain without any consequences for the electronic filling. And more on water and Samsung – as the phone has two openings for the speakers and a microphone, the infiltration of water (in case of dipping, of course) inside – is a matter of time.
Here you can watch a video about how B2700 is taking a shower.
I did not risk larger experiments, simply because I was sorry for the device and because its «protective» properties were clear after 15 minutes with the tube.
Camera and Multimedia
Remembering that the predecessor had a «blind» STN-display, the 2-MP camera in the B2700 is perceived as a significant achievement of science and technology. In fact, the camera is perfectly ordinary, as in most modern tubes. In daylight, we get relatively high-quality images, but with the twilight picture noise is noted (for the camera of this class it is in the order of things). Running takes three seconds, the white balance is automatic for 2, 5-3 seconds, which is acceptable. The interface is represented by translucent icons, though, what the camera of B2700 is capable (in functional terms), you can see for yourself.
No outbreaks (of shooting in the dark you cannot even think), but it is better than its impoverished embodiment of a LED. From the moment you press the button «Start» until the end of recording an image in memory it takes 2 seconds.
Player
The MP3-player moved from the middle class Samsung models. Let’s start with the criticism – no audio settings (EQs), not to speak about the «hand» ones. I think that it is not incidental, as a separate processor for playback of music is not available and therefore – there in nothing special to regulate. While doing so, the sound quality is good, i.e. music sounds natural, loud, but somehow «unsavory»,(bass is not pronounced). But because the B2700 is not from the music series, the mediocre sound can be forgiven. Functional applications are decent – there exist rewind within a track, a breakdown of the content on the artist, album, genre, etc.
There is a mode of mixing, repeating, the song can be broadcast on the bluetooth-headset, as well as songs are suggested to be assessed on a 5-point scale.
In general, the player is well suited to this sport model. It is simple, no luxuries, normally works.
Other functions
It is clear that in a sporting device there are to be some sports applications. And they have a place to be. This is, for example, the good old compass with integrated altimeter. But if the compass determines the side of light correctly, there is something amiss with the altimeter. It stubbornly showed 50-52 meters, but GPS-Garmin device showed 175 meters above sea level.
Even when being on the 5th floor of the building, the height may be some 20 meters from the ground at most, but not 50. I, frankly, never understood what height was shown on the device.
There is a pedometer with a built-counter of the distance covered, and … calories expended on it. They are calculated in accordance with your height / weight and passed distance.
This function is very useful, and perhaps not only for athletes. After all its interesting how much you cover in a day or week.
LED flashlight, equipped with a lens, is bright, its light is enough to illuminate a small staircase, on which there is no light, or, for example, a dinner table.
In addition, it is useful to motorists or tourists-hitchhikers.
Also there is the normal range of business functions – a notebook with the possibility of creating a note of 100 characters, a reminder, world time, a calculator with integrated converter, handy calendar. Of course, there are is a timer, stopwatch and… five independent alarms.
Thanks to a high-capacity battery 1300 mA • h, the machine works quietly four days in a regime of 15-20 minute conversation and durative use of other functions. In addition, I used the camera while listening to the player from time to time.
Outcome
Terrible outside, «good» inside – this is how you can describe the Samsung B2700. Naturally, this device is for those who particularly need a phone protected from outside influences, rather than one equipped with functional innovations. It is clear that such a device can not have a QVGA-display, or to support the playback non-converted video. It has another challenge – to continue to work after the «bath» in the rain, or fall to the floor. With the value of about 7000 rubles – this is a good proposal on the market, and so far the only of its kind.
