Samsung SGH-D600

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Samsung SGH-D600
Samsung SGH-D600
Manufacturer Samsung Electronics
Screen 240x320 pixels (QVGA) TFT LCD, 16-bit color
Camera 2 Megapixel
Ringtone Polyphonic (64 channels), MP3
Memory 81MB, 4MB for Java applications
Memory card microSD
Networks GSM 850/900/1800/1900
D600E: GSM 900/1800/1900, EDGE
Connectivity GPRS Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots) 32 - 48 kbit/s, EDGE Class 10 (D600E only), 236.8 kbit/s, Bluetooth 1.2, USB
Physical size 3.78" X 1.83" X .85" (96 x 46.5 x 21.5 mm)
Weight 3.63 oz (103 g)
Form factor Slider
Predecessor Samsung SGH-D500

The Samsung SGH-D600 is:

  • a quad-band GSM mobile phone with built-in handsfree function
  • a digital audio player with MP3 and AAC/AAC+ playback with stereo speakers and 3D stereo enhancement and 4 DSP effects (normal, classic, jazz, rock)
  • a 2 Megapixel digital camera (1600x1200 pixels resolution) with a flash and MPEG-4 video recording (at up to CIF (352x288) resolution)
  • an alarm clock with three per-weekday configurable alarms
  • an organizer
  • a dictation machine
  • a video player for TV sets
  • a Bluetooth dongle

The slider can be configured for accepting and closing calls as well as locking and unlocking the keys.

One of the available accessories for the D600 is a stereo headset with earplugs on a neck string, a microphone on one of the earplug cables and a detachable phone holder which attaches to its bottom. It can be also used for the handsfree function of the mobile phone.

Contents

[edit] Features and specifications

Full Specifications and Features

The Samsung SGH-D600 is the successor to the Samsung SGH-D500, and differs from it with a slightly revised design, a higher resolution camera which is located outside the sliding area instead of inside, TV output, and support for microSD external flash memory cards. It also includes a Picsel Viewer for Microsoft Office documents. It is available in black/grey and Chrome color variants, and has a rubberized finish to some areas of its body.

Battery performance:

  • Stand-by: Up to 300 hours
  • Talk time: Up to 7 hours

Still Camera features:

  • Resolutions: 1600x1200, 1152x864, 800x600, 640x480, 320x240, 240x320 and 240x180 (can be changed in photo mode using the number key "2")
  • Zoom: 4x digital zoom
  • Continuous shooting modes for 6, 9 and 15 quick shots in resolution of 320x240, 240x320 or 240x180 (key "4")
  • ISO sensitivity settings: Auto, 100, 200, 300 and 400 ISO (key "6")
  • White balance settings: Automatic and presests e.g. for sunlight, neon and bulb light (selected using the "#" keypad key)
  • Flash: A white LED light, not comparable to a real flashlight but usable for adding more light on short distance. Controlled by the "0" key in photo mode, the LED can also be manually turned on before taking a picture. This way it could also be used as a very short-lived emergency pocket lamp (if the battery is full)
  • Self-timer: 3, 5 and 10 seconds, controlled using the "8" key
  • Real-time effects including negative and sepia, controlled using the "5" key
  • Mosaic and overlay effect shooting (key "4")
  • Brightness and zoom can be adjusted using the menu toggle keys

In video camera mode (key "1" toggles between still and video modes), nearly the same features are available. Zooming is possible even during video capture. T9 predictive text is turned on and off by pressing and holding the star/asterisk ("*") key.

[edit] Playback features

The Samsung SGH-D600 can play back .mp4, .3gp, .mp3, .amr and .aac files.
In the MP4 or 3GP multimedia containers the playback of the following tracks is supported:

video:

audio:

All these features, combined with the TV-out port and the microSD card reader on the D600, make it a perfect multimedia solution that fits in a pocket.

[edit] Comparison with other mobile phones

The SGH-D600 compares well to the Sony Ericsson W800 and the Sony Ericsson K750i. The phone supports Bluetooth 1.2, as does the W800 however, the SGH-D600 has a more vibrant, higher-resolution screen (240x320) compared to its competitors.

The SGH-D600 has a similar camera to that of the W800 (both are 2 megapixel, both 4x Digital Zoom). A difference however, is the autofocus camera and macromode feature of W800 and K750 which makes the camera far superior. The SGH-D600 also has MPEG4 / 3GPP / H.263 Video recording and playback.

The SGH-D600 has a loudspeaker, mp3/aac player and external memory. Although it is argued that these features are better on Sony Ericsson phones there are no real technical differences, and such comparisons are largely subjective. The SGH-D600 in fact sports "3D sound technology". Both the K750i and the W800 have FM radio where the SGH-D600 does not. The SGH-D600 has a much larger internal memory (81MB vs. 38MB and 34MB). The SGH-D600 supports the more popular and open microSD format, where as the Sony Ericsson phones use Sony's own semi-proprietary Memory Stick PRO Duo format.

[edit] Criticism

A supposed 'killer app' feature of the D600 that has been the routine subject of critical review is the phone's poor visual TV out quality. The image is so poor, in fact, that it has been rendered completely useless as a proper business application for which it has been advertised.[citation needed]

Other criticisms of the model include:

  • The phone can't be set to vibrate and ring at the same time, however it can be set to vibrate and then ring.
  • The phone cuts off SMS messages over a certain length.[citation needed]
  • The MP3 Player does not work in background.
  • The battery life is poor, and the battery life meter is inaccurate.[citation needed]
  • Java MIDlets can only be downloaded using GPRS via an online server, such as http://www.waphq.net which, although a free service still involves the service cost of the bandwidth to download. It is NOT officially possible to install Java MIDlets on the D600 via Bluetooth, IrDa, USB or Serial Cable.
  • The D600 does not support JSR 75 and has a relatively small RMS space despite having over 80MB of on-board memory.
  • The screens used are prone to failure and damage. This can be costly to fix.[citation needed]
  • The Text message ring tone is limited to the limited built in list.
  • Depending on the phone's firmware it does not support MicroSD-Cards larger than 1Gb.

[edit] Hacks

Links below badly need updating. Some dead links, others in German The D600 has several hacks that can be used to overcome some of the shortcoming of the firmware shipped with the phone. Most of them will invalidate the warranty and may violate any network agreements.

  • It is possible to use the USB cable or Bluetooth to download Java Midlets to the phone by using engineer codes and 3rd party software see this Tutorial.
  • There have been several versions of modified firmware available for the D600, most of them addressing the shortcomings of the firmware shipped with the phone such as the selection of message tones, background music playing and automatic sms message saving. The use of custom firmware requires a serial cable compatible with the phone. See this Forum.

[edit] External links