Samsung SCH-u740 (champagne, Verizon Wireless)

Pros: Much smaller than the enV or like QWERY phones. Texting with QWERTY so much easier than with normal keys. Quality feel. Good reception.

Cons: Some key problems, I will elaborate below.

Summary: My first review on the internet. Let me preface this review with the fact that I am not a techno geek, nor a techno phobe. I bought this phone to be used as a tool. I do not buy phones every few months and don't plan on downloading videos or songs.

I broke my LG 8600 about 6 weeks after I bought it, so figured I might as well get this one because the dual flip design appealed to me. I was never very good at texting using the normal keys of a cell phone. It's about the same size as the 8600 and just .25 ounces heavier, which is a good tradeoff for its extra features.

Build quality is fine. I'm not totally in love with the champagne colored case, but it isn't really a big deal. I'm not one of these guys who wears his phone on his belt (dorky) so I wanted something relatively slim for my pocket.

It's easy to maneuver around the phone, I did not need to use the instruction booklet.

My gripes.

When you open the phone like a clamshell, there are alot of keys you won't be using. In my opinion, these should not light up; thereby making it look less cluttered. In the same vein, the "dual use" number keys should only have the pertinent symbols light up in each of the phones two opening modes. For example, when opening like a clamshell, the large QWERTY letters on the numeral keys should not light up. Conversely, when opening it like a Sidekick, the small "tuv" and "mno" letters should not light up.

Samsung made the main number keys grey to stand out against the other black keys. Naturally this is moot in a dim or dark environment, and they instantly match the other useless keys when opened like a clamshell. A good idea would have been to make these keys a negative image, meaning a black number on a fully lit button; making a much starker contrast in both light and dark conditions.

When you open the phone in landscape mode (Sidekick style) the left and right MESSAGE and CONTACTS buttons are on the bottom left and right. Fine, but they disable the top left MESSAGE button, which does not make sense to me. It's more intuitive to have that key directly below the word on the screen.

As another review commented, the "P" key can be hard to type due to the fact there is a ramped up bit of plastic to its right.

Despite my few gripes, I like this phone and don't plan on replacing it any time soon. In comparing the size to a RAZR, It's .02" shorter and .04" more narrow .01" thicker and .11 ounces heavier.